Childbirth Education – Private Instruction
Empowered Birth Choices
Natural Childbirth Preparation Class
Make Informed Choices. Cultivate Trust In Birth.
“Lamaze” Natural Childbirth Preparation Classes, customized to suit your schedule, interests, and budget. Taught in the comfort and intimacy of your own home or on Zoom.
Esta clase se puede impartir en inglés o español.
This class can be offered privately for the pregnant mother or birthing person and their birth partner. Please call us to schedule.
Or, register for Group Class.
For more information, submit the Birth Form 
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Areas Served Include:
Greater Los Angeles, Downtown, Crenshaw / Leimert Park, South Pasadena, Pasadena, Altadena, Mt. Washington, Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Echo Park, Silverlake, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, Duarte, Azusa, Covina, Claremont, Pomona, Walnut, Playa Vista, Marina Del Rey, Santa Monica, Culver City, Topanga Canyon, Culver City, Brentwood, Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Woodland Hills…and more.
During Covid-19, we are offering classes online on the Zoom format.
ABOUT PRIVATE CLASSES
Is your schedule too hectic to attend group classes? Need last minute classes? Private childbirth preparation classes are offered in the privacy and comfort of your own home or on Zoom to suit your schedule and budget, customized to suit interests . Instructor comes to you and transforms your living-room into a childbirth classroom or we can conduct class over Zoom. Classes are generally 3-4 hours in length and can include siblings, grandparents, friends, etc. at no additional charge. During Covid-19, we are offering these classes on the Zoom format or in your home safely-distanced (we can provide proof of vaccination and/or negative Covid-test, if requested).
INTENDED AUDIENCE
- These classes are appropriate for first-time expectant parents and experienced parents alike seeking a refresher course.
Learn from the comfort of your own home.
- Class is appropriate for expectant parents planning hospital, birth center or homebirths.
- Private classes can be customized to suit your interests and budget. We suggest four sessions for maximum benefit.
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
In short, we trust birth. We believe in you. We help you develop confidence for birthing, breastfeeding and parenting.
Classes are $50.00 per hour. To reserve class, $50.00 non-refundable deposit is required, applied to first hour
of classes. A minimum of one 3-hour class is required.
Payments by check, money order, or cash are accepted. Pay at: http://PayPal.me/AWMNH
Make checks and money orders payable to: AWMNH- Happy Mama Healthy Baby Alliance
Send checks to:
Happy Mama Healthy Baby Alliance
600 Lincoln Ave., #92495
Pasadena, CA 91109
Pay by debit card or credit card via PayPal:
To pay for classes, use the pull down menu below to select “Private Childbirth Preparation Classes”. Enter the number of hours you want to pay for (1 hour = 1 unit = $50.00). Then select “ADD TO CART” You will then be redirected to PayPal’s secure website where you may pay using your PayPal account or your debit or credit card. If you do not have a PayPal account, you can set one up in minutes.
GOALS OF THE COURSE
By the end of these classes, expectant parents will be empowered and informed so they can:
Private childbirth preparation classes can be customized to suit your interests.
- Take an active role in making informed decisions about their birth and newborn baby.
- Make informed choices based on knowledge of risks and benefits and alternatives to medical procedures.
- Feel confident they can use labor coping skills to manage discomforts of labor.
- Provide comfort measures and advocate for the birthing person through labor coping techniques such as breathing, position changes, water immersion, energy work, meditation and prayer, vocalization, visualization, and knowledge of risks and benefits of medical procedures.
- Get breastfeeding started off right
- Support the breastfeeding person
- Bond with their newborn babies
- Prepare for postpartum so to have a smooth transition to parenthood, or an additional member of the family.
LEARNER OBJECTIVES
By the end of this course, pregnant women and persons and their partners will have:
1) Increased knowledge about options for childbirth, understand pros and cons of medical procedures, and will make informed choices during pregnancy and childbirth and postpartum.
2) Increased confidence to give birth normally by utilizing labor coping skills.
3) Increased confidence in their ability to provide support to the birthing person during labor.
3) Increased confidence to breastfeed the baby or support the breastfeeding person.
4) Skills to care for the newborn.
5) A plan for postpartum recovery.
Classes can be taught on Zoom
DESIGN YOUR OWN CLASS! CHOOSE FROM TOPICS BELOW (Each session is 3 hours):
We will customize the classes to suit your interests and needs.
- Fetal Development
- Preventing premature birth
- Eating right for a healthy pregnancy
- Coping with common discomforts of pregnancy
- How your body works in labor and birth
- How labor begins and progresses
- “True” labor vs. “False” labor
- The phases and stages of birth
- How to time contractions
- When to go to the hospital, birth center, or call the midwife
Homebirth Preparation Includes:
- Preparing your house and family for the birth
- Planning for home waterbirth
- Preparing siblings for birth
- Arranging for hospital and MD back up
- Understanding how your midwives will deal with unexpected complications and emergencies.
- Breathing techniques and relaxation exercises
- Creative Visualization and other techniques
- Positions for easier, faster and more comfortable labor
- Support methods for birth partners
- Positions for effective pushing
- Trusting your body’s wisdom, surrendering and opening to birth
- Cultivating trust in birth; overcoming fear and anxiety
- The benefits of natural childbirth or “physiological childbirth”
- Orgasmic Birth?! How this is possible…
- The Role of the Doula–your partner in manifesting the birth you desire
We can also teach you in your own home
- Choosing the place of birth: hospital, home or birth center?
- Choosing your birth support provider: midwife or obstetrician?
- Pain medication options: epidurals and analgesics; risks and benefits
- Advantages and disadvantages of medical procedures and their effect on labor, mother and baby (induction, electronic fetal monitoring, etc)
- Informed Consent and Refusal–Understanding Your Rights and Responsibilities
- Birth by Cesearean and Vaginal Birth After Cesearean (VBAC)
- Creating a “Birth Plan” and Communicating with Your Care Provider
Class Four: Postpartum Planning, Your Amazing Newborn and Breastfeeding
- What to expect after baby arrives: physical and emotional needs of postpartum
- Bonding with your amazing newborn baby
- Newborn medical procedures: benefits and risks
- Breastfeeding Basics: Getting off to a good start
- A New Paradigm for Breastfeeding: Baby Self-Attachment and ®Biological Nurturing
- Kangaroo Mothercare
- Reducing Your Risks of SIDS by Co-Sleeping with Your Infant
- Laid Back Breastfeeding and other Positions to Make Breastfeeding Work
- Benefits of breastfeeding for mothers, fathers, babies and society
- How your breasts make milk
- Keeping up your milk supply
- Preventing sore nipples, dealing with engorgement and other issues
- Challenges of breastfeeding (inverted nipples, breastfeeding the premature baby, etc).
- Working or going to school while breastfeeding
- Pumping and storage of breastmilk
- Preparing a postpartum plan
Big brother or big sister classes can be customized in an age-appropriate manner for children ages 3-17. Children can be part of a birth process of a new sibling when the parents are comfortable with the child being present, they have their own support person and the child wants to be there. Having an older sibling at birth can lessen sibling rivalry and make the big brother or sister recognize their important role in the family. However, these classes can also be for children who are not going to be at the birth. Age appropriate materials and learning opportunities provided to help children understand and feel part of the pregnancy. Classes range from 15 minutes to 1 hour depending upon age of child ($25-50 per session, or as part of birth preparation series at no additional charge).
I am a Certified Postpartum Doula. I strongly empathize with Happy Mama Healthy Baby Alliance’s mission to primarily serve Black and other persons of color and of lower economic status due to their serious mistreatment at the hands of medical professionals in the field and as persons being more likely to experience infant and maternal mortality, suffer postpartum depression and have a lack of access to help with these issues amongst others.
The role of a parent will never be an easy one but with a little help, nurturing, and guidance we can make it a wonderful experience for all. As a DONA trained postpartum doula I am here to help you make the right choices for you and your family by providing you with evidence-based information and assistance free of judgment and unnecessary opinion. It is my joy to help you, as parents and the family at large make this transition a beautiful one. I have a BA degree in History. I am a first-generation American and a first-time mother in my thirties. I am a native Spanish speaker. I also speak some Portuguese.
Empatizo fuertemente con la misión de Happy Mama Healthy Baby Alliance de servir principalmente a las personas negras y otras personas de color y de menor estatus económico debido a su grave maltrato a manos de profesionales médicos en el campo y como personas con más probabilidades de experimentar mortalidad infantil y materna, sufrir depresión posparto y tener una falta de acceso para ayudar con estos problemas.
El papel de un padre nunca será fácil, pero con un poco de ayuda, crianza y guías podemos hacer que sea una experiencia maravillosa para todos. Como doula posparto capacitada por DONA, estoy aquí para ayudarle a tomar las decisiones correctas para usted y su familia proporcionándole información basada en evidencia y asistencia sin juicio y opinión innecesaria. Sería mi alegría ayudarles hacer esta transición hermosa!
This class may also be taught by other Happy Mama Healthy Baby Alliance Doulas
Want to Register? Need Information?
Email: Lisa Mejia or call 626-388-2191 ext. 2
LINKS OF INTEREST
Listening to Mother’s Survey I and II -U.S. Women’s Experiences of Childbirth