Childbirth Education Classes
Student loginHolistic Childbirth Education
Register Now for 2024 In-Person Classes
-for Parents Planning Births at Hospital, Home, or Birthing Center-
Instructor: Lena DeGloma's experience as a certified birth doula, certified lactation counselor, licensed massage therapist, and clinical herbalist informs her approach to holistic childbirth education. She is a Certified Cooperative Childbirth Educator (CCCE) through the Childbirth Education Associtation of Metropolitan NY (CEA/MNY) where she currently serves as President of the Board of Directors and teaches to childbirth-educators-in-training in the CEA/MNY teacher certification program. You will be learning from someone with both clinical and teaching experience in holistic health fields (massage therapy, herbal medicine and nutrition) as well as a decade of experience attending births at homes, birthing centers, and hospitals throughout NYC. Lena is also a mother of two.
UPCOMING DATES:
👉 Oct 2024, 3-week series (10/10, 10/17, 10/24) REGISTER NOW
👉 Dec 2024, 3-week series (12/5, 12/12, 12/19) REGISTER NOW
👉 Winter/Spring 2025 dates coming soon
WHEN: Thursdays 6:30pm - 9:00pm
WHERE: Brooklyn Flow Yoga, 198 5th Ave
This 3-class intensive includes the most up-to-date, evidence-based information to fully prepare you for the birthing process in all settings.
This class takes a holistic approach to childbirth and includes:
- An accessible overview of the anatomy and physiology of late pregnancy, labor and birth, including the stages and phases of labor, fetal positioning, and how to recognize when it is a good time to go to the hospital or birth center or have your midwife come to your home.
- A variety of techniques for actively coping with labor (with emphasis on massage techniques and optimal positioning for pain management and smooth labor progress).
- An overview of common medical interventions in childbirth, including practical tips for how to advocate for yourselves to avoid unnecessary medical intervention and to minimize the chances of having a cesarean birth
- Resources on natural, non-pharmacological ways to manage common issues in pregnancy and childbirth including herbs, nutrition, self-massage, etc.
- Access to a thorough and carefully curated compilation of handouts, articles, resources and other supplementary materials to complement the class
- Bonus materials: although this class will not cover newborn care, lactation, or the postpartum period, you will get access to a thorough compilation of resources on these topics
Fee: $425 per pregnant parent (1 partner or support person may attend at no additional cost)
REGISTER NOW (via Brooklyn Flow)
What Previous Students Have to Say
from anonymous class feedback & online reviews:This course was amazing! Lena is so knowledgeable and so gifted at imparting that knowledge. I had no idea what to expect, and had doubts about spending $400 on a course. Coming away, I feel the course was the bargain of the century, and that I can't believe we might have gone into childbirth and new parent-hood not having had this training.
I've been reading for 8 months, but I got more out of these 3 days of class than I got out of all of my independent reading.
The 2-day childbirth class taught by Lena is the best thing I can recommend to any pregnant person or couple. Empowering, informative, balanced--the things my husband and I learned have made us very confident and knowledgeable as we approach our baby's birth, and have transformed how we're able to communicate with our doctor about our birth preferences and why we have them.
I can't say enough about Red Moon Wellness's Childbirth Education course. The word I keep using when I tell friends about it is "transformative." It's a truly special two-day experience (in a lovely space at Bend & Bloom yoga studio). Lena is remarkable at combining her extensive experience as a doula and seemingly endless knowledge of pregnancy/labor/delivery with warmth, humor, and practicality. She easily created a comfortable, trusting environment among a pretty diverse group of parents-to-be. And she's also just a great teacher - she is down on the students' level on a yoga ball or moving around, dynamic and accessible at the same time. The course is incredibly educational, but also has a vibe of ... getting experience-based advice from a trusted woman in the community over tea.
The course was thorough and informative. Information was rich, evidence-based, current, and applicable to all birth settings. I would definitely recommend this course to other expectant couples because I believe it provides great preparation for birth and it's paced so that the information can be absorbed. I also liked the videos & handouts provided online - great supplements to what was covered in session.
I am so excited for my friends to get pregnant so that I can recommend your classes to them!
I think we have clearer expectations and feel more confident expressing our wishes to our providers and our family now that we have taken this class series. We also are able to actually articulate our labor and birth preferences now, based on Lena's suggestions.
This class empowered me to try a drug-free birth.
We went from a general state of fear of unknown around labor and the immeasurable pain that we had heard about, to feeling that we understand the process well, the things to be worried about, the things not to be worried about, and we're prepared to work through the pain. And none of it feels truly scary any more. This is PHENOMENAL - neither of us expected to get to that place before actually going through it ourselves.
Private & Semi-Private Classes
Lena offers private or semi-private classes for up to 3 expectant families in person or virtually. In-person private classes generally take place at your home (in Brooklyn or lower Manhattan). Private classes are $150 per hour (semi-privates are $165 per hour divided by two couples or $180 per hour divided by 3 couples) and a minimum of 3 hours per session. Private classes for 6 hours or longer can be scheduled to take place in multiple sessions over a number of weeks or as an intensive in a day or two.
You can pick and choose topics to tailor it to your desires/needs. Here is a breakdown of the topics and length of time we can cover them in:
- Understanding the labor process, physiology, stages & phases of labor, recognizing the start of labor, coping with early labor (2-3 hours)
- Active labor coping techniques & partner support (positions, massage, breathwork, hydrotherapy, etc) (2.5-3 hours)
- Medical Interventions in birth, evidence-based practices, informed decision making & avoiding unnecessary intervention (Inductions, fetal testing, GBS/antibiotics, IVs, epidurals & other pain medications, electronic fetal monitoring, pitocin, cesarean surgery) (2.5-3 hours)
- Second & Third Stage labor (pushing techniques/positions, birthing the placenta, complications/interventions) (1-2 hours)
- First 1-2 hours after birth for birth parent & baby (skin to skin, newborn medical procedures, the hospital stay or care in home or birthing center) (.5-1 hour)
- Postpartum adjustments (practical, physical, emotional, social) (.5-1 hour)
- Newborn care (2-3 hours)
- Breastfeeding (2-3 hours)
- Optimal Nutrition for Pregnancy, Postpartum & Breastfeeding (1-3 hours)
- Preparation for a planned cesarean birth (best practices in cesarean birth and family-centered cesarean births, postpartum recovery, newborn transitions and procedures, holistic approaches to improving health in parent and baby following cesarean birth) (1.5-2 hours)
- VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean - labor coping refresher, special considerations with medical interventions - length of class and topics vary considerably depending on needs of the family) (1.5-6 hours)
- Childbirth Refresher (for families expecting second or subsequent babies - length of class and topics vary considerably depending on needs of the family) (1.5-6 hours)
Lena's Childbirth and Teaching Philosophy
I do not believe in any one "method" as the answer to coping with childbirth. Instead, I teach a variety of coping techniques and emphasize supporting the natural physiological process of birth by listening to your body and coping based on your body’s needs in the moment (as opposed to a predetermined method that you are supposed to learn and practice). The foundation of my philosophy around childbirth is based in the conviction that birth is a normal, healthy, and safe physiological process that—while extraordinarily challenging—has the potential to lead to great personal satisfaction and a feeling of empowerment and accomplishment which can set the stage for a smooth transition into confident and loving parenting. I also recognize that there is an enormous diversity of birth experiences and many aspects of that experience are not in anyone's control - I honor and acknowledge that your individuals choices around your birth are what is best for you given your particular circumstances even if those are choices you had hoped not to make. There is no right or wrong way to give birth, only the way that is best for you - and I know you can make the best decisions for yourself when you have complete and accurate information. My approach combines my keen ability to digest and translate the most up to date evidence-based information with a critical eye, my deep interest in physiology and biological sciences, along with common sense, practicality, and a holistic approach to wellness that is informed by ancient wisdom in the context of our modern world. My intention is for you to leave the class with a sense of readiness and trust in your body’s ability to give birth and a greater set of resources and community to rely on for support in your transition to parenthood.