Antenatal Workshop for Parents
Facilitator: Vivian Jarrett (Psychologist) and Julie Fickel (Midwife and Mental Health Educator)
Date: Saturday 10-2pm
Cost: $50 person attendee for each workshop.
Suitable for women and their partners/support person who are expecting a baby. The proposed program is detailed below. Guest speakers may become Groups consist of women, plus partners or support persons. The program will address pregnancy, labour and birth, early parenting, relationships and emotional health. Each workshop will be offered after hours or on weekends and be approximately 3-4 hours in duration depending on numbers. Light refreshments will be provided. Please note: You may attend a workshop without having attended the prior ones.
- Workshop one: Suitable during weeks 8 – 16. What to expect during early pregnancy, and planning ahead. This workshop will be delivered by both a midwife and psychologist with expertise in pregnancy, birth and early parenting. Women will learn about morning sickness, pregnancy, fear of birth, parenting and problem solving issues around managing pregnancy. For women who have more than one child, women may want to learn more about managing with multiple children. This workshop will provide information on models of care for giving birth such as midwifery group practice.
- Workshop two: Suitable during weeks 20 – 28. Women will discuss physical and emotional health of mother and family. Women will be introduced to the latest research around coping during labour and birth and effective use of social and professional supports.
- Workshop three: Suitable during weeks 28 – 32. Women will discuss relationships, in particular couples relationships and changes that will benefit the introduction of a new baby into the family. This workshop will be run by a psychologist with expertise in couples relationships during the transition to parenthood.
- Workshop four: Suitable during weeks 32 – 36. Women will learn about an active birth, normal birth and possible complications during birth from a midwife. Our psychologist will share about how to manage the last trimester with career management decisions and parenting in the first 6 months.
- Workshop five: Suitable during weeks 36 – 38. Women will share about social support, last minute emotional health coping around developing complications in pregnancy or fears around birth. This will be particularly useful for emotional preparation for a natural birth, and in the case of complications such as a planned c-section, then women will be provided information on managing around the interventions planned and after the birth. Early sleeping and feeding management will be addressed during this workshop in preparation for the first six weeks.
- Workshop six: Suitable after the birth during weeks 6 – 10 and newborns are welcome. Women will discuss the birth experience, share about how the advance coping skills taught in the workshops were useful in the labour and birth, in their relationships and during times of stress. Women will talk about the return to work, parenting for first time parents or multiple children. Information on feeding and sleeping techniques will be provided. We will offer many ideas around these issues and the facilitators are open to hearing about strategies that women use to manage with their newborn. Women will be provided with information on postnatal depression.
The program welcomes women with expected complications, emotional health concerns and prior traumatic birth experiences. Women who feel that further individual sessions would be useful can attend any psychologist they choose at any time. If women have emotional distress they will usually qualify for a mental health plan which assists with the cost of group sessions and individual sessions.
Our program is designed to treat and prevent postnatal depression and anxiety and prevent complications during pregnancy, labour and birth caused by emotional distress. We will be providing the very latest research and local experts in the field. The combination of midwifery and psychology is designed to provide the best care for women.