Birth is unpredictable
We cannot control how birth unfolds and it can be overwhelming when trying to make sense of it, right in the middle of the unknown. How do you know what to do when unplanned things happen? The best thing you can do is educate yourself so you are aware of as many options as possible and then, trust your intuition. Ask yourself “How am I feeling?”, “do I need to do more?” or “do I need to rest?”. Listen, your own heart can never lead you astray. Your satisfaction with your birth has been demonstrated to be related to whether or not you listened to yourself, and importantly whither you were listened to and supported by those caring for you.
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LIz's natural birth
I didn't think I'd make it in the last minutes. The midwife was amazing. My partner was constantly reminding me to sway and move in the positions as I kept forgetting and also he helped my noises to be low as they kept creeping up to those higher tones. Thank you so much for your classes. It really helped me understand what to expect and how to go about confidently birthing my baby.
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Celebrating 20 years of Service
My partner and I just completed the Sunday Active Birth workshop in Auchenflower. We found it informative, confidence-boosting, enjoyable and a wonderful thing to share ahead of the birth of our baby. Suzanne is incredibly knowledgeable and also balanced in the information she provides. Ideally, I’d like to give the class 10 stars out of 5 :)
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Your medical mind
I am reading the book ‘Your medical mind, how to decide what is right for you’ by Groopman,MD & Hartzband, MD. They say that patients should be aware that doctors and other experts may frame information in a way that reflects their own preferences. What is recommended is that information should be presented in a neutral way and doctors work to understand their patient’s own thinking.
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Naomi & Matt's third yogababy!
We wanted to share with you the birth of our third little love, our son Rumi Leo. He was born over 42 weeks in a birth that almost mirrored River’s birth a year prior. It was amazing having all the knowledge we had learnt from our private session with you and watching it play out in almost an out of body experience, watching the birthing process take over. Thank you so much again, we are so grateful to you. So true, experiencing surrender first hand is transformative and powerful. He is such an angel, adored by all 4 of us (hard to believe we are now 5 in total!)
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Pregnancy Yoga reduces anxiety
I wanted to thank you so much for your gentle and confident approach to your pregnancy yoga classes. When I came to you I’d been diagnosed with prenatal anxiety and depression, and while I was on medicine and having therapy, it was your classes that allowed my mind to be still and enjoy the beauty and wonder of being pregnant and preparing to birth my baby. It was exactly what I needed.
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Menaka Thomas Live
Menaka Thomas, a past yogababy Mum has the most beautiful, soulful voice. She is holding a concert on 26th October 5pm-7pm Holy Trinity Church, Fortitude Valley. One of her songs is inspired from a conversation she had with Suzanne Swan, founder of yogababy, about welcoming her baby into the world...she recorded it in the studio the afternoon after her yogababy yoga class and 12 hours later her baby Sahaana arrived! Please Join Us!
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To breathe your baby out
The ability to squat with both heels flat on the ground indicates good pelvic movement for labour and birth. While relaxing is important, learning to untuck your tail bone will assist you to breath your baby out, letting gravity do the job rather than having to push your baby out. To learn to release the tail bone, we need to start sitting on our sit bones more, walk more, squat more and do more yoga! Learning to squat is a regular practice in our Active Birth Yoga classes.
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Meet Baby Max
I had been going to the Yogababy pregnancy yoga classes ever since I was 20 weeks and had been loving them. It was such a beautiful way to spend a Saturday morning with some quiet stretching and meditation. I found that the stretches of the yoga kept my muscles flexible and supple throughout my pregnancy and I was able to avoid any significant back and hip pain.
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Your baby needs your courage
“Attending the yogababy classes made me confident through the pregnancy which translated to being a more confident Mum” Being able to move gives you confidence in your pregnancy.
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What is an Active Birth?
While an active birth involves the freedom to move and use upright positions, it is more than just positioning. “An active birth is one in which the birthing mother is in charge of her choices and decisions, thus enabling her to enjoy a productive and mutually respectful partnership with her birth attendants” (Janet Balaskas).
With this in mind any birth, whether natural or assisted, may be called an active birth.
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Charlotte's calm birth
The skills you taught us, the education you gave us, the sense of humour you instilled in us, and the wisdom of readiness to accept whatever came our way - we just can't thank you enough. Your gift to the world is just incredible. Thank you. Those breathing techniques have come in handy during some major screaming baby moments too! xo
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Meet baby Kira
Our son Kira arrived on 30th March, 2019. The labour was 22 hours with the last 5 hours in the Birth Centre. Straightforward, smooth and positive birth. I credit the Active Birth classes for an empowered birth experience. The sound work, positions and finding rhythm were directly impactful on pain management and endurance. Damien was phenomenal and I couldn’t have done it without him, he was with me for every step of the hospital stages. Our private session was an awesome foundation - thank you!
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Successful VBAC
So glad I did the active birth classes! Whilst I knew the theory, actually doing the practice was more beneficial than I realised... And so good to connect with myself and the baby (& give myself the time to enjoy the journey!). I was focusing on my breath and using rhythmic motions with my hands to keep my mind in the moment... and amazingly my daughter has been doing lots of rhythmic hand movements since being born. It’s like we really were dancing together as she was being born. So special!
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Meet baby Bilawi
My partner was great - at home, he helped lift my tummy up during the contractions, I had an overwhelming sense of pushing my hips forward and holding my hands up high above my head during the contractions. Forty minutes after arriving at the hospital I gave birth on my hands and knees again. We had a natural normal vaginal birth - I’m really happy with how we ended up.
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Born facing the stars
I went into labour spontaneously at home at around 2:30am. At that time, I was 40 + 4 (in the middle of summer!!) and feeling ready to meet my baby. I was so pleased to go into labour naturally, as I was starting to get nervous about having to be induced. I remember being so excited when I felt what I was sure was my first few contractions and opened the blinds in my room so I could watch the sun come up on the day I expected my baby to be born. Contractions started 10mins apart and I tried to relax as much as possible using the breathing techniques for relaxation between each contraction. I used a lot of breathing and swaying in the early stages and the contractions built to about 5mins apart by mid-morning. I felt confident, strong and excited labouring at home.
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A Yogababy turns 18
Pacha Light, ProJunior Women's Surfer. Pacha’s mum, Anja Light attended yogababy classes when pregnant and Suzanne was present during Pacha’s birth in Equador. She recently turned 18 and has been an active part of the Surfing and Environment movement since her early teens.
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Natural vaginal birth
Labour started naturally at home at about 1am on Sunday morning and we stayed home until about 1am on Monday morning. I started vomiting as the contractions were getting stronger and I just wasn't sure and confident with whether it was proper labour so decided to go in to hospital. I was in active labour when we arrived and all was good. After about 5am my membranes were broken at 9 cm dilated as the labour was slowing and not progressing for a while but other than that it was an all natural vaginal birth with no drugs. My partner was constantly reminding me to sway and move in the positions we learnt in the Active Birth Yoga classes as I kept forgetting and also he helped my noises to be low as they kept creeping up to those higher tones.
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A woman's brain after birth
There is a good reason our brain's change in pregnancy. Evolution has created the perfect switch to keep us closely connected to our babies. Otherwise we may find some far distance horizon more appealing and leave our babies to fend for themselves. Relaxing into a more open and connected way of being is our challenge in a world wanting outcomes and demanding schedules. Read more https://bit.ly/2V1BJe9
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I’m on such a high
The midwives asked if I minded if my baby was born in the water. I said I didn’t really care where he was born. They were happy with that and said I had to get ready to meet my baby. The next contraction hit then while I was still kneeling over the edge of the bath. The midwife said to do whatever my body needed to do. They just asked me to open my legs wider to make room and keep my bottom down under the water. He was born in 5 minutes with maybe 3 pushes. No time for Lee to catch him as he shot forwards between my legs and I was able to bring him straight up out of the water onto my chest. Eamon was so calm and didn’t cry. He was just looking up at us.
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