Natural Childbirth, Our Passion

“Giving birth should be your greatest achievement not your greatest fear.” ~ Jane Weideman

​ Fear. Many women and even men have a deep, internal fear about childbirth. Women have heard the birth horror stories from other mothers. They’ve had fear poured into them through this story-telling. Men fear seeing their partner in such pain. They fear feeling helpless and not being a comfort during labor.  A lot of couples who take our childbirth classes come to Class 1 with fears that they need to communicate about. We love being that safe place to discuss these! And many find it’s through the education and knowledge-sharing that happens in class, that their fears get wiped away! Truly, it can be the fear of the unknown that triggers anxiety about birthing your baby.
 
My husband, Tim, and I were in the same position when we were expecting our first child! We wanted to learn all that we could about pregnancy, the birth process, labor and delivery…all of it; so that we could move into our first birth feeling prepared and empowered. And we did that! We felt that our childbirth class prepared us to enjoy our birth experience! That’s right, ENJOY it! There were no horror stories, no trauma, no panic, no regrets. Yes, it was hard. All of my 3 labors and deliveries have been the hardest things I’ve ever had to endure in my life. Hard, yes, but so incredibly rewarding. The quote above proclaiming that giving birth feels like an amazing achievement; that is exactly how I’ve felt about my births. They were empowering and confidence-boosting experiences, that brought me to my knees in awe of what my body was capable of doing. They showed me my true inner strength and the unstoppable pairing that my husband and I were together, as he was my rock and biggest encourager throughout the whole process.
 
So why prepare for birth? Why take a childbirth class? Because it’s a place to learn about what will happen in 9 months, to connect with others in similar life phases, and to be in a safe place to ask questions and discuss birth choices and options! It’s through the preparation that a momma can focus on having the best birth possible; by working on her good nutrition, prenatal exercises and communication with her birth partner, this will lead to better outcomes on delivery day!
 
I always like to use a swimming analogy when talking about preparing for childbirth! If someone told you that 9 months from today you would need to jump in and swim across the lake, but you do not know how to swim. What would you do? Would you sit back and just wait until it was time to jump in the water? Or would you go out, seek out swimming lessons and strive your hardest to learn how to swim? I know that for me, that 2nd choice would definitely make me feel more prepared and confident coming into my swimming day!
 
How will you prepare for your baby's birth?

We are excited to offer 8 week natural childbirth class series starting in August! Please check out our teacher website, www.confidentbirthwi.com, for more information about our classes!