Do I Need to Take Childbirth Preparation Classes?

Birth: a journey in life On this, one of the most important journeys of your life, don’t you want to be sure you’ve made careful preparations? Just imagine yourself going into any journey, not knowing what to expect, having no education on what to anticipate, and relying only on the information you learn along the …

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10 Steps To An Empowering Birth

Believe in the truth that you were born with the knowledge about how to give birth. Birth is instinctive and doesn’t need to be taught. Trust with faith your body’s ability to give birth. Learn and practice the primary human values — truth, right action, peace, love, and nonviolence. This provides an emotional preparation for …

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The Impact of Fear, Stress and Anxiety during Pregnancy and Birth on Women and Infants

by Sally Dear-Healey, Ph.D., PPNE, CCE (BWI), CD (BWI), TICP Research shows that “both psychosocial stress and pregnancy-specific stresses can have marked effects on pregnancy, maternal health, and human development across the lifespan.”  Moreover, both animal and human studies suggest that activation of what is referred to as the “maternal stress response” and resulting changes …

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Birthpedia

by Justine Tullier   Birth and babies do not come with instructions, and one could argue that they don’t need to nor should they. After all, our great great grandmothers and beyond did perfectly well without them, and we can see how, over the years, instruction and industrialized birth have done a major disservice to …

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The Privilege of Working with Young Parents

posted by RoseMary Joyce, CCE (BWI)   I f you popped into any Bump Antenatal Class run by The Youth Alive Trust during 2015-2017 you would be hard pressed to find any shame or hidden away mothers. Instead you would have been likely to find the most immaculately dressed, beautifully made-up mothers-to-be, and a bunch …

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The Importance of Prenatal Education

By Mali Schwartz There are many prenatal programs that have been developed over the years to help women cope with childbirth.  The first childbirth education programs in America were conceived by men such as Dr. Fernand Lamaze, a French Obstetrician who introduced The Lamaze Method in 1951 through observing birthing techniques in Russia.  Dr. Grantly …

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How Caregiver Inquiry Can Shape Prenatal Care and Birth Experiences

By Anna Holder, CCE(BWI) “What’s your cesarean section rate?” “What is your episiotomy rate?” “May I eat and drink during labor?” “May I have a doula/ lots of family/ a photographer at my birth?” Women and their partners are often encouraged to ask these and similar questions when selecting a care provider for their pregnancy …

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Have a Question? Let’s Chat.

Please don’t hesitate to reach us, happy to be in touch.

Cristin Tighe
Program Director & International Coordinator
programdirector@birthworks.org
1-609-953-9380
1-202-276-3521 Mobile/WhatsApp