Am I ready?

I am returning to teaching today. It is my first time in an educator role since my son was born last fall, and I have to admit, I can't wait.

I'm nervous and excited and I'm anticipating all that will come with stepping into this awesome role just months after having given birth.

First, it's incredible to have the opportunity to journey with expectant parents as they prepare for birth and parenthood. The parents that step into our classroom arrive at our doors with a variety of experiences, back stories and beliefs. I cannot assume anything, and my only job is to listen, share evidence-based material, and provide loving support to the people that sit with me in class.

Teaching is not about me and my experiences as a laboring mother or a breastfeeding mother or a mother of three, and yet I am all of these. What I bring to my classes and interactions with the parents-to-be clearly is influenced by my own experiences, and yet I have to be careful to keep my story out of my teaching.

I'm curious how it will feel when we're discussing the stages of labor and I demonstrate a contraction during active labor. As I moan and move my hips back and forth, how will I keep my mind from traveling back to that cool night in November as my body prepared to birth my son? What if I ramble on and on about how birthing your child will change your life, whether the birth happens at home, in a hospital bed or in a surgical setting? What if my educator's brain melts into my mama's heart and I can't help but gush on about how you will fall in love with your child, and that may or may not happen immediately after birth?

And I have two older children, well past the stages of infancy; how can I keep myself from commenting that even though the early days of parenting your newborn feel impossibly exhausting, it doesn't compare to the later challenges of parenting your toddler, preschooler or older child?!

I trust when I walk into class today, I will know what to say and what to keep to myself. It is not my job just to give information; it is my job to help parents find the information and figure how it applies to their own personal journey. I respect where these parents are in their journey and I TRUST they will make the best decisions they can with what they have at any given moment.

Childbirth preparation is not just about getting ready for that one moment. It's about communicating with your partner on issues that will affect you, your baby, your relationships with the people on your birth team, your own belief system. It's about prioritizing your preferences and figuring out what to do when your expectations don't pan out. Childbirth preparation looks at the bigger picture, and it's time for you to spend focusing on you, your baby, your partner. Parenting starts with decisions you make prenatally and is intensified the moment your child is in your arms. Expectant parents may have an idea how they want to parent their newborn, but you really have no idea until that baby is HERE and yours to hold.

And I'm excited for today. I can say that I fully trust my instincts, skills and knowledge to help the expectant parents I will meet today.