The childbirth information and preparation you need - without fear or fluff!

Childbirth classes for families who wish to embrace the physical and emotional aspects of childbirth.

"My husband and I took Amity’s Birthing From Within class and it was amazing." -Danika Kraft

"I would highly recommend one or both classes that Amity offers, they have had such a large impact on my life during this precious time as my husband and I prepare for our first child together." -Ruth Parrish

"Our experience at the Birthing From Within weekend class was wonderful. Amity was so attentive, enthusiastic, and helpful." -Madeline Frank

In our childbirth classes there is room for your joy and excitement, right next to the questions and fears you may have about birth.

A skilled mentor will guide you to gain a deeper level of awareness of the skills you already and how to use them to have the best birth experience possible.

In Birthing From Within You Will

Learn all the things about birth you didn’t know you needed to know!
Gain an understanding of the stages of labor and early postpartum.
Practice comfort measures, labor positions, and partner touch and support.
Build mindfulness techniques to cope with discomfort and stress.
Understand when interventions can help birth and how stay grounded if birth looks different than you had hoped.
Use your worry and fear to help guide your self-advocacy.

This class focuses on birth as a transformative threshold in life that can not be planned from start to finish. There will be some unknown twists and turns along the way.

We welcome people birthing in all locations:

home
hospital
free-standing birth centers.

In every class there is time to SLOW DOWN and reflect on exactly what is important to your family.

Come explore your own wisdom, compassion, and strength while filling the information gaps so that you feel READY to give birth and care for your baby!

Registration Includes 2 Bonus Workshops!

Photo by My Alec Mills.

+ Prepared Postpartum Workshop

No one wants chaos in the early days of parenting! Create your plan for a confident and supported postpartum experience. > LEARN MORE

Photo by <a href="https://hardiephotography.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> Hardie Photography.</a>

Photo by Hardie Photography.

+ Nourishing Newborns Infant Feeding Class

Learn all you need to know about feeding your baby with your body from a lactation consultant who has been practicing for the past 10 years. > LEARN MORE

What Parents Saying About Birthing From Within:

"Amity was a gentle, knowledgeable and caring facilitator. I definitely feel the time in class has opened me to new ways of being at the center of our birth."

"I would recommend this class to any pregnant woman or her partner. It was a truly unique and wonderful way for me to connect to my fears and questions about labor, and the fears of my partner and talk about how to cope with them honestly. We feel so prepared for birth and have learned so much about each other; Amity really helped each person (not just the mothers!) to look deeper than his/her questions to see what issues were beneath."

"This has been a great class. I've been extremely impressed with how you've been able to cover a lot of territory while staying somewhat unbiased and not presenting everything as though there is a "right" way. Even if the discussion took an opinionated turn, you gracefully and tactfully steered that thought/ issue/ opinion to a less biased place. I felt comfortable asking any and all questions without feeling awkward or judged by you."

"We had an amazing birth experience, and taking the Birthing From Within class was very valuable! Jason and I were very thankful for all the knowledge and ways of thinking that you helped open our minds to. Honestly, I believe the class helped my husband most of all! Within minutes of Malia being born, he said, "I sure am glad we took that class!"

More Information About Birthing From Within

WHERE:

On-line via Zoom
Queen Anne, Seattle

WHO: We welcome and include all families including but not limited to:

Single parents who wish to take class alone or with a friend, family member or doula
Queer + poly families
Families of color.

If you are interested in attending classes that are limited to LGBTQ+ or BIPOC families please see this blog post.

WHEN:

You are welcome to join at anytime between 20-42 weeks of pregnancy.

COST:

Price per family $220-355.

Save money by becoming a member, check out the Sweet Deal All Access Pass.

Scholarships are available please reach out if you would like to attend. All are welcome!!

HOW:

After you register you will receive a code that allows you to register for Nourishing Newborns, and Prepared Postpartum classes for free.

The week of your class you will receive an email with full details about your class.

Upcoming Birthing From Within Classes

6-Week Evening Series

2023 Live Group Workshops via Zoom

Thursdays, 6:30pm to 9:00pm

May 4 to June 8
July 6 to August 10
August 31 to October 5
October 12 to November 16

Weekend Workshops

2023 In-person Retreats

Hours:

1-day Saturdays | 9:30am-6:00pm PST
2-day, Sat & Sun 9:00am-5:00pm PST

Dates:

March 25, 2023
May 6 & 7, 2023
June, 24, 2023
August 12, 2023
September 9, 2023
November 4, 2023

Your class will be mentored by:

AMITY KRAMER

EDUCATOR

CATHERINE FENNER

EDUCATOR

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the class outline?

We don't have a perfect class outline. The reason for that is the classes are tailored to the needs of the participants. Each and every time we tweak and adjust based on what is happening in real time for the families we are serving.

There are some general things that all classes are going to cover:

stages of labor
coping practices including but not limited to: breath awareness, non focused awareness, and visualization
common labor positions
asking questions and getting answers/advocacy in the birth room
compassionate use of medical supports
exploring the unknown and getting confident walking that path
reasonable exploration of fears and unwanted events
looking inward and learning how to harness the skills and resourcefulness that is already within yourself
how labor actually works and what makes babies come out
lots of time for Q & A

And so much more. Birthing From Within is unique because the tone of the class will shift depending on the live elements in the group. I don't always know how this happens, even when it's on Zoom and people's screens are off. But it does. There is something cultivated that is really cool.

I want to have pain meds, can I still take this class?

FOR SURE! You may or may not know if you want to have pain medication as part of your labor. Either way this workshop will help you feel into to what you really want and understand that sometimes the plans change AND you can still have a positive experience.

The coping practices you will can be helpful in pregnancy, labor, and postpartum. There are lots of new emotions and physical sensations to cope with in all variations of labor.

You and your partner will be able to stay more grounded in the unexpected events of labor having practiced coping techniques together.

What is the difference between the one-day and two-day workshops?

The difference between the longer class and shorter class is kind of like going away for a getaway weekend that was 3 days, vs a trip that was just 2 days. You would see fewer sights, and pick up the speed a bit. They both are enjoyable but one is more fulfilling.

There is no single class that can teach someone all they need to know. I'm still learning about birth after 14 years with that as my main focus! Both of the classes will teach participants birthing positions, coping practices, and spend time looking inward to see how they can use their resourcefulness to enhance their experience. The two-day class offers more practice time, a few more coping techniques, and more time for one-on-one partner practice.

For years I would not even offer a one day session because I thought it would't be good enough for families. Well, I started offering it last year and people have LOVED it.

When it comes down to it, your schedule and availability, along with other layers of support you have, and the amount of information gathering you have been doing should help give a picture of if the one or two day session is right for you. You won't need a hospital class in addition to the Birthing From Within sessions. Some people LOVE going to classes and learning all that they can, and even like the time they get to spend together with their partner and so they take all the classes! I think better than taking two birth classes, that you attend the relationship workshop called Bringing Baby Home. There are lots of people who offer that class if you didn't want to put all your eggs into the Thresholds basket. It can be nice to hear and learn from many different perspectives. I think we do a great job, but know that there are others doing great work as well.

When should I take the class?

Birthing From Within classes can be taken any time during your pregnancy. People often take it between 20-37 weeks. The positive parts of taking the class early on is that you have lots of time to put the skills into practice. This includes partner support and involvement, self-advocacy, connecting with your baby, facing fears, and building community.

The downside of taking it early is that the pregnant body will be much smaller than in labor and the comfort measure practice may not be as useful.

Here is a guideline for when to take classes.

Early Pregnancy Class (0-28 weeks)

Birthing From Within (20-35 weeks)

Nourishing Newborns + Get that Baby Out (30-37 weeks)

Bringing Baby Home (20-35weeks, or after your baby is born between 2-7months postpartum).

How are Thresholds childbirth classes different from other community classes?

How do I request a scholarship?

Who will lead my class?

I'm taking a hospital class - can I take Birthing From Within too?

What will I gain from taking this class?

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