Childbirth Education Classes – Group

Childbirth Education – Group Classes

Educación sobre el parto – Clases grupales

Empowered Birth Choices | Elecciones empoderadas para el parto

Natural Childbirth Preparation Class | Clases de preparación para el parto natural

Make Informed Choices. Cultivate Trust In Birth. Know Your Birthing Rights

Toma decisiones informadas. Cultiva la confianza en el parto. Conoce tus derechos durante el nacimiento.

A Four-Week Series of Natural Childbirth Education Classes for Pregnant Persons and their Birth Partners

Una serie de cuatro semanas de clases de educación sobre el parto natural en línea para mujeres embarazadas y sus parejas de parto.

Esta clase también se ofrece en español

Are you ready to embark on a journey of empowerment and self-discovery? You deserve the birth experience of your dreams!

¿Estás lista para embarcarte en un viaje de empoderamiento y autodescubrimiento? ¡Te mereces la experiencia de parto de tus sueños!

 

UPCOMING COURSES|PRÓXIMAS CLASES

Sundays, January 4, 11,18, 25 – 2:00-5:00 pm [English]

Saturdays, April 4, 11, 18, 25 – 2:00 to 5:00 pm [English]

Sábados, Junio 6, 13, 20, 27 -2:00 to 5:00 pm [En Espanol]

Saturdays, August 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 -2:00-5:00 pm [English]

Sábados, Noviembre 7, 14, 21 [ Nov. 28 -No Classe – Thanksgiving] & Deciembre 5 – 2:00-5:00 pm [En Espanol]

All Class times are PDT/PST

FREE FOR MEDI-CAL | GRATIS PARA MEDI-CAL

Regular Tuition: $350 per couple for 4-Week Series | $100 per couple for Single Session

FLEXIBLE FORMAT

This class will be taught over Zoom and you may either: join live class on Zoom, OR watch a downloadable recording for free to watch on your own schedule.

Su clase se impartirá por Zoom y usted puede: unirse a la clase en vivo por Zoom, O ver una grabación descargable de forma gratuita para verla en su propio horario.
 

REGISTER NOW

FOR MAXIMUM BENEFIT, WE RECOMMEND YOU ATTEND ALL FOUR SESSIONS IN SERIES

BUT YOU MAY REGISTER FOR ONE SESSION AT A TIME. 

Have questions? Fill out the “request to register” form, and someone will be in touch

Request to Register, or call (626) 388-2191 (Ext. 2).

Login information will be provided for all who register in advance.

 


HOW TO PAY FOR CLASSES

Pay By Check or Money Order

Make checks payable to: “HMHBA“, Send to:

Happy Mama Healthy Baby Alliance
600 Lincoln Ave. #92495 Pasadena, CA 91109

Pay by debit card or credit card at PayPal

Use the drop-down menu below to select “Group Childbirth Preparation Classes” then click on the “ADD TO CART” Button. You will then be redirected to PayPal’s secure website to pay using your PayPal account (if you don’t have one, you can set it up in minutes), or your debit or credit card.


PAY FOR CLASSES AND SERVICES


 

ABOUT THESE CLASSES
 

These classes are EVIDENCE BASED, and PROMOTE INFORMED DECISION-MAKING and EMPOWERMENT FOR BIRTHING PERSONS & THEIR PARTNERS

  • Get ready to take control of your birth experience with our Empowered Birth Choices Childbirth Preparation Class!
  • Are you ready to make informed decisions and feel confident during one of the most transformative moments of your life? Join us for an online class (on Zoom) like no other!
  •  Discover the power within you as we guide you through the journey of childbirth. Our expert instructors will provide you with the knowledge and tools to make empowered choices every step of the way. From understanding your options to building a birth plan that aligns with your values, we’ve got you covered.
  •  Learn essential labor coping skills that will help you navigate the challenges of childbirth with grace and strength. From breathing techniques to relaxation exercises, we’ll equip you with the tools to stay calm and focused during labor.
  • Join us from the comfort of your own home as we bring this transformative experience right to your screen. Connect with other expectant parents, share stories, and build a supportive community that will empower you throughout your pregnancy and beyond.
  • Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to prepare yourself for the birth you deserve.
  • Spaces are limited, so secure your spot today! 

BENEFITS OF THIS CLASS

These classes will help you:

  • Take an active role in making informed decisions about your birth and newborn
  • Make informed choices based on knowledge of risks and benefits and alternatives
  • Feel confident you can use labor coping skills to manage discomforts of labor
  • Provide effective support to the laboring person
  • Get breastfeeding started right
  • Know how to breastfeed your baby
  • Understand the critical importance of infant-parent attachment
  • Prepare for postpartum so to have a smooth transition to parenthood

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

  • First time expectant parents & experienced parents needing a refresher course
  • Expectant parents planning to give birth in the hospital, home, or birth center
  • Expectant parents who prefer to learn on a live ZOOM session 

LEARNER OBJECTIVES

By the end of this course, pregnant persons and their partners will have increased:

1) Knowledge about options for childbirth, understand pros and cons of medical procedures, and will make informed choices during pregnancy and childbirth and postpartum.

2) Confidence to give birth normally by utilizing labor coping skills.

3) Confidence in their ability to provide support to the birthing person during labor.

3) Knowledge to breastfeed the baby or support the breastfeeding woman.

4) Skills to care for the newborn.

5) Created a plan for postpartum recovery.

OVERVIEW OF COURSE

Class One: Understanding Pregnancy and Birth

In this session, you will learn about:

  • Fetal development, preventing preterm labor, and ways to reduce stress in pregnancy.
  • Coping with common discomforts of pregnancy
  • Eating right during pregnancy to grow a healthy baby.
  • How your body works during labor and birth. You will learn how labor begins and progresses, and when to go to your birthing place or call the midwife.

Class Two: Coping with Labor

In this session, you will learn about:

  • Ways to cope with labor such as breathing techniques, relaxation exercises, and the power of affirmation, prayer and energy work during labor.
  •  Positions for coping with labor and pushing.
  • How partners can help the birthing person stay focused and comfortable, trusting and open during the process.
  • How to bond with your newborn baby  through skin-to-skin care
  • How to surrender to birth and open to it with ease, fearlessness and faith.
  • Options for your placenta including placentophagy through placenta encapsulation, ceremony,  or hospital disposal.

Class Three: Making Informed Choices

In this session, you will learn about:

  • Your rights as a birthing person. You will be empowered to ask for what you want and stand up for what you  want during labor, or make an informed refusal.
  • How your partner can be an advocate for you and your baby.
  •  Medical procedures done in childbirth, their benefits and risks, advantages and disadvantages, so you can make informed choices.
  •  Pain medication options for labor and their effects on the labor, you, and your baby.
  • How to write a birth plan of your preferences for labor, birth, the newborn and the immediate postpartum period. 
  • How to lower your risk for emergency cesarean section.
  • How to increase your chances of a Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC).
  • How to have a family-centered, elective cesarean section.
  • The benefits and risks of different places of birth: hospital, home and birth center
  • The differences between Doulas and Midwives
  • Your values for childbirth and how to find a doctor or midwife who shares them.
  • How a Doula can make a real difference in your birth–and afterwards, too.
  • How Doulas support partners as well as birthing persons.

Class Four: Postpartum Adjustments, The Amazing Newborn and Breastfeeding

In this session, you will learn:

  • About the amazing newborn, medical procedures (male circumcision, newborn screening test, etc.) and newborn care (swaddling, soothing, bathing, etc.)
  • How the breasts make milk
  • How to know if baby’s getting enough milk
  • How to increase your milk supply
  • How to deal with common issues of breastfeeding such as sore nipples or low milk supply
  • How to pump and store your breastmilk and returning to work or school as a breastfeeding mother
  • About sex & intimacy after childbirth
  • Methods of family planning
  • How to create a “Reproductive Life Plan”.
  • Ways to help older siblings adjust to the new baby
  • Types of postpartum mood disorders and where to get help if needed.
  • How to prepare a “Postpartum Plan”
  • The benefits of a hiring a Postpartum Doula
  • The Father/Partner’s role in caring for the newborn and postpartum mother.

 


PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

We educate about and promote:

  • Informed consent and refusal in maternity care–not only is it responsible and ethical, women who felt they had decision-making power during birth had improved self-esteem and bonding with their babies.
  • Alternative choices in childbirth such as homebirth, waterbirth, birth centers and midwife assisted birth
  • Physiological childbirth–it’s natural and normal, and results in healthy outcomes for mothers and infants.
  • The lifelong importance of maternal-infant attachment.
  • Breastfeeding–it protects and improves maternal and infant health for a lifetime and is also eco-friendly.
  • Awareness of spiritual and emotional aspects of birthing.
  • Awareness of the influence of the woman’s social environment on pregnancy, birthing, and breastfeeding
  • Family involvement in the birthing process.
  • Complimentary modalities for pregnancy and childbirth: acupuncture, chiropractic, herbology, etc.
  • Attachment parenting and Biological Nurturing  as the most sensible way to develop happy and secure children.

 


Meet the Instructors – Conoce a las Instructores

ENGLISH/SPANISH  INSTRUCTOR

Tai Carson, BA, CPSS, CLE, CCE, CPSS, CPD, CMA

Tai Carson

 

 

I am a retired midwife who has attended over 700 births in homes and in a birth center. I have taught many expectant parents over my 35 year career. I am a Certified Perinatal Support Specialist, Certified Lactation Educator, Certified Childbirth Educator, Certified Postpartum Doula, and Certified Medical Assistant. I look forward to helping you understand the process of labor and ways to cope with the challenges of labor and birth and the immediate postpartum period.
 

Soy una partera jubilada que ha atendido más de 700 partos en hogares y en un centro de maternidad. He enseñado a muchos futuros padres a lo largo de mis 35 años de carrera. Soy Especialista Certificada en Apoyo Perinatal, Educadora Certificada en Lactancia, Educadora Certificada en Parto, Doula Postparto Certificada y Asistente Médico Certificada. Espero poder ayudarte a entender el proceso del parto y las formas de afrontar los desafíos del trabajo de parto, del nacimiento y del periodo postparto inmediato.

 

INSTRUCTORES EN ESPANOL

Linda Hart, CD, CPD, CCE

Linda Hart

 

Como doula latina y bilingüe, ofrezco una presencia tranquila y acogedora a cada familia que apoyo. Conocida por mi enfoque suave y mi espíritu animador, creo un ambiente sereno donde los nuevos padres se sientan realmente cuidados. Estoy profundamente comprometida con abogar por las comunidades vulnerables, especialmente las madres primerizas, ofreciendo atención basada en la comunidad e inclusiva culturalmente, tanto en inglés como en español. Mi objetivo siempre es fomentar un espacio cálido y de apoyo donde cada familia pueda prosperar. Estoy emocionada de enseñarles esta clase para que puedan aprender a sobrellevar el parto y entender sus opciones para el nacimiento.

 

 

 

 

Demaris Ortega, CD, CCE

Damaris Ortega

 

¡Hola! Tengo una profunda pasión por la salud reproductiva y la defensa de los derechos de las mujeres. Nací en Zacatecas, México, y emigré a Texas cuando tenía ocho años. Más tarde, me mudé a California para seguir mi licenciatura en la Universidad del Sur de California, donde actualmente estoy en mi último año estudiando Salud y Ciencias Humanas con una subespecialización en Español.

Mi interés en la salud reproductiva de las mujeres proviene de las experiencias de mi propia familia. Mi abuela enfrentó cáncer endometrial, mi tía tuvo problemas de fertilidad, y soy el orgulloso resultado de un embarazo adolescente. Estas experiencias personales me inspiraron a convertirme en doula, donde mi objetivo es apoyar a las madres—especialmente a las primerizas—a través de una experiencia de parto positiva y empoderadora.

Como doula, mi misión es brindar a las mujeres los recursos y la atención que necesitan durante su embarazo, mientras las apoyo y defiendo en cada etapa. Entiendo los desafíos únicos que pueden presentar las barreras del idioma, y quiero que sepas que estoy aquí para ti—ofreciendo apoyo compasivo y asegurándome de que tu voz siempre sea escuchada.

 

GUEST SPEAKER

TeDese Ross, MA, Fatherhood Program Coordinator

TeDese Ross

 

 

I am excited to be able to connect with fathers-to-be in this class. I am the coordinator of our fatherhood support program for African-American dads. “I believe that fathers and men bear the responsibility of overseeing the strategic direction and management of their respective families and communities”. Fatherhood is the hardest job you’ll ever love.

As a father raising four boys, I am passionate about giving dads the support they need during this momentous time in their lives. I am excited about sharing fatherhood wisdom in this course. I invite you to join our support group for black dads. For more information on the group, please contact me. I look forward to talking with you!

 

 

 


Cancellation Policy

Cancellation must be made in writing by deadline (5 days prior to start of course). Tuition will be reimbursed less $50.00 administrative fee if notification received by this date. After this date, there will be no refunds, with the exception of COVID-19-related illness, which will be decided on a case-by-case basis. However, in extenuating circumstances such as documented illness or emergency, the tuition is fully transferable to another person or training (this course or another topic); credit is good for the amount of training. If course registering into is higher price, the additional balance will be required. If it is a lesser price, there will not be any refund of balance. Credit will be honored for one year from the training. If not used by that time, the credit will expire.

 


 

Questions? Want to Register? | ¿Preguntas? ¿Quieres registrarte?

Contact:

TAI CARSON

Community Education Coordinator | Coordinador de Educación Comunitaria

(626) 388 – 2191 ext. 3 [se habla espanol]

Email: Tai.Carson@motherbabysupport.net