Healthy pregnancy (16)
- Childbirth education: Get ready for labor and delivery
- Pregnancy nutrition: Foods to avoid during pregnancy
- Pregnancy weight gain: What's healthy?
- see all in Healthy pregnancy
First trimester (6)
- Fetal development: The first trimester
- First trimester pregnancy: What to expect
- Prenatal care: What to expect during the first trimester
- see all in First trimester
Second trimester (7)
- Second trimester pregnancy: What to expect
- Prenatal care: What to expect during the second trimester
- Fetal development: The second trimester
- see all in Second trimester
Third trimester (9)
- Overdue pregnancy: What to do when baby's overdue
- Fetal development: The third trimester
- Third trimester pregnancy: What to expect
- see all in Third trimester
Pregnancy problems (14)
- Pregnancy and diabetes: From conception to birth
- Antidepressants: Are they safe during pregnancy?
- Coping with pregnancy loss
- see all in Pregnancy problems
Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
continued:
Childbirth education: Get ready for labor and delivery
What should I look for in a class?
Look for a class taught by a certified childbirth educator. Classes should be small — with no more than eight to 10 couples — to facilitate discussion and allow personalized instruction. Be sure to ask about the cost as well.
When should I take the class?
Childbirth education classes are often recommended near the sixth or seventh month of pregnancy — but anytime before you go into labor would be helpful. Often a series of classes is offered over a period of weeks during the last trimester. The earlier you register, the more options and flexibility you'll have regarding class dates and times.
What is my health care provider's role?
Your health care provider is there to help you have a positive birth experience. With his or her input, use what you learn in your childbirth education class to create a birth plan. No one can predict how labor and delivery will unfold, but together you can design a birth plan that meets your expectations for labor, delivery and postpartum care — and that promotes the best care for you and your baby.
Previous page(2 of 2)
- Lothian, JA. Preparation for labor and childbirth. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed April 10, 2009.
- Childbirth education classes. March of Dimes. http://www.marchofdimes.com/pnhec/159_12929.asp. Accessed March 23, 2009.
- You and your baby: Prenatal care, labor and delivery, and postpartum care. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. http://www.acog.org/publications/patient_education/ab005.cfm. Accessed March 23, 2009.
- Murry MM (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. April 16, 2009.
