-Birth Skills workshop-
birth education, active birth, yoga, biomechanics and hypnobirthing tools
for a easier birth experience
Next date: 14 June 2025, in-person (Kew)
Due before then?
“While the private antenatal classes we did with another provider left me and my partner overwhelmed, Amelie’s practical birth skills workshop made us feel actually informed, prepared and ready. The techniques we explored proved really supportive and meant I was able to labour at home with ease for as long as I wanted”
— Marta
Birth is first and foremost a physiological process.
A process where what you do with your body-mind matters. A lot.
And yet, this KEY piece of the jigsaw of birth preparation is often missed, or skimmed over,
in most antenatal preparation.
how does labour really work in the body (and mind - and no, it’s not just about what your cervix is doing!) and knowing this, what can you do (and avoid doing) during labour to support birth to unfold as effectively as it can?
What will help create the most space for YOUR baby to progress through the pelvis at each ‘stage’ of labour (as what won’t help)? How can you still achieve this if you have an epidural?
What tools can you use to deal with the sensations of labour, avoid overwhelm, ride your surges effectively, with calm and les tension
What might shorten the ‘pushing’ phase and help protect you from pelvic floor tearing/injuries?
What can you do if you are told things ‘stall’ or don’t progress ‘ as fast as your care providers would like? What techniques can you try before an intervention you might not want (such as the use of forceps or ventouse, an episiotomy, going on a drip or a c-birth) is recommended?
How can you avoid exhaustion (one of the leading reasons for labour stalling and/or transfer to labour ward)?
How can your birth partner practically & physically support you in that process?
This is what we focus on, explore - and practice - in this workshop.
For anybody hoping for a physiological/low intervention birth,
whether at home, birth centre or in hospital, using pain relief or not.
“A very special thank you for your birth skills workshop; I really recommend it to all mamas! I used many of the techniques and had my dream (and speedy!) physiological birth in the water”
— Emilie
What we cover
Key aspects of birth physiology & birth biomechanics (how birth, your body and your pelvis work) so you understand the ‘why’ of the skills explored, and be able to apply them in YOUR birthing circumstances, with confidence and trust
How best to approach the early phase of labour to support physiology and preserve energy - the phase when first labours often get derailed
What positions & movements can help facilitate your baby’s progress through the pelvis as labour progresses - and how some positions actually restrict space & progress, making labour longer, more difficult and possibly more injurious. How to adapt/make them possible in your birth setting/circumstances (eg. at home vs labour ward, if you want to be monitored, if you have an epidural, etc)
How to blend in breath, movement, focus and release techniques to approach contractions and deal with the sensations of labour with more calm, less tension and effectively support physiology/birth hormones
Which positions and techniques can help support and shorten the ‘pushing’ phase of birth, and reduce your risk of tearing/injury or need for episiotomy
How to rest intelligently & comfortably while still supporting the labour process
What can be tried if labour ‘stalls’
How we do it
This is a very practical workshop where after an introduction chat about how birth and how bodies work, we journey along the ‘stages’ of labour & birth (from when you think labour is starting, until the birth of your placenta), as if birth was happening.
Although there is a lot of information-sharing, the main focus is on lots of practical exercises, explorations and mini ‘birth rehearsals’, so you and your birth partner can experience and understand the skills and practices first-hand, in your body.
The aim is to provide you with an opportunity to feel, understand & remember first and foremost with your body, rather than with your head (but don’t worry, you will get handouts as a helpful reminder too).
Which will in turn help you feel more prepared and equipped, and more likely to be able to use the skills, tools and techniques most supportive to you when your labour & birth actual happens!
What you also get
a 18-page handout with printable memo sheets of the various tools explored
birth prep & breathing practice cards
2 movement practice videos
daily & weekly biomechanics prep practices
3 breathing practice downloadable mp3
access to the workshop recording for 60 days (online sessions only)
—
£75 per person/couple (online) or £105 per person/couple (in person)
including all resources
—
This workshop is also available as a private session, entirely tailored to your situation and needs, delivered online or in your home (area dependent) - £185 per person/couple
including all resources, and redeemable against the cost of full birth doula support.
Please get in touch if this is an option you’d like to explore.
For further support, have a look at my doula support packages or 1:1 pregnancy yoga support.
“Amelie's expert advice and tips for labour and birth were invaluable: I felt completely prepared when it came to using these different approaches on the big day.”
— Karen
FAQs
-
You might find having the following things handy helpful:
a yoga/pilates mat unless your floor is carpeted
a couple of pillows / pregnancy pillow (if you have one)
your pregnancy ball if you have one (I really recommend this prop for the whole of your pregnancy!)
a chair
a long scarf, bathrobe belt or yoga belt (again, only if you have one)
If you join an in-person workshop, all equipment will be provided
-
This workshop is best taken once you are in your third trimester, as it will make more sense in your body.
You can join any time until you give birth, it’s never too late to learn about your body and prepare it for birth!
If the next workshop date is ‘too late’ for you, it is always possible to access the recording of the previous workshop and get a free 15mn consultation call for any questions you may have. Just get in touch!
-
Absolutely not!
Although the workshop is a great complement to my pregnancy yoga classes/courses, the tools & techniques we will explore are accessible to everybody.
-
I try to run the workshop every 2 months. Check the website to see future dates, or get in touch to enquire.