Do You Have A Plan For When Your Baby Is First Born?

• Since becoming pregnant, have you spent all your time preparing for the birth of your baby but little time thinking about what happens afterward?
• Have you heard about the importance of the “Golden Hour” for your baby’s well-being but don’t really know what it means?
• Do you want to make sure you spend as much time bonding with your baby as possible without compromising their safe transition into the world?

Preparing for a newborn baby can be overwhelming—there’s so much you need to learn about to feel like you’re ready for the big day. You’re probably reading lots of books and signing up for classes to gain as much knowledge as you can about pregnancy and childbirth and that is great!

Here’s the thing though: The entire time you’re pregnant you’re distracted by the fact that your baby needs to exit your body before they take their first breaths on earth. Therefore, it’s no wonder most of your attention is focused on that life-changing event.

As a result of this singular focus, you’ve probably not given much thought to what happens right after your baby is born. It’s as if the birth itself is the finish line of the “pregnancy and childbirth marathon” you’re preparing for, so maybe you haven’t considered what happens next.

But what happens in the seconds and minutes after birth is critically important—understanding the physiological and physical transitioning occurring with yourself and your baby can have lasting effects on both of you.

Fortunately, the BEC’s Newborn Procedures course has answers to all of your questions and can ensure you’re prepared for what happens immediately after birth.

Because We Focus So Much On Giving Birth, We Seldom Plan For The “Golden Hour”

Most of us walk into our birthing place with a prepared birthing plan (or preferences). A lot of what is contained within it pertains to labor and childbirth. It might contain a few things regarding the first hour or two postpartum, but oftentimes some really important things are overlooked.

Childbirth education classes cover some of the things it’s important to know about, but what they include can really depend on the class and the instructor. If, for example, you’re taking classes through the hospital where you’ll be giving birth, you will be taught the policies and procedures the hospital adheres to rather than the most current evidence-based information available.

Unfortunately, we can’t assume most hospitals base their procedures on the latest research. Not unlike steering the Titanic away from the iceberg, it can take years before a slow-moving institution like a hospital makes changes to its long-practiced newborn procedures, even when they contradict the most current data. That means it’s up to us to fortify ourselves with the most up-to-date knowledge and make our own informed choices.

If you’re ready to gain an understanding of the significance of the first few hours of your baby’s life, we have the perfect neonatal course for you. It will show you how you can ensure your baby receives everything they’re going to need to thrive, bond with you, and transition well from womb to world.

Understanding Newborn Procedures Can Make A Huge Impact On Your Baby’s First Moments And Beyond

The underlying philosophy at the Birth Education Center is that it’s all about the baby. Our Newborn Procedures course is no exception. We are committed to teaching you everything that’s happening to your baby in those first moments of life outside of the womb and how some well-meaning procedures entrenched in our hospitals can actually interfere with their transition.

This course has been designed to be concise yet packed with informative information that is often not included in other childbirth education classes with as much detail. And to be clear, this is not a “Newborn Care” class. We highly encourage you to take a class on neonatal care as well, but what we cover here is quite different. We will be explaining the physiological and the physical transitioning that occurs the moment a baby is born and how to ensure this time is spent peacefully so that optimal bonding between parent and baby can happen undisturbed.

We cover everything you need to know:

• Birth Plans (and why we call them Birth Preferences)
• APGAR tests
• The Golden Hour (and its impact on the Newborn)
• Skin to Skin Bonding
• After Baby Arrives: Vernix, Optimal Cord Clamping, Hats
• Eye Ointment
• Breast/Chest feeding
• Colostrum
• Placenta Delivery
• Partner’s Role in the Birth Room
• Shots for Baby: Vitamin K, Hepatitis B
• Basic Newborn Tests (heel prick blood test, etc.)
• Newborn Bathing

Once you understand what is organically happening with your baby without anyone needing to do anything, you will be more mindful to let nature take its course. This allows you and your baby the time you need to bond without interruption or separation. Not all procedures are bad, however, there is a time and a place for them to be done that won’t impede on sacred bonding time. Knowing that it’s OK to decline or delay procedures from care providers when it’s a non-emergent situation can do wonders for your baby’s long-term development.

But you may still be wondering whether taking a newborn procedures class is right for you… Didn’t I already learn everything I need to know in my childbirth education classes?

Not necessarily. Hospital-sponsored classes will not contain the information the BEC’s Newborn Procedures course has. That’s because the latest neonatal research doesn’t support the practices still taking place within most labor and delivery rooms across the country. You should have all the knowledge and make your own informed decisions ahead of time.

Shouldn’t my care providers already know what’s best for my baby—why question them?

While we would never want to depict care providers within the obstetrics/gynecology disciplines to not have the best interests of you or your baby at heart, we are aware of the reality that exists within our country’s healthcare system. Change within these institutions comes slowly. We are encouraged that practices like immediate skin-to-skin and delayed cord clamping have become more commonplace, however, many more procedures need to be reexamined to align to evidence-based data. Many care providers are aware of this but have a difficult time implementing these changes within their large bureaucratic workplaces.

What if I don’t have the time or money to spend on another class?

We are committed to getting this important information into the hands of families and have kept the cost low with that in mind. And when you consider how valuable this knowledge is, it’s hard to put a price on it.

Understanding What Happens Immediately After Birth Can Have Long-Term Impact On You And Your Baby

Understanding what you need to know about the precious moments after your baby is born will have a long-lasting effect on both of you. We have developed it as a recorded presentation narrated by Care Messer, the founder of the Birth Education Center. In addition to the online course, you will also receive a printable copy for note-taking that can also be opened on an iPad or tablet and several additional resource pages.