Birthing From Within™️ offers extraordinary childbirth preparation through all paths to birth, facilitating the space for parents to explore their own expectations, beliefs, and decision making processes as they transition through the expected and unexpected challenges of pregnancy, birth, and new parenthood.

With a non-outcome focused approach to birth preparation that presents and normalizes the wide spectrum of experiences families may have, Birthing From Within provides information, validation and celebration of each person’s individual experience through the childbearing year, in an effort to reduce the incidence of trauma and help parents embrace their ability to give birth in whatever way that needs to be for them.

Lisa offers a 6 week Birthing From Within Series in an intimate group setting of 3-4 groups of two (pregnant person/partner or support). All sessions include pain-coping mindsets and practices, discussion-based content and hands-on activities designed to help grow new practical skills for labour, birth and postpartum while also promoting connection and community between couples/partners.

Session Outlines:

Week 1 – Exploring Birth (~ 2 hours)

• Exploring personal beliefs, expectations, and decisions surrounding birth.
• Birth as a rite of passage.
• Identifying fears and working through them.
• Avoidance and acceptance in the birth process.
• Pain coping mindset & practice.

Week 2 – Experiences of Birth (~2 hours)

• Maps in labour – Identifying and understanding the cultural norms around quantifying “where you are” during labour and birth.
• Clinical stages of labour – understanding the language of care providers.
• The personal, physical and emotional experience of birth.
• Holistic stages of birth – preparing for the whole experience.
• Understanding policies, protocols and the politics surrounding birth.
• Pain coping mindset & practice.

Week 3 – Autonomy, Responsibility & Decision Making (~ 2 hours)

• Decision making during the birth process.
• The illusion of choice – working with the unexpected.
• Informed choices and informed consent.
• Weighing risks and benefits.
• Locus of control – where do we fall within that as individuals?
• Our perception of responsibility.
• The expanding role of partners in pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
• Pain coping mindset & practice.

Week 4 – Coping With Labour (~ 2 hours)

• Our perceptions of pain – reframing the cultural narrative.
• Identifying beliefs and “rules” around pain coping.
• Making sense of science, intuition and working with what you have.
• Your birthplace, your provider – what is available for your needs?
• Comfort measures (rebozo, movement, water & touch)
• Epidurals – compassionate use of medication.
• Pain coping mindset & practice.

Week 5 – Thriving Through All Paths To Birth (~ 2 hours)

• Supporting the normal, physiologic process.
• Special circumstances – breech babies, induction of labour.
• Compassion, creativity and working with the labour you have.
• Caesarean birth.
• Pain coping mindset & practice.

Week 6 – The 4th Trimester (~ 2 hours)

• Coming out the other side – the birth of parents.
• Navigating opinions in a polarizing society.
• Making a postpartum plan, finding community.
• Feeding baby, getting the help you need.
• Instinctual skills, practical skills.
• Who are we now? “being enough” in our parenting & relationships.

Upcoming Group Class Start Dates:

Online Classes Coming Soon.