“Women have to prepare for Birth in their heart, soul and body… not in their head.”
The profound mystery and spirituality of birth can never be understood with the mind; they are known through the heart. It is this knowing from the heart which is critical for women in preparing for their rite of passage. Birthing From Within’s multi-sensory approach has evolved to help women and their partners make that journey in awareness and with a heightened confidence.
Several fundamental differences make the Birthing From Within approach more than just another childbirth education method.
When I began exploring the possibility of creating a multi-sensory, holistic approach to childbirth education, I had a vision: parents learning through interactive, creative participation, in a spirit of fun and curiosity.
Too many classes and books teach new mothers about birth from the “outside”, in other words, how it is perceived and managed by professionals. But no mother in the heat of labor is experiencing “stages” or depending on her knowledge of anatomy and physiology to guide her. This kind of knowledge is fascinating, but irrelevant to a mother white-knuckling through a contraction.
The Birthing From Within approach prepares a mother for birthing from within. She needs insight about what labor and birth will be like from her perspective, and preparation to be in labor and give birth as a mother, not as a trained para-professional. This class offers guidance through the emotional, spiritual, psychic and social mists which shroud Birth.
Birthing From Within is a dynamic, organic educational method process. Feedback from parents not only determines what will be emphasized during their own classes, but also refines the process for parents in subsequent classes.
Parents are often asked to bring pillows to other childbirth classes for the purpose of lying down comfortably on floor mats practicing relaxation techniques. My first small step on the journey was to banish comfy pillows from the teaching room. I want parents to understand that not only was labor hard work, but wasn’t something they should do lying down. I specifically wanted to avoid strengthening cultural images of laboring women lying in a hospital bed practicing stylized relaxation techniques.
In our classes we explore personal and cultural beliefs about labor pain. Parents learn how these beliefs affect their experience of, and ability to cope with pain. We devote a significant amount of time to practicing the mindful pain-coping techniques. At the same time, there remains an open-mindedness to the compassionate use of pain medications.
The usual focus of childbirth education is limited to what happens in labor. But parents are hungry for other kinds of information. They want to know what to do after the baby is born. I realized that childbirth preparation should also be parent preparation.
I also consider the introduction of Birth Art to be my most significant innovation in teaching childbirth classes. Even for the timid and inexperienced, the art-making process is fun and relaxing. It’s a time for parents to reflect on what they know, need, want, fear and remember. Talking about their art prompts important questions and initiates lively discussions. Thus, in a reversal of the usual class structure, the class which is typically passive becomes “active” and offers inspiration to the teacher.
Author of Birthing From Within
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Click Button to see time and dates |
11-1:30pm |
$200 |
$25 deposit |
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