I've made up my mind not to take childbirth/Lamaze classes.  Mostly this is because my husband and I work when they offer the classes and also that people have been having and raising babies long before there were baby books and classes.  At my appointment this morning my doctor is "strongly suggesting" that I take classes.  They do offer free breastfeeding classes and "Baby and Me" classes through their office.  


Should I give in and take the classes to pacify my Dr or should I stick with my intuition that people have been having and raising babies long before there were baby books and classes?

i didnt take the classes with my last, and didnt plan to with this one and i did juuuuust fine. as long as you read up on things-just so you know what to expect-im sure youll be just fine.

Quoting tigereyes1921:“ I've made up my mind not to take childbirth/Lamaze classes. Mostly this is because my husband and I ... [snip!] ... should I stick with my intuition that people have been having and raising babies long before there were baby books and classes?”

Hey if they're free than why not? I would take them if they had them in English here...

I took classes w/ all three of my kids. Not because I thought I needed them, but because it was nice meeting other women who were going thru similar things.

I didn't take the birthing classes, I mainly just read "what to expect" so I, well, knew what to expect. I figured anything I learnedin a classwould go out the window anyway. We did fine w/o them though. I wish I would have taken a breastfeeding class. We gave it up way too soon cause I was way stressed out about it.

My husband and I had a wonderful time taking our prenatal classes. We took Lamaze & a breast feeding class. Not only did we make some wonderful friends who have children the same age as ours (duh), but we learned SO much. Sometimes it's nice to have other people to bounce ideas off of, too. Not everything applied to our L&D, but just having the information made me SO much more at ease. I suggest taking the classes, but in the end, it's up to you. Good luck!

I think it really depends on your birthing philosophy. With my first pregnancy, I did all the active birthing classes. Read all the books. Yada yada. And not one bit of it helped me at all during the actual labor and delivery. This time around, I have decided I am not going all natural. I want an epi- and as soon as possible. I didn't bother with classes. In neither birth was Lamaze ever involved. I understand the concepts of focus and biofeedback but don't put any stock in it when labor gets really involved. Just my 2 cents.

If you feel that Lamaze would help you, take the class. If you feel that you are planning on going a different route, don't bother. It's a waste of time.

My husband and I are taking the "prepared childbirth" class. I figure it's only 3 nights only $35, so why not. I'm a strong believer in that a woman's body will know what to do when it comes to birth, but the more you know about what to expect and what's going to happen, the more prepared you are to deal with it and not be afraid. Since I'm hoping for a natural childbirth, I know education and preparedness will help me deal with the pain.

When I asked my doctor what alternatives their were to classes, she looked at me like I was crazy. I told her we are really busy and it just not our "thing" and she talked to me about the one day course. IMO, it's not worth the money. I went to the library and got our Three DVD's (One Breastfeeding, two childbirht) and three books. So far I have watched one of the DVD's. I am going to have DH watch certain parts, but not all of it. I am an educated person and figure that I can learn what I need to know from these books and DVD's. Plus, most people I talk to say that the most useful thing they got out of the class was meeting people. Well, that's not worth $125 dollars for me. I am planning on taking the breastfeeding class ($25) and we are going to do the tour of the hospital, but that's it.

Quoting MommaMary ~GS~:“ When I asked my doctor what alternatives their were to classes, she looked at me like I was crazy. I ... [snip!] ... for me. I am planning on taking the breastfeeding class ($25) and we are going to do the tour of the hospital, but that's it.”

I'm going to do the tour of the hospital too because DH works nights and if my water breaks, I'll need my dad to take me in.  I'm thinking about taking the breastfeeding class, but I'm still on the fence about it.  I have several mommies in my circle of friends that could answer questions if I had any (including a labor and delivery nurse).

Both times I just went in and let nature take its course pretty much. I never saw the need for classes.

Quoting tigereyes1921:“ I'm going to do the tour of the hospital too because DH works nights and if my water breaks, I'll need ... [snip!] ... have several mommies in my circle of friends that could answer questions if I had any (including a labor and delivery nurse).”

See, in your case, i would say to hell with the childbirth classes... Seriously, you know how to read right? LOL... Sometimes I think doctors think we all need these classes cause we are morons that don't do our own research.

Quoting MommaMary ~GS~:“ See, in your case, i would say to hell with the childbirth classes... Seriously, you know how to read ... [snip!] ... right? LOL... Sometimes I think doctors think we all need these classes cause we are morons that don't do our own research.”

I think as far as the childbirth class goes, its a waste. As for the breastfeeding and baby and me I suggest taking them. Especially since our dr offices offer them for free. If I had to to do over, living in Wichita now instead of Newton, I would take those two. I learned a few things in the child birth class.... but it didn't matter, I ended up with a c-section, and they barely touched on those.