Infant Feeding Class
For first time parents, to increase your confidence in feeding baby at the chest and with a bottle.
Breastfeeding was hard...
After my son was born, he was immediately taken to the NICU and we spent a week there, recovering from the birth, getting well and also learning how to breastfeed. I pumped and the NICU nurses and hospital LC's helped us both get it all working before being sent home.
However for many people today, hospitals are short staffed which means less support for feeding parents, you are discharged about 24hrs after the birth and most hospitals either don't have an LC on staff or they only work certain hours during the week. All this leaves you with a gap in your feeding journey.
Many people who I work with say "I'm going to try breastfeeding, but I've had friends tell me some pretty awful stories." So many are told a horror story about breastfeeding, which can make the entire journey seem hopeless. However, on top of getting support, a good infant feeding class can remove some of that fear and confusion around feeding your baby at the chest.
I created this class to let you and your partner have the knowledge I know you will need to get started right in feeding your newborn. With humour, stories and videos I offer you up-to-date information, tips and tricks and more, so that you can feel more confident in feeding your baby, and knowing when things are going well and when you need to get more support or start supplementation.
This class is also judgement free. If you decide to offer formula as well or go straight to bottles, I have a section on that as well. I formula fed my first after 3 months of chest feeding, my middle son got bottles and formula after 6 months and my daughter breastfed until 9 months.
Here Is What You Get:
I have been a Doula and Childbirth Educator since 2006 and one thing I've learned is that when I teach a class, the parents will always remember how I gave them confidence and removed the fear from what's ahead of them, but they may not remember specific things we talked about. Let me help you with both.
This 75 minute video workshop is designed to walk you through the basics of infant feeding. Not only do I talk about the benefits of feeding your baby at the chest but we also go over holds and latches, what to expect in the first 24 hours, first couple of days, first couple of weeks. How manage those pesky cluster feeds and why they are necessary, as well as video sections on how to identify swallows and more.
You will also have access to the video for 6 months. This allows you to watch at your own pace, when you have the time and not when a class is scheduled. We all have crazy busy lives these days and there are some days when just sitting on another zoom call is not going to work for you. Or you may be a bit stressed about going into groups given the current situations. Well you don't have to. You can watch from the comfort of your own home, in your comfy sweats and fuzzy slippers.
There is also a 10 page, detailed handout with a lot of useful information and resources. This PDF can be downloaded to your phone and be available anytime you need it.
Example of handouts
Through open talk, powerpoint and videos, I will help bring to life for you that feeding this new human in your life doesn't have to be scary and as someone who has worked with birthing families for over 15 years, and a mum myself, I can offer many tips and tricks to make this part of parenthood smoother and less daunting.
Infant Feeding Trailer 1
Infant Feeding Trailer 2
Meet Your Educator
Hey There!!!
My name is Kimberley Fernandez and I'm the childbirth educator! I'm a ridiculously proud mum to three incredible young adults. They constantly keep me on my toes and because of them I'm always learning and laughing and driving....constantly driving. When I'm not teaching, I can be found binge watching British Mysteries, Doctor Who, and so many more shows, as well as perfecting my Animal Crossing Island and my Stardew Valley farm. And did I mention driving my children every where? Which I don't mind doing because it lets me listen to music and podcasts.
I became a Doula and Childbirth Educator back in 2006 after the birth of my third baby. I had kind of a crappy experience with her birth and I decided to look into how I could change that for others. Put it this way, the labour was unmedicated (my first) and my husband fainted during the pushing stage. Suffice to say, we could have used some help.
Being a Doula I learned involved a lot of education for my clients. Even if they had taken prenatal and after birth classes, they still had a lot of questions. Therefore it was a natural progression to become a childbirth educator.
Now a days, because of covid and because the major downtown hospital I work at is offering only virtual classes, I thought it would be great to offer pre-recorded classes that anyone can take, not just those birthing at my hospital. And here we are.
I wanted to make these classes not only informative but also entertaining. So don't be surprised if I offer a joke or two and some funny stories along the way. I like to call it Edu-tainment. Learning doesn't have to be boring and I also like to take the scary part of being a new parent out of the equation.