Franciscan St. Anthony's offers a bi-monthly preparing for childbirth class at their Marian Education Center. As our soon to be LIFE mom, I spent the last two Saturday's taking 6 hour course. For many parents or for those who have not yet made the decision to have children, it could seem like there isn't much to know, and I wasn't sure how much there was to know either. Well, as it turns out, there is a lot, and the preparing for birth class at St. .Anthony's certainly can prepare you for it.
The ladies who teach this class prepare you for everything there is to know from the time you arrive at St. Anthony's to the time you go home. They all have different backgrounds, but have all been in the labor and delivery rooms, from all sides including birth of their own children. Peggy, for example, was a nurse on the labor and delivery floor for 28 years. Although I could tell you all the ins and outs of childbirth class, I'm sure you don't want to hear those details. Here are some of the reasons I believe the St. Anthony's childbirth class was well worth our time:
First, time will be spent explaining each step of the process as your little one has begun its final stages of entering the world. Making sure you are aware of how to know its time to call your doctor and what precautions you can take before you even come to the hospital will also be explained.
Once you know its time, you are reassured exactly what you need to do from the time you arrive. In fact, they have you pre-register, so when you arrive you are already in their system. They explain to the partners where to park, where to enter the hospital and what will happen once you arrive.
Options, as a first time parent, you will learn all of the options and what they can and cannot do to help you through the process. For example, the rooms at St. Anthony's all have their own private hot tub for you to relax. The 7th floor, where the births take place, is made into a circle. So you can walk the halls to help try to speed the process while never being far away from your room. They explain to you all the options available to you. They have videos, pamphlets and go over how these options effect not only mom but the baby as well.
Once your baby has arrived and all of the initial hard work is done St. Anthony's has a firm belief that baby and mom should stay together. The class went over all the details of everything that will happen to your little one in their first 24-48 hours of life. I personally enjoyed learning that they want mom, dad and baby to stay together as much as possible so that the bounding experience. The hospital is fully equipped to help you those first few hours who are knowledgeable in so many areas.
Finally, on the day your little one arrives, St. Anthony's gives you time to rest, have visitors and enjoy those first few hours of being a new mom and dad. Once you have had time to settle down, they bring in a table with a very nice dinner and the table even has a table cloth. It's a very nice way for the new parents to cap off the very hectic and crazy time of becoming parents. They even give you options of chicken, fish, steak or vegetarian.
St. Anthony's seems to have thought of everything. While I am still nervous about actually going through the motions, I know that their staff will be there every step of the way.
To find out more information about the classes available to you through the Franciscan St. Anthony's network click here.