Finding Parents to Practice With

Over the course of your training, you will be asked to practice various BfW processes, ideally with pregnant parents. A lot of our participants find this to be a little challenging, so here are some thoughts to help guide you. It can feel awkward or even a little scary to put yourself out there, particularly when you’re new at something. It’s ok to feel uncomfortable. Ask yourself what you need in order to take the next step forward.

• Put out as wide a range of feelers as possible:

• Post in local pregnancy/parenting/birth worker listservs, Facebook groups,  etc.
• Put flyers up in community locations where pregnant people might happen to be – yoga studios, health food stores, libraries, cafes, etc.
• Post on your own social media accounts, and ask friends and family to share those posts (tag @birthingfromwithin on Instagram and we can share your post with our 40k+ audience).
• Talk to friends, family, colleagues, neighbors, etc. Lots of people know a pregnant person!
• Reach out to other birth professionals in your area so they can keep your work in mind when making referrals.

• In your posts/flyers/conversations, specify what you’re up to: you’re learning new skills, and you’re seeking pregnant folks who are interested in having a free creative/exploratory/mindful/fun (fill in your favorite words) childbirth preparation session. You may be making audio or video recordings for training purposes.

• Before meeting, briefly outline what you are going to do with them, about how long it will take, any needed supplies, the format for the meeting (in person, Zoom, phone, etc.), and any other pertinent details.

• Be transparent. Let parents know that you are learning new skills, and that the session will be a casual, interesting learning experience for both of you.

• Get parents’ consent before recording. Confirm that the recording will only be shared for training purposes. If they seem hesitant, you can offer to go audio-only, or leave them out of the frame.
• Create a post on Instagram or Facebook soliciting parent volunteers, and BfW will share it on our platforms. You can post it to your own feed or stories and tag @BirthingfromWithin. Your post must include:

• What you are offering: a series, a session, a workshop, and who it is for (pregnant parents, first/second time parents, etc.)
• That this is a free session, and that you are in training with Birthing from Within
• A way to get in contact with you (direct message, email, etc.)