so if you're pregnant if you're expecting a baby you might be wondering about childbirth
class so if you find yourself in google asking what is childbirth class like very
likely you're gonna get an image like this one and in today's video we're gonna talk
about why this is not like childbirth class which childbirth class is actually like
and stay tuned to the end for tips on how to select a childbirth class that's right for you
now if we haven't met in real life my name is Alice Turner I am a doula a childbirth educator
and on my channel you're gonna find videos about childbirth so if that's a topic that you are
interested in go ahead and subscribe and hit the notification evelopment and you'll be notified the
next time a video comes out so let's take a really good look at this image here of childbirth class
so if you're looking at that image and you are in a time where in person childbirth classes
are canceled then of course that image is going to look really strange so the
good news is that when in-person classes are not available virtual classes are available
so what childbirth class looks like nowadays are more like images like this and images like
this and childbirth educators are being super curative on how they can make virtual zoom call
video childbirth classes interactive engaging and bring the same material to their students
but if you're at a time where in-person classes are still available this image still doesn't work
so in this image there are a few things wrong and it's actually kind of cringy
to me as a childbirth educator so can you imagine spending any time in this position
you would be super close to two other couples and the instructor would be right up in your
face this setting with some exceptions is not typical of a childbirth class chattel birth
class is often in a classroom so what images might be more realistic are ones like these
you
so a classroom setting is often where childbirth class takes place now there are some exceptions
some take place in a yoga studio you might have alternative seating arrangements but it's very
likely that this position is not one that you're gonna find yourself in for any amount
of time number two in this image what is with the outfits who is going to wear business casual to a
childbirth class and actually if you're thinking about it please don't childbirth class is one that
you need to be super comfortable in you want to wear something that you can spend several
hours and possibly move around if you're gonna do any kind of type of positioning or that kind
of thing please don't wear your best business casual and probably not dress shoes unless that
is very comfortable for you so whether you are taking a virtual childbirth class one that takes
place online or one that takes place in person here are some things that you are likely to find
in your class so topic that is often covered in a childbirth education class is anatomy
and physiology how does childbirth really work so childbirth educators will often have a few
tools that they will use in order to teach this topic so it's pretty likely that your educator
might have some models like a pelvis and a baby they might even have a model of a placenta that
they will use to demonstrate and talk about that topic they also might use something like
posters different visual aids they might even have some videos or video animations to really
get this topic across so depending upon the style of your childbirth educator it's likely that your
class will be interactive so that means that your educator is looking from input free from you take
part in activities you might even get into small groups to do projects you might get up out of your
chair and do different things what you probably won't do are images like this one which looks
a little bit more some type of ceremony that's going on and she doesn't look happy about it and
likely it won't look like this image that you might see when you google childbirth education
class where participants are awkwardly holding a birthing ball and showing their bare belly
but it could mean that you are up walking around maybe demonstrating different comfort measures
different positions with the instruction of your childbirth educator so we talked about anatomy and
physiology but some of the topics that you likely will learn in a childbirth class is
stages of labor how labour works comfort measures interventions possibly hospital policies learn
about c-sections learn about pushing learn about induction there's so many great topics covered in
the childbirth class and the one thing that most students come away with which is my favorite are
options for their birth to know your options to learn your options gives you more opportunity for
creating the birth experience that you want and which is one reason that I really love teaching
childbirth class now I promised at the beginning of the video to provide some information to help
you choose the childbirth class that's right for you now the first thing I think you should look
at is who is the educator now you might not know but a lot of childbirth educators go through a
extra level of training a certification to make sure that they are training at the proper most
updated evidence-based information so after a instructors name you might find some initials
kind of like this one on mine which says that they are certified in childbirth education so
my initials mean Lamaze certified childbirth educator there are different certifications out
there I do recommend that you check into them to see what kind of education and preparation
your childbirth instructor has the next thing you might want to consider is if you are looking for a
particular type of birth experience you might want to take a specialized class an example of this is
if you are looking for Amy Beck or vaginal birth after cesarean if that is your desire you might be
looking for a class that specializes in that type of birth also if you are planning or interested
in having a birth that is unmedicated you might be looking for a class that focuses on more of
a natural low intervention birth the last example is that if you are looking for a birth that uses
a special technique like meditation hypnosis you might look for a childbirth education class
that is specialized in that technique so after you evaluate your instructor and look at what
type of class if you're thinking about a special type of birth or special situation after that if
you are just looking for general Meishan about birth and to prepare try to find something that
fits your schedule your timeline and that meets multiple times now I myself have taught a one day
class many times but there is good information that shows that multiple days helps us learn
the information and we have a better chance of remembering what we learn if we learn it
over several days and that during those days the information is consolidated for us so something
to think about right now I teach both couples classes and supporting her class for partners
I will put links below to both those classes so you can check them out and let me know if
you have questions questions about them in the comments what I do encourage you to do is take
a childbirth class invest time in preparation for birth with one or many childbirth classes
I really do recommend them ok if you enjoyed this video you know what to do hit that like
button leave me a comment let me know what you think thanks guys talk to you soon bye