Evidence Based Birth® Hybrid Childbirth Class (Waitlist)
The Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class is a hybrid learning experience with in-person and virtual learning for today's busy families, delivering current evidence-based information in a friendly and approachable way. You and your partner will not only learn the evidence for both medical and holistic birth options, you will get to know Heather and other families who want to go deeper into their preparation for childbirth, postpartum, and newborn care, just like you.
The Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class is a hybrid learning experience with in-person and virtual learning for today's busy families, delivering current evidence-based information in a friendly and approachable way. You and your partner will not only learn the evidence for both medical and holistic birth options, you will get to know Heather and other families who want to go deeper into their preparation for childbirth, postpartum, and newborn care, just like you.
The Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class is a hybrid learning experience with in-person and virtual learning for today's busy families, delivering current evidence-based information in a friendly and approachable way. You and your partner will not only learn the evidence for both medical and holistic birth options, you will get to know Heather and other families who want to go deeper into their preparation for childbirth, postpartum, and newborn care, just like you.
Get Empowered With a Childbirth Class You Will Love!
Are you looking for guidance in how to make decisions in pregnancy, childbirth, and with your newborn at a time where new information emerges faster than we can keep up with it? Are you looking for a childbirth class that gives you the flexibility of online learning, but also the support of in-person connections? Are you looking for a trusted, unbiased resource to help you ‘know what you don’t know’? This class is a game-changer for parents that want to feel confident and prepared to meet their baby. Enjoy a fun, friendly, and approachable class environment, all from the comfort and safety of your own home! First-time parents and experienced parents are welcome.
What’s Included?
Mentorship from an experienced Labour & Delivery Nurse and Evidence Based Birth® Instructor, Heather Jones RN, BScN, PNC(C)
Five classes with your EBB Instructor, Heather, and classmates to prepare for the labor process and practice your labor skills
Five weeks of online videos for you and your partner and/or birth support to watch together
In-depth, spiral-bound workbook in physical or digital format (your choice!)
Bonus: Three FREE Birth Monopoly handouts on your rights: I Have The Right, Empowered Communication, and Empowered Consumer & Hospital Policy ($99 value)
Bonus: Breastfeeding and newborn care videos
“I was skeptical about the need for the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class in my pregnancy but I found it to be very powerful and soooo needed leading up to my labour experience. I received the course at just the right time for my family! I was most impacted by the example of the reply “we do this for baby” or “this is just safer” as a dismissive explanation when a mom inquires about anything while in pregnancy, labor or postpartum — I have personally had this occur and then experienced ramifications of taking that as a satisfactory answer.”
Class Outline
Session 1 – Evidence Based Care & Stages of Labour (April 18/24 Virtual)
What is evidence-based care?
Power of language and mindset
Overcoming fear & anxiety
How does labour start?
Stages of labour
Session 2 – Environmental Comfort Measures & Being an Advocate (April 25/24 Virtual)
Creating your birthing environment
Doulas & choosing your labour support team
Eating and drinking in labour
How to use a peanut ball & birth ball
Labour positions and partner support
Session 3 – Physical Comfort Measures, Pharmacological Pain Management, & Informed Consent (May 2/24 Virtual)
Different strategies for coping with labour (hip squeeze, water immersion, acupressure, opioids, nitrous oxide, epidurals, plus more!)
Pushing, birth positions and how to minimize tearing
The concept of being “allowed” & informed consent
Last resort advocacy if you are not being listened to
Session 4 – Interventions & Birth Plans (May 9/24 Virtual)
How to make decisions about common interventions in labour (IVs, breaking the water, vaginal exams and fetal monitoring, and more!)
Interventions that increase the risk of preventable cesareans
The best evidence on labour inductions and cesareans
Evidence on Group B Streptococcus (GBS) & prelabour rupture of membranes (PROM)
Strategies for advocacy
Creating your birth preferences
Session 5 – Hands on Labour Support Practice & The Fourth Trimester (May 11/24 [date subject to change] IN PERSON in Peterborough, ON)
Labour rehearsal to practice advocacy and comfort measures
Postpartum planning
The golden hour
Common newborn procedures and medications
Feeding your baby & infant care
“One of the things that was huge for both of us was the research… Not only are we learning things that are evidence based, but this is not one of those things where, ‘Just because someone put it in a research article, it must be true.’ We both really loved that academic aspect of it. Everything we had learned gave us a lot more confidence, and the ability to focus on what we’re doing and not have to worry about ‘what-ifs’.”
“I really appreciated how informative it was. I knew a lot about the biology of birth and babies, but what we learned was just very impressive. It was a really good experience—fairly chill, fairly laid-back, and not nearly as awkward as I thought it might be. All the information—I never would’ve thought there was that much information out there! If we hadn’t have taken this class, it would have been significantly more stressful.”
How It Works
You’ll benefit from a “Flipped Classroom” experience, and flexibility that accommodates your learning style and busy schedules. In between the weekly group classes, take your learning anywhere by viewing the dynamic video modules brought to you by Rebecca Dekker, PhD., founder of Evidence Based birth® at your own convenience. They are divided into manageable weekly segments, keeping you on track. Watch the videos first, then attend the corresponding class with your group.
Weekly Group Classes with your EBB® Instructor - Enjoy meeting other expecting families and make connections that can last a lifetime. This allows you a chance to ask questions and reflect on your learning!
Gain Personal Mentorship - Heather is an experienced Labour & Delivery Nurse who will be bringing connection and passion about empowering your birth!
Practice Supporting Labour - The last class includes comfort measures rehearsal with option of bringing along one additional family member, friend or doula! All enjoyed in a relaxed environment.
Video: Go Inside the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class: Using a Birth Stool
Want to Watch a Sample Class Video?
Watch this short video to get an idea of the types of skills you can learn in the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class! When you take the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class, you will:
Learn about evidence-based care and how to get it
Practice a variety of comfort measures and learn about your options for coping in labour
Know your rights as a birthing family and get comfortable with advocacy and communicating with your care team about your options and choices
Learn about the importance of supportive, respectful care before, during, and after your labor and birth
Connect with peers in a small, interactive cohort - classes are limited to 6 couples
Get prepared, get answers, get empowered!
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A lot of that info you find online about pregnancy and birth? It’s inaccurate! The benefit of the Evidence Based Birth® class is that we curate all of the best, evidence-based information for you. What’s more, you can ask your experienced Evidence Based Birth® Instructor questions any time– meaning you’ll have someone to mentor you through the process!
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Unfortunately, there are a lot of poor-quality classes out there, which have given childbirth education a bad reputation. The founder of Evidence Based Birth®, Rebecca Dekker, PhD, RN, APRN, knows how to make classes exciting for young adults. The end result is a class that is motivating and SO much fun to participate in. You will learn more than you could ever imagine!
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Routine practices in some hospitals are still about 15 to 20 years behind the research, and there is a lot of pressure to conform to traditions that might not be in your best interests. We will teach you and your partner how to be your own advocate—how to respectfully speak up for yourself, your partner, and your child. This is a skill you can use for the rest of your life!
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Our students are most excited to learn about the entire toolkit of comfort measures for labor. We cover pain management techniques like massage, water immersion, upright birthing positions, acupressure, music therapy, and deep breathing, just to name a few. Then you get hands-on practice in our Comfort Measures Rehearsal. When labor starts, you and your partner will be ready!
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For starters, we talk about the real issues affecting childbirth today. We do not shy away from addressing the issues caused by patriarchy, institutional racism, or lack of inclusivity in our systems today. We are not perfect, but we attempt to uncover the issues in a relaxing way and, when approached with an open mind, we find and discuss real life solutions to affect change for your birth.
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Your EBB Instructor is there to provide you with guidance after you watch the course videos each week. They will lead your class in discussion and answer all questions they can. If they do not know the answer, since this is a series class, they will let you and strive to find an answer for you by utilizing their resources and the connected EBB community. Your EBB Instructor is your touch stone through out the class and beyond!
What if I have more questions?
No problem! Fill in the form below and we will get back to you as soon as possible!
“Take this course! I started out nervous but now I’m very excited and looking forward to the birth of our baby! My husband and I feel very prepared!”
“Sign up! You’ll feel more prepared for your baby and your partner. You’ll have the tools to support both of them on the most important day of your life!”
What is Evidence Based Birth®?
Evidence Based Birth® was started by Dr. Rebecca Dekker PhD RN in 2012 as a passion project and a blog, but today it has grown beyond her wildest dreams. She is a mother of 3 and registered nurse with her PhD, who got fed up with how the system treats birthing families. They are a woman-owned C-Corp (no outside investors) with completely remote team members who work relentlessly to make research evidence on childbirth freely accessible to the public.
As a first-time mom, Dr. Dekker experienced birth trauma when she was separated from her newborn baby for three hours after giving birth. In contrast, she felt awed and empowered by the respectful and evidence based care she received at the home birth of her second child. After several years of writing at Evidence Based Birth® and working as a nursing professor and research scientist, Dr. Dekker found the courage to leave academia and focus on advocating for change full-time.
Today, the Evidence Based Birth® Team has grown to include research scientists, birth workers, and advocates from around the world who are passionate about safe, respectful, evidence-based, and empowering care!
“When I walked into the hospital to have my first baby, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. My husband and I had read a few books and taken the standard hospital birthing class, but we weren’t prepared to give birth in a broken health care system. I was told to stay in bed my entire labor and pressured into interventions I didn’t need, which led to preventable complications, a traumatic birth, and separation from my newborn baby for hours.
After my birth, I looked up the research on everything that happened to me. I was shocked to find out that most of what was done was not based on evidence, but simply based on the traditions and culture of the hospital staff.
The next time I had a baby, I decided to do things differently. I decided that I wanted an empowering birth, and to do so, I had to actually prepare this time! My partner and I needed to learn the evidence on childbirth practices, how to stay comfortable during labor, and how we could speak up and use our voices.
Here at EBB, we created the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class to skillfully mentor you and your support team in evidence based care, comfort measures, and advocacy, so that you can embrace your birth and parenting experiences with courage and confidence.
We will be there with you every step of the way!”
Additional Parent Portal access and/or a spiral bound printed workbook are available for an additional cost.
All basic registrations include:
Required Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class Workbook in digital form.
Three month Parent Portal access including childbirth class videos (plus podcast versions), all Evidence Based Birth® Signature Articles & Handouts ($440 value), all 34 Evidence Based Birth® topic videos (effect of epidurals on breastfeeding, natural labour induction, stretch & sweeps, red raspberry leaf tea & supplements, plus many more!), positive birth videos of real families, guided relaxation audio, and bonus accupressure guide with demo videos.
Upgrades:
This workbook and course access is only available as an add on to an Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class registration.
Includes:
Required Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class Workbook in printed form with spiral bound pages with space for written exercises and notes.
Six month Parent Portal access including childbirth class videos (plus podcast versions), all Evidence Based Birth® Signature Articles & Handouts ($440 value), all 34 Evidence Based Birth® topic videos (effect of epidurals on breastfeeding, natural labour induction, stretch & sweeps, red raspberry leaf tea & supplements, plus many more!), positive birth videos of real families, guided relaxation audio, and bonus accupressure guide with demo videos.
This 3 month Parent Portal access extension is only available as an add on to an Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class registration.
Includes:
Three additional months of Parent Portal access including childbirth class videos (plus podcast versions), all Evidence Based Birth® Signature Articles & Handouts ($440 value), all 34 Evidence Based Birth® topic videos (effect of epidurals on breastfeeding, natural labour induction, stretch & sweeps, red raspberry leaf tea & supplements, plus many more!), positive birth videos of real families, guided relaxation audio, and bonus accupressure guide with demo videos.
Ready to get started? Add the class to your cart to save your spot today!
Evidence Based Birth® Instructors are independent contractors and distributors of the Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class and are not employees of Evidence Based Birth®. You can find our terms and conditions for the class here https://parents.evidencebasedbirth.com/parent-membership-terms/
