On the whole, antenatal classes are a good thing. Even if you think that you:

• can’t face it
• haven’t the time
• know enough already
• think ignorance is bliss
• plan to have a Caesarean Section

So what’s the point?

1. Source of information. Knowledge will mean it is more likely that you will enjoy your labour and will not be frightened.
2. Going to classes helps focus your mind on your baby. (Believe it or not, this has been shown to be important.)
3. Meet other women in the same boat. With any luck, not only will you share your pregnancy with them, you will make life-long friendships.

Being prepared for a new experience depends on knowing what will happen, of course. Unfortunately, as soon as you become pregnant, you will discover that there is no shortage of advice and some very alarming tales of other people’s birth experiences. At least formal classes will give you some accurate information.

Antenatal classes familiarise you with the basic anatomy and physiology of childbirth so that you are able to understand what is happening. Fear is a powerful contributory factor towards pain. If you know what to expect, you are obviously more likely to enjoy your labour.

Classes should also teach you:

• to recognise how labour starts
• when it is important to go to hospital rather than stay at home
• how to breathe through contractions in order to conserve your energy
• the different types of pain relief on offer
• how to help your midwife deliver your baby

OK, I need to book into classes. Which ones?

Ask your girlfriends who have had babies where they went. It’s important that you feel comfortable with the people that generally go to the classes you’re booked into. There is an interesting spin off from antenatal classes – you are likely to develop some very strong life-long friendships. There is an odd thing about the friends of young parents; their eldest children tend to be the same age. Part of this is to do with going through the same hurdles – play groups, schools and so forth – as these are the places where parents meet each other. Often, however, the origin will have been the antenatal classes and this peer group will be a source of great strength for you over the next few years.

Start by checking out your hospital classes – these have the advantage of being taken by the people who are actually going to deliver you so the information you will get should be reasonably accurate. It’s also good to familiarise yourself with some faces. The National Childbirth Trust is another avenue to pursue. They run classes virtually everywhere in Great Britain. If you ring their headquarters in London, they will give you names of the booking clerk for your area. The NCT is a charity and trains its own teachers. Most of the teachers will have small children of their own and are from a wide variety of backgrounds, some of them medical. Although there is a fee, the classes are subsidised so it’s not too expensive. There may also be pregnancy Yoga or exercise classes or similar in your area, which you could go to in addition to antenatal classes.

Be very careful you don’t sign up to anything where the teacher has a crusade for any particular type of birth, be it ‘natural’ (no pain relief), underwater or at home. Your teacher certainly shouldn’t be giving you the impression that she is anti-midwife or anti-doctor. It is important for you that at the end of your course you go into labour with confidence, an open mind and realistic expectations. Essentially, you should be prepared for any eventuality. Remember that no classes and no special exercises can determine a straightforward delivery. The position of the baby determines the type of labour – not willpower, breathing, special diet, aromatherapy or a particular exercise.

One last point – move quickly. All antenatal classes seem to get horribly booked up. Better to book into a couple early on, do your homework and then cancel one of them later if necessary.