What is Centering Pregnancy?
Centering is a group-based style of prenatal care. Instead of attending your prenatal appointments as an individual like you usually would, Centering involves attending group-based meetings led by a healthcare provider.
Think of a childbirth class but far more thorough and educational, with a medical component.
Centering includes:
- Prenatal care: Centering prenatal care covers the same care that your usual prenatal appointments would. It would consist of guidance about your diet, supplements, how to stay active, etc. along with your standard prenatal exam.
- Childbirth education: these classes include lessons on labor, how to prepare for it, and how to deal with labor pain. Centering helps mothers share tips and tricks and provide each other assurance to get through labor.
- Community building and support: having a community of mothers that look out for each other helps instill confidence and alleviate anxiety.
How Does Centering Pregnancy Work?
You receive some of your own care (weight, blood pressure, charting) and have private time with your care provider, and there will also be group discussion and activities. In Centering Pregnancy, women are actively participating in their prenatal care – such as keeping track of their weight and blood pressure. Participants then meet one on one with a midwife for a quick assessment before returning to the circle for discussion. The discussions are group-led. This means everyone in the group has a safe place to voice their experiences, opinions and support. Studies show we learn best through discussion with others – and this is exactly what Centering is hoping to accomplish! One of the goals of Centering is that participants feel confident in making their own decisions about labor, birth, breastfeeding and parenting; they gain this confidence through interactive learning with their group. Snacks are provided and there is time for sharing with other group members in a relaxed and fun setting.
Who is in the group?
As the months go by, you will get to know other mothers due around the same time. Partners and support people are welcome to attend. We often hear from parents that the partners felt more included in the pregnancy journey because they attended Centering. It’s a bond of friendship that can last a lifetime.
If you want to learn more about Centering pregnancy and our care, send us a message!