The journey to parenthood is a very exciting time for expectant parents eagerly awaiting the debut of their little bundle of joy. However, the new adventure and preparation for the bouncing addition may be daunting too, especially for first-timers venturing into foreign territory.
Fortunately, a local childbirth educator ready to guide parents through the latest, evidence-based knowledge and grow their confidence for delivery and taking care of their precious baby is but a call away.
Besides an educational preview into life with a newborn through practical experience, Carla Hanekom of Childbirth Classes by Carla journeys alongside parents, offering up-to-date information, sharing in laughs and real moments, boosting confidence and showing support.
She embarked on the initiative after qualifying as a childbirth educator in August 2019 and started presenting classes covering topics such as the last trimester of pregnancy, birthing options and associated pain relief, and taking care of your baby for the first few months, since September. The 35-year-old, who is employed at a private hospital in the Winelands, on Saturday 15 January celebrated the milestone of having workshopped her 100th couple, Erica and Warren Erasmus, whose baby is due on Hanekom’s birthday, 28 February.
“What a wonderful privilege to have had input into 100 new lives – I’ve taught parents expecting twins too – entering this world,” she exclaimed. “I love it when parents who have felt completely unprepared message me to tell me how well their new family is doing. Over the past 29 months I have lived through a pandemic as a health-care worker and pursued an Executive MBA while teaching more than 100 couples about childbirth and beyond, which makes it all worthwhile!”
Hanekom has been in the health-care field for over a decade, including working with obstetric patients and pregnancy events as a result of this. Her love for children, however, goes back as far as she can remember and is coupled with a passion to ensure those who can’t speak for themselves get the best care possible and so this developed into the realisation of becoming a childbirth educator.
Hanekom specialises in individual, one-on-one classes and travels to couples within a 30 km radius around Stellenbosch, free of extra charge.
“Many parents don’t have time to go to scheduled group classes and that is where I come in: classes at your home, on your schedule. This also helped me build a wonderful, personal relationship with my clients, who I also avail myself to for post-partum support.”
Asked what the educational childbirth classes entail, Hanekom said there are three workshops – the first covers anatomy, exercise, nutrition, third trimester, decision making, natural delivery and contractions; the second comprises of pain relief options and coping techniques for natural delivery, breathing exercises, medical interventions, the nine instinctive newborn stages, caesarean section, APGAR scores, birth preferences, vaginal birth after a C-section (VBAC), vaccinations, what to pack, getting the house baby-ready; the last centres on breastfeeding, newborn care, bathing, sleeping, infant cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), starting solids, post-partum depression and care, and family integration.
She reckoned the benefits for parents who rope in her expertise on their journey to becoming the best parents they possibly can be even before conception, are equipping themselves with evidence-based information which can silence the myriad of anecdotal information out there and provide confidence and reassurance for the special, yet slightly scary journey.
“There is so much information available on various platforms, and well-meaning advice from loved ones,” Hanekom said, “but much of this information is outdated or anecdotal, and not evidence-based. It’s my privilege to teach parents evidence-based best practices about labour, delivery and taking care of their little one.”
Born and raised in the northern suburbs of Cape Town, she initially studied marketing before furthering her studies in Health Services Management and more recently having completed her Executive MBA. The divorcée and parent to a 10-year-old foster child was enrolled in The International Childbirth Education Association (ICEA)’s Childbirth Educator programme from 2018 to 2019. She prioritises requalifying in CPR every two years, and also recently partnered with Imbrace, an NGO providing teenage mothers with early intervention to develop their skills and enhance their well-being.
Hanekom is proud of having helped so many birth partners, even parents who have never changed a nappy or bathed a baby, but now do it with ease and confidence. Something the Erasmus couple will soon be able to do too.
Erica expressed being appreciative of Hanekom’s expertise and content, her professionalism, easy-going nature and knowledgeableness. “As soon-to-be first-time parents we could bounce things off her during classes and really found insight in the real-life experiences she would share,” she said. “Working in the medical field, we also found that Carla is very clued-up on processes and topics on the medical side of things.”
Hanekom implored expectant parents simply to reach out and contact her via WhatsApp on 082 682 6980 or email at childbirthclassesbycarla@gmail.com. “Clients only pay a deposit to confirm their booking and make the rest of the payment after the first class. If they’re not satisfied we part ways, no questions asked. Luckily this has never happened.”
