Partners are encouraged to attend and learn how to ease the discomforts of labor and childbirth. The Bradley method emphasizes diet and exercise to help a woman cope with the discomforts of pregnancy. Instead of distraction and patterned breathing, inward focus and slow abdominal breathing are taught. Fathers are taught to coach their partners in labor and birth. Medication use is discouraged except in extreme cases.
Classes often run throughout pregnancy.
Most childbirth educators use ideas from all three schools of thought. Classes are generally held one evening a week for four to eight weeks. You can take classes in many settings. Hospitals usually offer classes in their classrooms. Childbirth educators also teach out of community classrooms, through adult education programs, and even in their homes.