Babies in Common

I highly recommend taking prenatal classes with Babies in Common. Jeanette and Melissa are so knowledgeable and share evidence based information that soon-to-be parents can digest and make informed decisions on how they want to approach so many aspects of birth from labor, to postpartum and breastfeeding. Most importantly, they make the classes FUN and help first time parents feel supported and more prepared/relaxed about the birth process.

Melissa's class on preparing for childbirth was INCREDIBLE. She was the most knowledgeable, encouraging, and entertaining teacher that we could have hoped for as first-time parents. Our birth experience would not have been the same without her guidance. 10/10!

The class we took through babies in common was FANTASTIC. it really prepared us and made us take ownership of our birth process. Would recommend to anyone!

Here are the top 5 reasons we liked Melissa Dubois’ Prepared Childbirth (Babies in Common) class and would highly recommend her to another birthing couple:nn1. She has the credentials and experience to know what she is talking about - As a parent, and as a healthcare professional. 14 years as an OB nurse, multiple states, various intervention philosophies, and she has advocated for hundreds of birthing parents as a doula, and RN. She has seen it all and knows what parents will face. Related to this vast experience, she was careful NOT to prescribe a certain style of care; i.e doula, midwife, at home, interventions. She simply helped us understand what to expect, how to make informed decisions, and consider the advantages and disadvantages of common decision situations. Finally, it is clear within minutes that educating and supporting soon to be parents is her life passion. She cares. She is personally invested in making sure we feel prepared. Her positive attitude and optimistic personality backs this up.nn2. Her presentation style is like the Goldilocks porridge. Not too academic, not too touchy-feely. She is a strong proponent of evidence-based health practice, and also a strong proponent of remaining flexible. When the mountains of resources felt too overwhelming, she simplified concepts so we had a tangible takeaway – for example, asking the questions; Am I (birthing parent) safe? Is the baby ok? Is this an emergency? And a framework to think about pain and the Fear-Tension-Pain cycle.nn3. During the zoom discussions and always on a follow-up email, Melissa provided us with very good resources; videos; websites; coping tools; a birth toolkit. She focused on the most important items in class and encouraged us to supplement the learning with more reading. The assigned “homework” was a good use of time.nn4. She didn’t forget the role of the support person, i.e. the dad, or co-parent. We felt equally empowered from the material she shared.nn5. She epitomized the phrase “knowledge is power.” Her favorite refrain, and one we particularly liked, was the notion of gaining the education advantage by “stacking the cards in our favor”.nnDave and Mairin, Acton, MA

Jeanette enthusiastically leads a class which is informative, fun and charming. She gives you the facts without judgement or pressure. Plus, she debunks some common misconceptions leaving you feeling confident and excited for your individualized birth plan and trip to parenthood.