Hug Your Baby: childbirth education

Showing posts with label childbirth education. Show all posts

BSN research includes HUG Your Baby in Childbirth Education

Molly Rippe, BSN, from Durham NC shares her research using HUG Your Baby.

I really enjoyed teaching breastfeeding using the HUG curriculum and resources. The couples in the class came up to me afterwards and were so excited to start their breastfeeding journeys! All were expecting their first baby, and took the HUG DVD home with them. The partners were also eager to help and support them in the breastfeeding journey. Because I collected data on this class, through my pilot study, I know that the participatns increased their knowledge and self-efficacy about breastfeeding during this course, and I truly feel they will be more prepared to continue through any challenges that they may face. The video content was a great way to engage the class as well.

I taught a 30-minute segment of a longer childbirth preparation course that focused on breastfeeding. I used HUG curriculum to support this teaching in a pilot study to test whether the curriculum could increase prenatal breastfeeding self-efficacy, breastfeeding knowledge, and intention to breastfeed. I specifically used the Roadmap to Breastfeeding Success, and teaching about newborn behavior to create a more well-rounded understanding of breastfeeding.

The outline of my class was as follows:

Start with a discussion about the myths and challenges that participants have heard about breastfeeding. I led the discussion and guided it so that it covered several key topics
- Pain: what a proper latch looks and feels like, and who to call if you are experiencing pain, as this is not normal. Demonstration using breast and video was used to understand latch
- Lack of milk supply: understanding when a woman’s milk supply comes in, the size of the newborn’s stomach, colostrum, counting diapers for numbers of pees and poos
- Challenges with breastfeeding and going back to work: overall babies who are breastfed are healthier, have stronger immune systems, and cause moms to miss less days of work because they are not sick as often as formula fed babies.
Introducing the baby-friendly concept and how giving birth at UNC is different in the support received for breastfeeding by this hospital designation
Watching first HUG video clip about newborn behaviors and signs that your baby is hungry
- After video, we discussed the common signals a newborn uses to communicate with us and let us know they are hungry: wiggle and squirm, lip smacking, bringing hands to mouth, and the last one is crying
Watched second HUG video
Practiced breastfeeding holding positions with baby-dolls
- Emphasize that they need to be comfortable to have success
- Ways partner can help
- Positions to practice: cross cradle, football hold, side lying and reclining
Close with the health benefits to both mom and baby when breastfeeding
- Ask yourself—who are your friends and family members who are going to be supportive of your breastfeeding journey, and similarly, who do youknow that is not going to be supportive?
- Surround yourself with support!
- Provide lactation hotline number at UNC- available for help for first 12 months postpartum

Childbirth Educator Knows that Expectant Parents Need The HUG!

Alisa Perozo-Dickerson is a registered nurse from St. Louis, Missouri. She recently had a baby boy of her own, and has decided to find a way to work less while raising him. She has begun her own Childbirth Education business and is integrating HUG Your Baby into her newborn classes.

I am so excited to be able to offer a class on "newborn behavior" to my clients. So often you see classes that go over basic care, hygiene, and the "how-to's" of baby care- but they lack the explanation behind the baby's behavior. It's interesting, because I began certifying as a HUG Teacher right when my own baby was six weeks old. This course actually has helped my husband and myself tremendously! I remember watching my husband (a first time daddy) play with our son, and the baby would keep looking away from him. I saw the disappointment in my husband's face as he continued to look for that eye contact. He actually said, "I don't think he likes me as much as he likes you. He won't even look at me." It was amazing to witness first hand how much one simple SOS could affect how a parent views himself! I quickly explained the "switching off" SOS and now my husband regularly uses the terminology, "he's over-stimulated."

I also recently came across a question on a local community forum asking if a baby should be evaluated for autism- for the very same reason! The baby was not making eye contact and was looking away from his mother, and the mother was extremely concerned. I was very glad to be able to explain that the behavior was not only normal, but expected!

This program is so vital and important to new parents, so that parents can form strong attachments with their babies from the beginning, instead of making negative inferences about themselves or their babies due to normal newborn behavior. I am looking forward to being able to help new parents accomplish this, using the HUG Your Baby program.

Jan and Barbara Present at Lamaze International

Barbara Hotelling and I had a wonderful time this weekend presenting "Roadmap to Breastfeeding Success: Lamaze Educators navigate the Way!"

We had a room full of dedicated childbirth educators, doulas, nurses and lactation consultants. They were interested in the broad picture of barriers which interfere with breastfeeding duration and how these issues can be addressed with a systematic approach to breastfeeding support. Barbara helped participants understand the great opportunity to promote breastfeeding duration during childbirth education. Jan offered ideas about using E-Newsletter with video clips of mothers teaching mothers about how to overcome these barriers as well as understand and negotiate the predictable "bumps in the road" encountered along the way.

CAPPA Trainee explores The HUG with her kids!

Leslie Rusgrove is training with CAPPA to become a Childbirth Educator. Today she completed the HUG Your Baby training (Part I) which is now required for all CAPPA certifications. I love to make a quick follow-up phone call to people who complete this program.

What a lovely talk Leslie and I had about her efforts as a full-time mom and a new childbirth educator trainee! Though she considers herself an experienced mom, she was surprised that The HUG had so much to offer her. "The ideas are easy to understand," she explains.

What I loved most about our conversation was her experience watching The HUG Part I course along with her four- and seven-year-old girls and nine-year-old son. "We do lots of things together," so sharing this experience was just one of the many things this active, involved mom does to involve her kids with learning. "They liked looking at the little babies," she explains. I can't help but find a smile on my face thinking that Leslie's children, along with their mom, learned to read a baby's body language. It is satisfying to know that HUG Your Baby can help children begin to discover the joys of parenting.

"I didn't know my baby was a REAL person," the young dad says.

My friend teaches a wonderful childbirth education classes but ask me to cover "The Newborn" one evening while she is out of town. Though this class has traditionally been used to teach how to diaper a baby or give a bath, I decide to take a different approach.

"Tonight we will discuss learning to read your baby's body language. You might say we're gonna learn to talk Baby Talk!" I say as I turn on The HUG Your Baby DVD. "Let's learn about three newborn Zones (Resting, Ready, & Rebooting Zone) and a newborn’s SOSs (Signs of Over-Stimulation)."

We watch the video showing a baby in that amazing Ready Zone.
Her eyes are bright, she looks attentive and ready to eat or play. Another baby demonstrates the all-too-familiar Rebooting Zone when we see baby's arms get jerky, his breathing increase and his face squeeze into that crying mode. As we look at the baby in the Resting Zone, one dad contributes to this light-hearted class, "Looks like me after Thanksgiving dinner!"

Together we then watch as a baby sends out an SOS- Sign of Over-Stimulation. Little Caleb on the video shows us those Body SOSs as the nurse plays with him. He gets a bit red in color, his movement gets jerky and he starts to tremor, and his breathing gets faster. "I would have worried that he was having some kind of meltdown, " the young father-to-be offers. He seems relieved when he sees how the baby calms down when the nurse holds his hands against his chest, swaddles him and quietens her voice.

The expectant moms and dads are surprised by the Behavioral SOSs: Spacing Out, Switching Off and Shutting Down. One Dad-to-be reflects on this behavior, "That kid is just like me. My wife says I 'Switch Off' like that!"

Amazed at how much a baby can communicate, another dad sums it up by exclaiming, “I never knew babies were REAL PEOPLE!” This young father goes on to explain how he had worried about spoiling his baby. "But, now I see that I can understand that my baby is just 'talking to me'. That's not spoiling him. It's just being a good dad!"

I am curious to see if this view of the infant as a REAL person, ready and able to communicate, might spark questions about how birthing choices effect that baby. I review information on natural oxytocin and adrenaline and its influences on the newborn's ability to be alert at birth. We then consider the impact of birthing interventions on the newborn. I suddenly see a sparkle in the eyes of one pregnant woman. "I can't wait to get to know my baby! I want to do all I can to help her come into this world ready to communicate with me!"

This evening I experience the magic of childbirth education. Tonight several young couples understand that one's choices about giving birth are in fact a choice about parenting. Including information of reading a baby's body language in a childbirth education class helps these parents take a big step toward being the good moms and dads they want to be!

© HUG Your Baby 2016

Certified HUG Teacher teaches "Look What We Can Do!"

Jennifer Johnson is a labor and delivery nurse and ICEA certified childbirth educator at Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville, Illinois. Jennifer not only has the pleasure of meeting expectant families during the prenatal period when they attend prenatal education classes, but she also has the unique privilege of facilitating a mother/baby education program called “Look What We Can Do.” This program meets weekly to discuss relevant educational topics and lend support to new mothers. Jennifer’s most important job is being a mother herself to five amazing children: Alyssa 16, Madison 14, Savannah 9, Isabel 7, and Zachary 5.

Even after fifteen years of OB nursing and prenatal education I still feel incredibly privileged to be a part of such a special time in a new family’ life. Nothing is more beautiful than the bond of a new parent and her baby. I am excited to incorporate The HUG video into my “Caring for Your Newborn “class. I have always shown “Your Amazing Newborn” featuring T.B Brazelton’s work. I had not been able to replace this dated video because the content was just so good. But now have found my solution – The HUG DVD!! I love to watch expectant parents facial expressions as they view infant behavior. That look is simply priceless.

Equally as exciting is when I show this video to my new mothers support group. Here moms with babies ranging from one week to six months old meet to learn about their baby’s growing and developing. It is amazing to see light bulbs go off as these mothers absorb the content and come to realize, “I DO know what I am doing as a parent” and “My baby really does like me.” One mother with a six-month-old sums it up perfectly when she says, “Where was this video six months ago?”

Thank you for such a great program, I look forward to enriching lives – one family at a time.

Lamaze International Approves Two Online HUG Courses for LCCE Educator Credit

As leaders in the field of childbirth education, Lamaze International has just approved two HUG online courses.

Helping Parents Understand their Newborn (Part I approved for two contact hours credit):
1. describes primary concepts of The HUG to prevent and solve problems around a baby's eating, sleeping, crying, and around parent-child attachment and bonding
2. presents real-life scenarios using The HUG with new moms and dads
3. provides tools and resources to introduce The HUG concepts to families

See course details and watch preview of course.

HUG Strategies and Skill Building (Part II approved for four contact hours credit):
1. shows how the HUG Strategies enhance parent's confidence and care of their baby
2. demonstrates how use of the HUG Strategies enhances the patient-provider relationship
3. provides more in-depth review of medical and child development literature on infant zones, crying, eating, sleeping, and play
4. enhances providers' ability to demonstrate baby's abilities to see, hear and respond to her parents
5. reviews impact of The HUG on fathering and on secure attachment
6. presents case studies, video analysis, HUG Your Baby blogs, and problem-solving experiences

See course details and watch preview of course

I am reminded of the blog, "I didn't know a baby was a REAL person!" which speaks to the power of introducing The HUG concepts and techniques during a childbirth education class.

As one Lamaze instructor recently told me, "Childbirth might last a day or two, but parenting. . . that last a lifetime! It's wonderful to help parents-to-be prepare both for that 'BIG DAY' and the 'MANY DAYS' that follow!"

"I didn't know my baby was a REAL person," the young dad says.

2009 ICEA Convention

It's like Thanksgiving dinner. You love EVERY bite, but are a little "too full" by the third dessert! That was the 2009 ICEA convention! Truly amazing speakers covered material ranging from postpartum doula-ing, support during childbirth, how to grow your birth business, how to grow a childbirth education organization, baby friendly hospitals, birth doula..ing, fathering, etc., etc.

The best part for me is always the conversations between, around, and even (a whispered word or two) during the presentations. On my shuttle ride to the hotel I spoke with Shirin Strauss and Jackie Cameron who work with teens. In twenty minutes we had discussed key challenges and opportunities for supporting teen moms...before our convention experience even started! Over lunch I landed right beside Sandy Jones and got a private summary of her recent presentation - the one I missed while waiting for my plane to be fixed in Chicago. Marilyn Hildreth updates me on the power of a Baby-Friendly hospitalDuring the now-famous "President's Pajama Party" I learned of Jeanne Green's remarkable journey as a childbirth educator, mom and grandma, and she and I pondered together the wants and needs of today's new parents. Connie Livingston and I were sharing ideas non-stop on how to use the world of social marketing to get the word out about our services and resources. Candy Mueller was bubbling with ideas about how to give new parents the resources they need. David Field and I explore options for incorporating HUG Your Baby into ICEA.

The convention went smoothly, the food was great, and the spirit was enthusiastic! I went to ICEA to "Give The HUG" but came home appreciating all the many hugs I received in Oklahoma City!

Do Babies Come with an "Owner's Manual?"

CLICK HERE to see what this mom has to say!

Connecting with New Moms

Tara, the public health nurse, arrived for her first home visit with Sherri, a brand new mom. Sherri is 21 years old, lives with her parents, and is a new single mom. Her baby was born full term and healthy. Sherri claims to "know nothing about babies" but glows with that enthusiasm (and rush of adrenalin) mother nature bestows on new parents.

Tara glances down at her forms from the health department. Wow, there is so much that could be covered at this important first visit. Do you have enough oil for your furnace? Do you know about back-to-sleep? Did you start your birth control pills? Did you know that babies can see your face? Tara's head spins as she wonders where to start.

Last week Tara completed The HUG continuing education class at her health department and is excited to integrate this information into her already busy schedule. She remembers that the teacher, Jan, said, "If you ever feel confused about what to do next, just See and Share." Jan explained that Seeing the baby's behavior and Sharing that behavior with parents can create an important connection with new parents.

But first, Tara must "See". She worked hard at the workshop to gain new knowledge and skills in observing and interacting with newborns. She glances over at Sherri's son, Freddie, and remarks, "Oh, I see he's in the Ready Zone. He looks ready to play with us."

Tara's right. Freddie's eyes are bright, his body is rather still, and his breathing is calm and regular. As his mother reaches for her Diet Coke, Freddie follows her with his eyes.

"Oh, I see that he is watching you right now," Tara exclaims. Sherri notices what Tara means and quickly joins the game. She tilts her head slowly in the other direction, and Freddie tracks right after her. "You nosey little man!" Sherri laughs as she picks up her son.

About that time Tara notices Freddie start to change. His eyes drift down, away from his mother's face, and he gets a bit pale. His chin tremors and his body stiffens a bit. "Oh, do you think I've bored him already?" Sherri asks.

But Tara is quick to remember what she just learned from class. "Oh, no," she gently explains. "Freddie is just showing a little SOS, or Sign of Over-Stimulation. That's really normal for new babies. Hey, let's swaddle him a minute and see what happens."

Sherri had become an expert on swaddling in the hospital, so she confidently wraps her little one up. She is surprised to see that in this swaddled position, Freddie is able to look back toward his mother; he even turns in her direction when she whispers his name.

"Wow, you're so smart! I'm going to take take super-good care of you!" she giggles. Sherri cuddles her baby as Tara covers a few of the important questions on her form. Seeing and Sharing this baby's behavior created that kind of teachable moment that every nurse longs for! [See http://www.durhamconnects.org/ ]