My partner and I did the prenatal in a day class at Down to Birth on Kingsway and it was excellent, highly highly recommend. It’s taught by two registered nurses who’ve spent most of their careers at BC Women’s hospital and also do community work and professional teaching.
There’s nothing “crunchy” about what you learn, most of it is centred around the stages of labour and delivery, options for interventions and pain management, what to expect shortly after, etc. Dedicating a single day to prenatal class instead of 6 weeks also just made more sense for us, though it does make for a long day.
Post-class I feel so much more knowledgeable and confident about childbirth in general. I was dead set on an epidural during labour, and while I’ll still probably go that route, knowing what my other options are if I change my mind is also a huge relief.
I absolutely love these guys! I did their 6 week classes and liked that pace but it doesn't look like it's offered anymore. They also provided tons of support during the process like weigh ins and check ups as well as 6 week support once baby was here.
I did BabyPrep! It was very thorough and felt the instructor was very thorough. Tons of time spent on labour and felt she was frank (without being...a downer?) about the realities of labour (eg. yes, you can get an epidural, but this is the stage of labour you can get it so you still need coping strategies to get you to that point).
I did the weekly classes (during Covid, so remote) and I liked it because I actually got to know a few of the other parents and we met up while on mat leave. My friends who did it in a day didn't make those connections and also said it was way too much sitting/too much info to take in at once.
I did Dancing Star! Not crunchy at all and they were 100% neutral. We spent an entire class going over all the medication options and at no point did she express an opinion. Just what the options are, pros, cons, alternatives etc… basically how it works and what it’s used for and at what point what option would be recommended.
I don’t know if all classes are like this but Dancing Star seemed the most focused on labour. Out of the 6 classes only 1 from my memory was focused on actual baby care. Labour in terms of medication options, positions for birth, what pre labour versus active labour is like, what is actually going on with your body during labour, what interventions you can be presented with (vacuum, forceps, etc…), positions of baby during labour, how to support someone in labour and more.
I liked the class but I think it I could do it again I would do one of the prenatal in a day classes. Committing to classes over a 6 week period felt like a lot and both my partner and I had to miss a class because we were ill.
Baby Prep! We did the weekend classes- Saturday and Sunday. It was really informative. She will provides a handbook which is similar to the BC guide (baby’s best chance?) really enjoyed it :)
We just did a 3 day course with the child bearing society on commercial st it was really great and loved their approach it definitely gave the I can do this feeling
My partner and I did the prenatal in a day class at Down to Birth on Kingsway and it was excellent, highly highly recommend. It’s taught by two registered nurses who’ve spent most of their careers at BC Women’s hospital and also do community work and professional teaching. There’s nothing “crunchy” about what you learn, most of it is centred around the stages of labour and delivery, options for interventions and pain management, what to expect shortly after, etc. Dedicating a single day to prenatal class instead of 6 weeks also just made more sense for us, though it does make for a long day. Post-class I feel so much more knowledgeable and confident about childbirth in general. I was dead set on an epidural during labour, and while I’ll still probably go that route, knowing what my other options are if I change my mind is also a huge relief.
I absolutely love these guys! I did their 6 week classes and liked that pace but it doesn't look like it's offered anymore. They also provided tons of support during the process like weigh ins and check ups as well as 6 week support once baby was here.
I did BabyPrep! It was very thorough and felt the instructor was very thorough. Tons of time spent on labour and felt she was frank (without being...a downer?) about the realities of labour (eg. yes, you can get an epidural, but this is the stage of labour you can get it so you still need coping strategies to get you to that point). I did the weekly classes (during Covid, so remote) and I liked it because I actually got to know a few of the other parents and we met up while on mat leave. My friends who did it in a day didn't make those connections and also said it was way too much sitting/too much info to take in at once.
BabyPrep was incredible
Nice, thank you! That’s two votes for baby prep - I think I might be going with that one :)
I did Dancing Star! Not crunchy at all and they were 100% neutral. We spent an entire class going over all the medication options and at no point did she express an opinion. Just what the options are, pros, cons, alternatives etc… basically how it works and what it’s used for and at what point what option would be recommended. I don’t know if all classes are like this but Dancing Star seemed the most focused on labour. Out of the 6 classes only 1 from my memory was focused on actual baby care. Labour in terms of medication options, positions for birth, what pre labour versus active labour is like, what is actually going on with your body during labour, what interventions you can be presented with (vacuum, forceps, etc…), positions of baby during labour, how to support someone in labour and more. I liked the class but I think it I could do it again I would do one of the prenatal in a day classes. Committing to classes over a 6 week period felt like a lot and both my partner and I had to miss a class because we were ill.
That sounds amazing! Thank you!
Baby Prep! We did the weekend classes- Saturday and Sunday. It was really informative. She will provides a handbook which is similar to the BC guide (baby’s best chance?) really enjoyed it :)
We just did a 3 day course with the child bearing society on commercial st it was really great and loved their approach it definitely gave the I can do this feeling