Anke, great question!
when you browse through the catalogs of the various educator supply
organizations it can be tempting to want to buy all the charts, videos and
equipment. However, the cost of these all add up and can make it seem impossible
to ever get started.
The key is to choose a small number of items that are likely
to be most useful and use homemade tools everywhere else. The most useful item
is a pelvis and doll. You will find that you use these again and again in your
classes and having a model pelvis to look at and hold can make a real difference
in clients understanding the importance of upright positions and the movement of
the baby through the pelvis. You can purchase a pelvis from of groups online,
and sometimes can pick one up second hand through websites like Ebay. The cost
of a new pelvis is around US$50-$75. Many of them come with dolls however you
can usually find a much cheaper doll from a toy store. Just make sure you take
your pelvis with you when trying them out for size to ensure they move through
the pelvis easily.
There are some amazing videos available now to show different
aspects of pregnancy, birth and parenting. They do tend to be quite costly and
it can be difficult to find ones that depict completely natural birth in an
environment that is likely to be one your clients will choose. For example, it
can be hard for a pregnant woman to relate to the video if it shows a woman
giving birth unassisted at home when she has chosen a hospital birth with an
obstetrician. Take care when choosing videos that are very explicit. For many
first time parents seeing a full frontal shot of a baby emerging can make them
uncomfortable and defeat the purpose of the video. Consider the reason why you
want to show a video. If you are trying to show a variety of different births
and how many choices are available to your clients, a series of short videos
downloaded from You Tube may suffice. If you have Realplayer installed on your
computer you can download the videos you watch on You Tube and show them in
classes when you are offline.
Charts of pregnancy and birth can be helpful but are not
really essential. rather than using a chart to show dilation, you can use your
own hands and head. Cup your hands over the top of your head and slowly move
them down the side of head to show the cervix opening. Use your arms and hands
to demonstrate the shape of the uterus. you can then bring your hands upwards
and apart to demonstrate effacement and dilation. Some educators use a knitted
uterus to show the same thing and there are many patterns online to teach you
how to knit one yourself.
The third stage can be demonstrated by inflating a balloon
and sticking a postage stamp to the side. As you slowly deflate the balloon the
stamp will peel away in a similar way to the placenta peeling away from the side
of the uterus.
You could try joining birth professionals groups in your
local area, connecting with local midwives, or joining an email group for birth
professionals. Often you will find someone who is moving out of this field and
looking to sell all their visual aids at a low cost.
Ultimately, the most effective tool you have available to you
is yourself. Newer childbirth educators may find that the visual aids are simply
being used as something to hide behind. What you share with a group of pregnant
couples, teaching them in an actively engaging way, is far more beneficial than
all the visual aids in the world!
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