NMMC WOMEN’S HOSPITAL TO BEGIN LAMAZE CLASSES

TUPELO, Miss.—North Mississippi Medical Center’s Women’s Hospital will offer an intensive weekend Lamaze course on two consecutive Saturdays in December.

The intensive childbirth class will meet from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays, Dec. 4 and 11, at the NMMC Women’s Hospital, 4566 S. Eason Blvd. The class is ideal for anyone who is short on time or has a conflicting work schedule.

“Today’s Lamaze is not the Lamaze of 1960,” says certified Lamaze instructor Tommie Pinkins, RN, a childbirth educator at the Women’s Hospital. “Forty years of research and learning from experience have changed Lamaze from being a method for giving birth to a philosophy that helps women prepare to give birth and become mothers.”

As one example, Pinkins says “breathing” is no longer the hallmark of Lamaze. “The goal of Lamaze classes is to increase a woman’s confidence in her ability to give birth,” she said. “Women learn simple coping strategies for labor that include not only focused breathing, but also movement and positioning, labor support, massage, relaxation, hydrotherapy and the use of heat and cold.”

Lamaze classes provide information about natural pain relief options as well as epidural anesthesia. Participants also learn about breastfeeding and the early postpartum period, as well as healthy lifestyles for pregnancy and beyond.

Pinkins points out that childbirth education empowers women to make informed choices about their own health care. The Lamaze classes join NMMC’s family of Wonderful Beginnings educational programs, which also include Early Pregnancy Class, Preparation for Birth, Preparation for Cesarean Birth, Breastfeeding Class, Infant CPR, Sibling Class and Grandparenting Class. For registration and fee information, call (662) 377-4956 or 1-800-THE DESK (1-800-843-3375).

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