Evidence Based Birth® Childbirth Class Syllabus
Overview of Class
Orientation Videos
• How this class works
• Stages of Labor
• Hormones of Labor
• Quiz
First In-Person Class
• Introductions and getting to know each other
• Set up our upcoming Zoom appointments
• Talk about our biases and beliefs about childbirth
• Describe how labor works
• When to go to the hospital (if you’re planning a hospital birth)
• Talk about the power of language
• Talk about the fear-tension-pain cycle
• Preview the toolkit we will be building to manage pain and anxiety
• Learn how to use abdominal breathing, visualization, and affirmations
• Discuss your assignment for next week
• Evaluate today’s class
Week 1 Videos: Evidence Based Care
• Evidence Based Care 101
o Why Rebecca started Evidence Based Birth®
o Three-legged stool of evidence based care
o Routine care vs. evidence based care
• Family centered care vs. top-down care
o What is family centered care?
o How does the power system work in hospitals and our healthcare system?
o Name the “tickets out” of the top-down system
• The Golden Ticket
o Interviewing your provider (and red flags)
o Research on birth settings
o Hospital birth
o Out-of-hospital birth
• Assignment, quiz, and evaluation
Week 1 Zoom Call
• Your Instructor will present statistics from your local hospitals
• Talk about eating & drinking during labor
• Talk about the evidence on due dates
• Talk about what you learned from the Week 1 videos
• Go over points and discuss your assignment for next week
Week 2 Videos: Comfort & Advocacy 101
• Support and Education
o Your labor support team
o Opinions vs. evidence
o Dealing with family
• Comfort Measures 101
o Basics of staying comfortable
o Environment
o Nourishment
o Music therapy
o Gate control theory
o Mind control (Central Nervous System)
o Introduction to acupressure
• Advocacy 101
o Talking with your provider in a prenatal visit
o Iceberg beneath your words
o Communication skills for partners
• Assignment, quiz, and evaluation
Week 2 Zoom Call
• Discuss the evidence on big babies
• Discuss the evidence on failure to progress
• Talk about what you learned from the Week 2 videos
• Go over points and discuss your assignment for next week
Week 3 Videos: Comfort & Advocacy 201
• Advanced Comfort Measures
o Hip squeeze and counter pressure
o Vocalization
o Using the Rebozo
o Water immersion
o Additional acupressure skills
o Epidurals
o Birthing positions
o Protecting the perineum
• Advanced Advocacy Techniques
o The term “allowed”
o Informed consent
o Love
o Last resort advocacy measures
• Assignment, quiz, and evaluation
Week 3 Zoom Call
• Discuss the evidence on Group B Strep
• Discuss the evidence on induction if your water breaks at term
• Talk about advanced comfort measures and advocacy
• Go over points and discuss your assignment for next week
Week 4 Videos: Interventions & Birth Plans
• Typical “bundle” of interventions seen at a hospital birth
o Using “BRAND” and the concept of a toolkit
o Interventions that can happen to the top half of your body
o Interventions that can happen to the bottom half of your body
• Labor Inductions
o Reasons for inductions
o Ways to medically induce labor
o Ways to naturally induce labor
• Cesareans
o Ways to help prevent preventable Cesareans
o Ways to have a family-centered Cesarean
• How to start creating your own birth plan
• Assignment, quiz, and evaluation
Week 4 Zoom Call
• Q & A about last week’s videos
• Q & A about writing birth plans
• Practice BRAND
• Go over points and discuss your assignment for next week
• Talk about upcoming labor rehearsal
Week 5 Videos: Baby & Breastfeeding
• Newborn procedures
o Delayed cord clamping and skin-to-skin
o Eye ointment and Vitamin K
o Circumcision
• Breastfeeding
o Partner’s role with breastfeeding
o Overview of breastfeeding
o Latch and positioning
o Feeding
o When to get help
• Discussion about creating a postpartum care plan
o Creating a postpartum care team
o Physical and emotional changes
o Identifying postpartum mood disorders
Final In-Person Class: “Comfort Measures Rehearsal + 4th Trimester”
• Comfort Measures Rehearsal (bring your doula, if you have one!)
o Hands-on practice of comfort measures
o Role play of advocacy scenarios
o Cheat sheet for the partner
• Q & A about breastfeeding
• Discussion about postpartum and the 4th trimester
o Changes your body will undergo
o Mental health awareness
o Self-care
o Creating a postpartum plan
• Collect prizes and certificates, complete an evaluation
Bonus Videos on Newborn Care:
• Calming a fussy baby
• Sleep safety
• Sleep sanity
• Diapering
• Bathing
• Baby wearing
Your weekly assignments will include tasks like:
• Reading various 1-page handouts from EBB
o Eating & drinking during labor
o Due dates
o Suspected big babies
o Failure to progress
o Group B Strep
o PROM (water breaks before labor at term)
• Practicing relaxation scripts
o Deep breathing and positive thoughts
o For the partner
o Ocean
o Forest
o Fear release
• Other assignments will include:
o Giving and receiving massages
o Spending time on a birth ball
o Trying hip squeezes and counter pressure
o Locating acupressure points
o Practicing deep breathing and relaxation in the bath/shower
o Practicing saying your cue words while doing deep breathing
o Drafting a birth plan
o Drafting a baby plan
o Drafting a music playlist for labor