Childbirth Preparation
Whether this is your first birth, or you've given birth before, we want to help you feel prepared!
Our offerings, separately or in combination with doula services, can increase your knowledge and build self-confidence for birth, breastfeeding, and the early weeks of parenting.
Classes
Classes explain your options, as well as your rights, and teach decision-making skills so you can decide what’s important to YOU. BirthWise class participants enjoy individual attention . Classes are designed to provide you with the tools you need to meet your individual goals-whether that is for minimizing, postponing or avoiding medical interventions.
Instructors:
Current Offerings
The following classes are taught by Susan Petrus by Zoom or in-person:
Contact Susan for more information or to schedule.
Birth Prep Essentials: Critical Skills for Better Birth: Let us show you how to begin preparing emotionally and physically for birth, as well as how to choose a care provider and birth location that are supportive.
Instinctive Birth (Birth as Emergence, not as Emergency): The Process of Normal Physiological Birth is truly amazing. Learn how hormones and physiology orchestrate to initiate and move both mother & baby through the stages of labor.
Navigating your Hospital Birth Part I: Basic Skills for Smoother Sailing: From what provisions to take and how to chart the course for smooth labor, to how to avoid unnecessary medical interventions. We'll explore normal hospital procedures, medications, interventions and discuss how to make the best decisions for your family based on medical evidence, available birth options, and your personal values and goals.
Navigating Your Hospital Birth Part II: Advanced Skills for Labor Variations: Births unfold in many ways. "Normal" is a huge range that includes many births that are not "textbook." Learn how to adapt and make decisions if labor does not start on it's own, follows a more meandering timeline, or is a planned or emergent c-section. Great preparation for creating a "Plan B" if the need arises.
Comprehensive Comfort Measures: Practice and preparation: positions, tools, massage techniques and relaxation exercises. Birth rehearsal… putting it all together.
The following classes are taught by Anjanette Robinson:
Contact Anjanette for more information or to schedule.
Welcome to Parenting!: What happens AFTER the baby arrives? The nuts and bolts of physical self care after giving birth, newborn behaviors, newborn care, and other practical skills & information to see you through the early weeks postpartum.
Soothe & Sleep: Make sure that everyone thrives during the early weeks and months of parenting. Is everyone sleeping, eating AND getting emotional needs met?Includes information about sleep, swaddling, babywearing, and how to stay connected with your partner during the transition into a family unit.
Birth Prep Coaching
Birth Prep Coaching started as a response to hospital policies during COVID that prevented people from having a doula with them during labor. If you are looking for more individualized preparation either in addition to, or instead of having birth doula support, consider Birth Prep Coaching.
During these one-hour sessions, we help you through the introspective work of birth preparation, including helping you clarify your birth values, understand your options, and hone your decision-making skills. Together we'll find and fill in the gaps of your birth knowledge, and we'll teach your partner techniques and hands-on skills they can use to make your labor and birth more comfortable and supported.
Birth Prep Coaches:
Body Alignment Sessions
Body Ready Method® is physical preparation for pregnancy, birth, and postpartum, created by doula and exercise physiologist Lindsay McCoy and movement specialist Lauren Ohayon. The approach is based on 5 pilars: pelvic floor, core, pelvis, upper body, and movement patterns. As a Certified BRM® Pro, I am trained to assess people during pregnancy, bringing awareness to body mechanics, movement patterns and compensations that your body is making. I will be able to offer specific tools to help the body work more efficiently during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. The goal is a pregnancy with fewer discomforts, an easier labor, more physiologically effective pushing, and a gentler postpartum recovery.
Certified BRM® Pro:
During an initial BRM® session, we will spend 1.5 hours analyzing your alignment and movement patterns, as well as discussing your prior birthing experiences (if applicable), and goals for your upcoming birth. I’ll teach you specific techniques and stretches to target areas identified as having less than optimal alignment and mobility.
Additional alignment sessions provide an opportunity be more proactive in your birth preparation by delving deeper, learning more tools and techniques, and having more time to integrate the recommendations.
If we are just meeting each other for the first time at the end of your pregnancy, you can still benefit from a body alignment session! While we won’t have the luxury of time to address underlying issues, there are still techniques and releases that can help your body and your baby by more physically prepared for labor.
Alignment Assessment: $125
In-person session to evaluate alignment and mobility, followed by personalized recommendations. Approx. 1.5 hrs.
Alignment Sessions:
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$100 per session for up to 4 sessions
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$400 for 4-session package that includes initial Alignment Assessment
In-person sessions to continue working on alignment and mobility in preparation for birth and for postpartum recovery. Approx. 1 hour per session.
End of Pregnancy/Pre-Induction Sessions: $125
Approx. 1.5 hours dedicated to making the most of the time remaining in your pregnancy to have a smoother labor!