The Problem with Hospital Childbirth Education Classes with Ceridwen Morris

There’s a saying that goes, “You don’t know what you don’t know,” and this is especially true when it comes to prepping for birth. If you aren’t informed about the different options for your birth, then how can you be expected to make the most informed decisions in your birth! Today, we’ll be diving into the key differences between a hospital-led childbirth education class and an independent-led childbirth education class.

In this episode of Yoga | Birth | Babies, I am joined by Ceridwen Morris. Ceridwen is an author, childbirth educator and doula who has supported thousands of expectant parents in New York City for over twenty years. She is the author of the forthcoming How to Give Birth (Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 2025). Morris served on the board of The Childbirth Education Association of Metropolitan New York for five years, and ran the education program at Tribeca Pediatrics for ten years. She has taught at Real Birth, City Births, NYC Birth Prep and Prenatal Yoga Center.

As you give this episode a listen, I hope it inspires you to bring questions to your care provider that explore how the birthing experience can be tailored to your preferences, versus you having to conform to hospital policies and protocols. Enjoy this informative episode!

In this episode, you will learn: 

About Ceridwen and what led her to birth work The benefit of taking a CBE class, and what they typically cover How much Ceridwen has noticed hospital protocols being different from place to place, coming from a doula background as a doula for the past 20 years How these protocols impact the choices people have during birth  The biggest differences between a hospital-led and an independent-led CBE class  Parts of an independent CBE class that may demonstrate a different approach or encourage conversation to be had with a care provider, because they don’t necessarily fall into line with hospital protocol (but are evidence-based and beneficial to the laboring person) How the information in a hospital CBE class might be more restrictive and biased towards interventions Some topics that tend to go deeper into detail or practice in an independent CBE class vs. a hospital class One final tip or piece of advice Ceridwen would like to offer new and expectant parents Where you can find her work

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About Ceridwen:

Ceridwen Morris is an author, childbirth educator and doula who has supported thousands of expectant parents in New York City for over twenty years. She is the author of the forthcoming How to Give Birth (Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 2025). Morris served on the board of The Childbirth Education Association of Metropolitan New York for five years, and ran the education program at Tribeca Pediatrics for ten years. She has taught at Real Birth, City Births, NYC Birth Prep and Prenatal Yoga Center. She is also deeply involved in the arts, having started out as a curator of emerging artists in the 1990s. As a photographer and writer, her engagement with the arts is ongoing. Mostly she works at night, in hospital rooms around the city, helping people give birth.

Connect with Ceridwen:

Website: CeridwenMorris.com

IG: @ceridwenmorris

Check out similar Yoga| Birth| Babies episodes:

Community Birth Story: Exploring Your Choices In Childbirth with Kate Meredith Why Take Childbirth Education OUTSIDE the Hospital Choices In Childbirth’s Clare Friedrich, Talks Childbirth Advocacy Don’t forget to grab your FREE guide, 5 Simple Solutions to the Most Common Pregnancy Pains HERE    If you love what you’ve been listening to, please leave a rating and review! Yoga| Birth|Babies (Apple) or on Spotify!

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