Would you join NCT pre birth or post birth?

[hobbgoblin]

If you were having your fourth baby, 6th pregnancy, and did not really need much in the way of parenting and baby care info (ex maternity nurse/nanny too) but you did want to meet mums locally with babies the same age through NCT, would you join pre birth to 'get in' with the group iyswim?

I've never been a member but have written for NCT articles, and also met many NCT groups through friends who are part of one. I love the supportive and social side and sort of missed all that with my other babies because I was very independent.

in my current circs, I think I could do with the social support, as my friends all have older children due to being parents of children in my older DC's classes at school. I'm going to be the odd one out with a baby!

hmmm - not sure really. I wonder if the key to ante natal NCT groups is that everyone tends to be first timers and therefore part of the closeness that develops is sharing the shock/wonder/awe of it all with people who are at the same stage that you are.
Having said that it would be great to have someone in the group who has been through it all before !
If you have the money and access to childcare for the others then I would go for it.
good luck

I wouldn't bother going! We paid for the NCT classes and didn't meet up with any of the other mums and dads to be until after the birth of our babies, it was very short lived we probably only met up two or three times. I didn't really go to meet friends although saying that we were all first time parents so it was nice to talk to others in the same boat, this time round I will go to the NHS classes instead.

OP, I think it depends whether you mean going to antenatal classes or joining your local branch - I suspect you mean the latter? It probably depends on how big/active your local branch is in terms of organising postnatal activities and also whether they offer refresher courses or similar. I help run a large London branch and quite a few of the volunteers are people who got involved to meet other parents as they didn't go to antenatal classes or had recently moved to the area. Some branches are very active in getting people together with babies the same age, others run bumps and babies groups. So probably not a direct answer but maybe start by looking up your local branch on the main nct website and take it from there?

HTH

I'd find out what your local branch offers first - some do antenatal get-togethers for people due around the same time