Childbirth Education Classes and Breastfeeding Support

Moms-to-be and their birthing partners can learn a lot from our childbirth experts before baby arrives. Classes are taught by Sandra Flores, WHNP-BC.

We recommend attending at least one to two months before your due date. You should call to register as soon as you know that you are pregnant.

Classes are FREE and registration is easy. Just call 1-877-992-1711 to sign up and confirm class dates.

Where: Women's Center Education Room at Doctors Hospital  (located by main entrance of Women’s Center)
When: Sessions are held on Tuesdays, from 6 – 8 p.m.
Upcoming Class Dates:

• April 3, 10
• May 1, 8
• June 5, 12
• July 3, 10
• August 7, 14
• September 4, 11
• October 2, 9
• November 6, 13
• December 4, 11

*Class dates are subject to change. Please call to confirm.

TOPICS COVERED

First Class

• Why prenatal care is important
• Adjusting to pregnancy
• Basic nutrition
• First and second trimester body changes, discomforts and fetal development

Second Class

• Third trimester body changes, discomforts and fetal development
• Admission to labor and delivery
• Labor and delivery procedures
• Pain management
• Postpartum care
• Breastfeeding
• Newborn care (Instructor: Noela Avila, RN)

If you have questions or concerns involving childbirth, infant feeding and your hospital stay, please call 956-523-2273.

If you decide to breastfeed your baby, we encourage you to call the hospital's lactation counselor at 523-2530.

Benefits for Baby:

• Breast milk is easy for babies to digest, so their chances of developing gastrointestinal problems are reduced.
• Breastfeeding lowers the risk of infections and boosts your baby's immune system.
• Breastfeeding reduces your baby's risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
• Children who were breastfed are less likely to become overweight as they become older. They also typically score higher on cognitive tests than children who were not breastfed.
• Breastfeeding reduces the chances of children developing food or respiratory allergies.
• Children who are breastfed are less likely to develop eczema.

Benefits for Mom:

• Mothers who breastfeed decrease their risk for ovarian and breast cancers.
• Breastfeeding releases a hormone called oxytocin that causes the uterus to contract and return to its normal size after delivery. The contractions also reduce bleeding after delivery, decreasing the risk of postpartum hemorrhage.
• In some studies, mothers who breastfeed were found to return to their pre-pregnancy weight quicker than new mothers who did not breastfeed.
• Breastfeeding is free, so there is less of an economic strain on families.

Recommended reading:

“The Complete Book of Breastfeeding” by Marvin S. Eiger and Sally Wendkos Olds (Workman Publishing Company, Inc., 1999)