Move & Get Comfy for Labor was designed to keep you and your birth partner moving as you practice techniques that can help ease pain and promote progress during labor and birth. This class, and its accompanying "homework" videos, will make you think, make you laugh and help you feel ready for the big day!
This class is taught by two people:
Melissa Anne DuBois, PhD, RNC-OB/EFM, BSN, CCE, CLC, who is a nursing professor (she teaches maternity nursing) an experienced labor and delivery nurse, experienced childbirth educator, and mom of three. Besides being brilliant, a great teacher, and a BIG FAN of teaching YOU how to make YOUR OWN choices after getting all the information you need to make an INFORMED choice, she's also really funny!
Jeanette Mesite Frem, MHS, IBCLC, CCE, the founder of Babies in Common and an experience childbirth educator, birth doula, lactation consultant, and mother of two. She loves sharing techniques for parents to advocate for themselves, and she appreciates putting some humor into the process of birth and birth education.
This is an on-demand course in 3 parts:
- watch some birth videos
- watch Part One, which is Melissa sharing some information with you about the birth process
- watch Part Two, which was filmed where we used to do in-person classes, with us being filmed as if you were here with us, as we demonstrate positions and techniques (and Jeanette pretends she is pregnant) on the floor, in a bed, on a toilet, on stairs, against walls, on chairs, etc. It's actually pretty funny but yet so practical--and there are some free previews so you can get a taste of the style of the class. See links ------>
This class is for you IF:
- You are having your first baby,
- You want a refresher childbirth course,
- You have taken the other prenatal classes at Babies in Common,
- You took a hospital based class and need to know more about hands-on support techniques,
- You haven’t taken any other classes but are running out of time and need to take something fast,
- You are planning for an unmedicated or “natural childbirth”,
- You are planning an epidural but want to learn how to cope with early labor and want some benefits of mobility after getting your epidural
- You are planning a hospital birth,
- You are planning a home birth or birth-center birth,
- Your partner wants to learn how to best support you in labor,
- You are planning for a VBAC (vaginal birth after Cesarean),
- You are looking for one last “fun” date night idea before the baby comes,
- You are a pregnant person or their partner! (Seriously folks, this class is for EVERYONE who is expecting a baby!)
What is Included in Class?
- Before class you will asked to:
- Watch two important (but short!) films as pre-class homework. (You will receive details about those after you register for class and they will cost you about $5 each to stream online.) This is IMPORTANT to do, ideally before you watch the pre-recorded Part One of class.
NOTE about the two films: the films show babies being born. One video includes one birth, a water birth, with baby being born under water and is NOT a close-up view of the baby being born. The other video shows several births toward the end of the film, and some you see the baby coming out in plain view. You are NOT required to watch these scenes--watching the actual birth of a baby is not needed for birth preparation (although many find it helpful). If you see a scene where someone is saying "blow, blow" or a laboring person says, "it's going to come", those would be clues for you to close your eyes if you do not want to see the birth scenes.
Also, please note that if you haven't already given birth to another child or taken a childbirth education class that went over the stages of labor before, it's a good idea to do so (not a requirement, but you'll understand class better if you understand the stages of labor).
During Part Two of the Move and Get Comfy for Labor class we will,
-
- Practice doing 20+ positions, moves & comfort techniques for labor and birth,
- Give our hands-on guidance to help you and your partner learn how to perform these techniques correctly,
- Teach your partner how to use therapeutic touch & massage effectively with a laboring person,
- Learn about optimal fetal positioning and the many ways you can help your cervix and pelvis open for your baby's birth,
- Discuss options to make your birth environment safe, comfortable, empowering & conducive to a smoother labor,
- Teach you how to use warmth, cold, scents, taste, lighting, music, pressure, and water therapy to help labor progress,
- Discuss different ways of breathing and vocalizing as well as affirmations and mantras to use,
- Practice with an assortment of hand-held massage tools to see which ones you like best,
- Discuss how to advocate for yourself and your partner’s birth wishes,
- Demonstrate pushing positions to decrease your risk of tearing and medical interventions,
- Give you confidence in your ability to do this!
- Also included: additional online resources and "homework", including our exclusive Move & Get Comfy for Labor Guide© just for you!
Ideally, you and your birth partner will be together in the same room so you can practice with each other while you are watching Part Two!
Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers!)
When should I take prenatal classes?
Ideally, you'd start by week 28 and end around week 36. Of course, sometime we do have people who are finishing later than that, but those dates are the ideal. And ideally, people would sign up around week 15, to be sure your calendar is open enough to schedule your classes!
Can I see a preview?
YES!
Click here for a preview of Part One.
Click here for a preview of Part Two.
Are class fees per person or per couple?
Class fees are for one pregnant person and their non-pregnant birth partner (except for our CPR class, that fee is per person).
What if the baby arrives early or I'm hospitalized due to preterm labor and miss a class?
If your baby arrives early, you'll be refunded based on which classes you have already taken. Otherwise, let us know and we'll refund you for the classes you are missing.
When & How Much?
Fee: $130
Sign me up for the on-demand option for BOTH classes!
If you are on MassHealth as your PRIMARY insurance, use the code MASSHEALTHMGCL to get 50% off this class.
This class is co-taught by Melissa Anne DuBois, PhD, RNC-OB/EFM, BSN, CCE, CLC, who has a far-reaching reputation of being one of the funnest (and funniest!) childbirth educators in New England! She is passionate about evidence-based, family-centered, trauma-informed perinatal care and works hard to help all her students have a safe, positive and empowering birth experience, regardless of their birth plan or setting! Melissa Anne is an experienced perinatal nurse, childbirth educator, lactation counselor and mother of three children with three very different birth experiences. (One born at a community hospital with midwives, one born at an academic medical center with obstetricians and residents and one born in a giant birth pool in her dining room with a homebirth midwifery team!) Melissa Anne has been working as a nurse and educator in the perinatal setting since 2007 and has experience in high risk obstetrics, low risk labor & delivery, OBGYN offices, postpartum floors, well-newborn nurseries, visiting nursing and homebirth. She has had the privilege of helping thousands of families through their pregnancy, labor, birth, postpartum, feeding & newborn experiences.
This class is co-taught by Jeanette Mesite Frem, MHS, IBCLC, CCE, mother of two full-term nursing children, experienced pumping parent, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant/Registered Lactation Consultant, international speaker and trainer for lactation and perinatal professionals, experienced birth doula, certified childbirth educator, former childbirth educator trainer, public health specialist, certified nursing bra fitter, moms group leader and former owner of a local maternity and parenting center.
If you are interested in this class and have questions, please contact jeanette@babiesincommon.com
"My husband and I attended the move and get comfy course 9/7/19. This class is a MUST and wish it was provided to all parents versus the hospital prenatal courses. The class gives you real tools for laboring, how your partner, and care providers can support you. It gives you insight on how the “industry” of labor has changed dramatically in past 30 years. How to advocate for yourself and feel confident in your birth plan. The class also highlights the amazing and beautiful parts of giving birth. The power of a woman’s body, its phenomenal ability, and deep connection of mamas and babies."
~ Michaela Dardy
"I also wanted to write a little comment about the "Move & Get Comfy for Labor" class that Dallas and I took with you before Harper was born last year. After having 2 previous births both which I planned to do natural, I was missing the confidence and empowerment for each, caving for the epidural at 8+ cm. After meeting with Jeanette, leaning how to trust my body and find positions to really allow me to push through that "hump" I previously struggled to go over I was emotionally ready for my third labor. After this class, I was able to with really enjoy labor with my new found confidence, knowledge and awareness. I was armed with the tools my partner and I both needed and we had the natural birth I was hoping for :). Thank you, Jeanette!"
~ Angela Mall
"My husband and I took the move and get comfy for labor class this past weekend. It was great, the class is listed as 5 hours long but trust me it does not feel that long. It's a ton of great information and a ton of laughs. My husband and I feel even more ready and even more excited for our little cub to enter this world. Jeanette's humor and passion for her trade is clearly shown and I felt that it makes the class awesome and of course all the great things you learn. we definitely recommend!"
~ Sabrina Franco
"First time parents here and We are so grateful for all the Babies in Common classes that we were able to attend. New baby and Postpartum ready , Breastfeeding ready, and Move and get comfy were the classes we attended and let me tell you they made such a difference! The tips and hands-on help you receive in each class are invaluable. We’ve utilized pretty much everything we learned. Our parents are so jealous they wish they knew all we did now thanks to the classes!! Listen, make your life and labor easier and take these classes!! You won’t regret it."
~ Sarah Mahan
"Great classes taught by a seasoned former doula. I drove out from Boston for the "Move and Get Comfy for Labor" class and it was worth it. There were lots of practical strategies for getting through labor and it was very helpful for both my husband and I."
~ Bec Katz
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