38. Stop Consuming Endless Content, Start Building Confidence: The Truth About Birth Preparation

In this episode I'm addressing something I see over and over again with expecting parents—the difference between consuming birth content and actually being prepared for birth. While we have more birth information available than ever before through podcasts, social media, and online resources, so many parents still approach birth feeling anxious and unprepared.

This conversation has been on my heart because I see thoughtful, intentional parents doing their best to prepare by listening to podcasts and following birth accounts on social media, yet still missing something foundational. They know a little about a lot of things, but not enough to feel truly confident when it matters most. True childbirth education builds understanding from the ground up in a way that fragmented content simply can't.

Whether you're trying to decide if you need childbirth education, feeling overwhelmed by all the birth content out there, or wondering why you still feel unprepared despite consuming lots of information—this episode will bring clarity, wisdom, and practical next steps for your birth preparation journey.

In this episode, I share: 

📚 Why podcasts and social media alone can't replace comprehensive childbirth education 

👁️ The importance of visual learning for understanding birth mechanics and positioning 

🏠 How proper education creates a strong foundation vs. fragmented information 

✨ Why childbirth education matters for ALL types of births (medicated, unmedicated, cesarean, VBAC) 

💪 The difference between being informed and being truly prepared for birth

Scripture Shared: 

"A house is built by wisdom and becomes strong through good sense. Through knowledge, its rooms are filled with all sorts of precious riches and valuables." – Proverbs 24:3-4

Mentioned in this episode: 

✨ Christian Mama Birth Prep Library - Free birth prep tools, worship playlists & more

💕 Work with Me 1:1 – Virtual Doula Support & Schedule a Private Coaching Call

✝️ Online Christian Childbirth Education - Explore my complete birth preparation self-paced course

📞 Free 15-Minute Discovery Call: Schedule your no-obligation consultation with me today! I would LOVE to connect with you.

🎧 Episode 26: Learn more about virtual birth support with me

🎴 NEW Christian Birth Affirmation Cards: You can now purchase them here

If this episode encouraged you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a friend.

Let's keep choosing faith over fear, one decision at a time. Go here for the full blog post, show notes, and all resources mentioned!

Transcript

Natalie Portman 0:45

Welcome back to the podcast. I am so glad you're here today, and this has been an episode that's been on my heart for a while because I see this same pattern over and over again with expecting parents, especially those who are thoughtful, intentional, and really want to prepare well for birth. As you know, we live in a time where there is absolutely no shortage of birth information, podcasts, social media, books, videos, it's everywhere all the time. And yet so many parents still approach birth feeling nervous, unsure, or afraid of what they don't know. So today I wanted to talk honestly about why childbirth education matters, what it actually prepares you for, and why consuming birth content is not the same thing as being prepared for birth. My hope is that by the end of this episode, you feel more clarity, more peace a clearer sense of what kind of preparation will actually serve you as you approach birth. So let's start with something important. First of all, I would like to say I love podcasts. Obviously. I host one, and you are listening to one right now, and I believe podcasts are incredibly informative and they're wonderful for encouragement, storytelling and going deeper into very specific topics. But here's what I see happening. Too often many parents are learning about birth almost exclusively through things like podcasts and social media. They're hearing great conversations, helpful tips, meaningful stories, but they're still missing something foundational. And that's because podcasts were never designed to teach the foundations of childbirth education in a cohesive step-by-step way. And while they can absolutely support your learning of birth, they don't build an understanding from the ground up. So what ends up happening is parents know a little bit about a lot of things, but not enough to feel confident when it actually matters. When you're learning primarily through social media and podcasts, information tends to get fragmented. These platforms often skip over foundations and assume you already know these basics. So you might recognize terms like dilation station engagement, transition, but not fully understand how they relate to what's happening in your body. That lack of clarity can create anxiety even when you're consuming seemingly good content. And this is where true childbirth education makes such a difference. Birth is not just conceptual, it's physical and anatomical, and it's dynamic. And there are certain things about birth that are much more helpful to see in order to understand. I don't know if you're like this, but I'm a very visual person and I can hear something explained verbally, but the moment I see it. Everything clicks. And that's especially true when we're talking about things like cervical changes, baby station and pelvic mechanics. When parents can actually see what's happening inside the body, birth stops feeling so mysterious and starts making more sense. In my childbirth education class, visuals aren't just helpful. They're essential. Through video components, parents are able to see things like how the pelvis changes based on positioning why certain labor positions help at different stages of labor, and things like how can you help your baby navigate through the pelvis? Instead of wondering, is this normal or is something wrong, you'll come away feeling like this actually makes sense and that understanding is incredibly reassuring. Breastfeeding is another perfect example of this, so you can talk about breastfeeding basics all day long, but learning how to properly latch the baby is something you need to see, not just hear described. Being able to visually demonstrate what a good latch looks like, how baby's mouth should be positioned, and what to adjust if something feels off. That kind of confidence is hard to build through audio alone. One of the biggest concerns I hear from parents is, I don't wanna be overwhelmed, and I tell my clients this all the time, I don't want you to feel like you're drinking from a fire hydrant. Childbirth education should serve you, not flood you with copious amounts of information. And that's why the course that I teach is designed to cover the essentials as a strong foundation. It's comprehensive, but intentional. Deep, but not overwhelming. The entire class can be completed in a weekend based on the four hours it takes me to teach this same curriculum in person here locally. It's the perfect amount of information to help you understand what's happening in your body, feel confident navigating labor, and to make informed consent based decisions without feeling like you have to become an expert or memorize everything. And then this is where the podcast comes in. So I see the course as the foundation and the podcast as a way to supplement that foundation. The course is meant to give you structure, visuals and a clear framework. And then the podcast allows me to reinforce certain topics and concepts and offer encouragement and perspective. One of the most meaningful parts of teaching this class is seeing how parents change emotionally. The word I hear the absolute most after families take the class is they feel so empowered. I even had one client say, I have always had a nervous fear with the idea of birth, and I was surprised when I left the class feeling more at peace and calm about it all. Another mom shared. As a first time mom, I found the class extremely informative but not overwhelming, and I hear this type of testimony again and again. Parents starting out, feeling fearful about their upcoming birth, and then coming away from the course. Actually excited for birth, and they express that. They'd be like, Natalie, I'm actually excited to give birth. And I'm like, I am so excited that you were excited to give birth. Nothing about birth necessarily changed, but their understanding of it did, and that's so powerful. I also wanted to say this clearly, my childbirth education supports every type of birth. So whether you're planning an unmedicated or medicated birth, whether you are going to be induced or you're planning a cesarean, whether you're pursuing a VBAC or this is your very first baby, childbirth education will serve you education doesn't control birth. It equips you to navigate birth wisely. Whatever path it takes, it allows you to partner with your provider, so your OB or your midwife. Ask good questions, make decisions from a place of understanding instead of fear. And then from a faith-based perspective, preparation is not about control. It's about wisdom and seeing this as an opportunity to steward the gift that God has given you, which is this baby. And I also wanted to address something that I hear often as well, which is, well, I've already had a baby, so I don't need childbirth education, and I want to gently push back on that because if this isn't your first baby, a quality childbirth education course can still be incredibly valuable to you. Even now, because every birth is different, your body has changed, your circumstances might be different. And honestly, most of us could use a refresher. When we were expecting our second, so this was Daniel. I had my husband Brian, come to a childbirth education class that I was teaching so that he could have a refresher on the content. Even though he had been, you know, obviously to a birth before and he hears about birth from me all the time, it was still so helpful to revisit the foundations together and feel aligned going into that birth experience. He even told me he learned some new things, which I thought was so awesome. And if you took a childbirth education course with a previous pregnancy, I want you to ask yourself, what did that class actually prepare me for? I have heard from so many families who took specifically like a hospital-based class that spent most of the time teaching them about. Interventions and how to become a quote unquote good patient, and that does not sit well with me because that's not what childbirth education is really for. True childbirth education is about understanding your body, understanding the process of birth, and feeling equipped to make informed, wise decisions for you and your baby. So even if you've taken a class before, if it didn't really help you understand the mechanics of birth, the options that are available to you and how to advocate for yourself, then I really want to encourage you. To step into better preparation for this time. And here's something I love about offering this course online, which is unique to the online space, but when you enroll, you own it for life. So that means you can use this not only for this pregnancy, but revisit it again for subsequent pregnancies. Also it's great because you can go back and refresh your memory on, a specific topic or module, or if you have a question that comes up to go back and revisit that content. It's not a one and done you know thing. It's a resource that is there to continually serve you. And if you've been listening and you're thinking to yourself. I think I do want this kind of preparation. I have created that support for you inside my Faith Over Fear Childbirth education online course. And this brings all of this together in one place. It's visual structured, faith centered, and self-paced because it's designed to be completed without you feeling overwhelmed. So Let me give you a quick look at what's actually inside the course. You're gonna be working through 12 modules that cover everything from pregnancy prep through postpartum and newborn care. There are lessons on the stages of labor with video demonstrations of pelvic mechanics and positioning, because remember, you need to see these things to really understand them. We dive into what the Bible says about birth, breastfeeding and postpartum. You'll learn comfort measures like breathing, vocalizing, and massage. We're gonna talk about interventions using the brain acronym, so that you can just make wise decisions when it comes to deciding to do or not to do interventions. And then there's an entire module on labor positions with videos showing you which positions open up different levels of the pelvis. And then I don't stop there. We also go into postpartum recovery, breastfeeding basics, and also you know, how to latch. And then newborn care basics. Plus, you'll also get bonus resources like your birth preference checklist, hospital bag packing list questions to ask your provider, a worship labor playlist, and some other resources that even go beyond what you may already have access to inside the Christian Mama birth prep library. It's everything you need in one place, and then this is exciting. So for a limited time when you enroll, you'll also receive a free 45 minute. Private coaching call with me, and this is a bonus where we can talk through your specific birth concerns, questions, and anything else that's just on your heart. And this won't be available forever, but it's just my gift to you as you prepare. And if you're listening and thinking. I actually want something even more personalized than that. I also offer virtual birth support. And the thing with virtual birth support is that you also not only receive this entire childbirth education course as part of your package, but you're also getting, ongoing support tailored again, specifically to you. Your pregnancy and your unique birth journey and postpartum journey. So if you're curious about what virtual support looks like and who it's for, I actually did an entire episode on this, and that's episode 26. I would encourage you to go back and listen to that if you want to explore. The most personalized way to prepare for birth with me. I would love to invite you to explore whether this kind of support would serve you in this season, and you can always find more information about the course and virtual birth support through the links in the show notes. Before we close, I want to leave you with a scripture that I think just speaks beautifully to what we've been talking about today, and this comes from Proverbs 24, 3 through four, and it says, A house is built by wisdom. And becomes strong through good sense through knowledge. Its rooms are filled with all sorts of precious riches and valuables. And this comes from the book of Proverbs and its King Solomon teaching us about how to live wisely in everyday life. And this particular passage is talking about building something that lasts not just physically, but spiritually and practically. What I love about this verse is how we can apply that to preparing for birth, because it does remind us that wisdom and knowledge are not optional. They're foundational. A house that's built on wisdom becomes strong. A life built with good sense becomes resilient. A. And when we approach birth with understanding, when we take the time to learn how our bodies work and what our options are and how to advocate for ourselves, we're not just gathering information for information's sake. We're building a strong foundation. We're filling our rooms, so to speak, with tools, confidence and peace. This verse isn't telling us that we have to be perfect or know every single thing, but it's telling us that preparation matters and that seeking wisdom honors the Lord, and that knowledge equips us to steward everything that Lord has given us, which includes this precious baby. Well, I would love to pray for you as we wrap up today's episode. Lord Jesus, I just thank you so much for the mama who's listening right now. You know exactly where she is and maybe she's feeling really ready and excited. Maybe she's feeling anxious and uncertain, or just a little bit of everything. Lord, I pray that as she prepares for birth, you would give her the wisdom that she needs and help her to build her foundation on knowledge and understanding, not on fear. I pray that you would give her clarity about what kind of preparation will actually serve her and help her to trust her instincts as she takes those next steps, please fill her heart and mind with your peace, the kind that passes understanding and the kind that holds her steady. Even when things feel unknown, just remind her that seeking wisdom isn't about being in control. It's about being prepared, and it's about stewardship. Thank you for this precious baby that she's growing and for this season. It's in your name I pray, Lord Jesus. Amen. So however you choose to prepare my prayer is that you approach this with faith over fear and confidence as you approach your birth.