NCT : dangerous advice???

[VB3]

Dear All , I am wanting some feedback regarding the advice you are receiving/have received from NCT teachers.
I am particularly concerned about NCT attitudes to co-sleeping (it is 'as safe as putting baby in a cot': NOT TRUE, and the LACK of information on:
Cesarean sections/ bottle feeding/ post natal depression/going back to work etc etc
Has anyone found an alternative antenatal course: or would they be interested in contacting me about starting one (I am a GP), with 3kids(including twins)

No alternative here although the NHS usually do some classes.
I think you're being a bit harsh about the co-sleeping advice. 'Safe' co-sleeping is possible and is safer for the baby than being in a cot in a room away from mum and dad. Having co-slept with two of mine I'm damn sure we were all safer like that The advice the NCT give is NOT wrong as such. It's all a matter of risk for you and your baby that you need to equipped to consider.

Seeing as I didn't want to pay for something my local hospital was giving away for free, I'd say that the NHS is a very good alternative. With very prescriptive good advice about all the issues you talk about.

By GP do you mean doctor or Grandparent?

absolutely with you on the co-sleeping advice: but am worried about some 'bias' regarding information about risk etc. all risk advice should be balanced.
I am particulary worried about the attitude of the NCT on 'medical intervention' during labour, and their advice on casaereans.

I only went for antematal classes with my third one. I went to meet some other pg women. We all had children already so it was a refresher course.

co-sleeping - was not given any advice either way on this.

Cesarean sections - much discussion of this, which I think the ladies who had CS found useful

bottle feeding - not sure whether this was covered much but an info leaflet was given out and briefly discussed
post natal depression/going back to work - not mentioned

TBH the info on breastfeeding was very useful and I learnt a lot despite having BF my first two for 9 months/15 months.

Do you have evidence that this information is being given out by all NCT teachers, or just the one whose classes you attended?

Have you actually looked at the NCT website for the official line on those topics? All of those subjects are covered very well using evidence based research. They also produce factsheets for people not online and they have an truly excellent guide about returning from work that actually starts at conception, produced with Working Families.

I think from you're last sentence you're just touting for business which is not on really.

I was given very informative, balanced information about caesarians and medical interventions.

GP as in General practitioner. we can only give advice if well informed ..sometimes I doubt info given by nct is balanced- people deserve all available information in order to make an INFORMED choice .

NHS advice is great but often classes full and daytime only:not good for working mums

NOT TOUTING just interested in your opinions-will study web site again, thanks

See, now I think you're trying to scare people away from the NCT in favour of NHS classes, as well as what KatieMiddleton says.

I found NCT GREAT for breast feeding advice: they do this really well..I am getting idea quality of classes varies quite a bit.

I've only ever known of NHS classes running in the evening. In three separate NHS trusts (not all attended by me obviously, with just the 1 DC).

are you a journalist looking to discredit NCT?
Don't really understand your angle?

trust me - nhs classes dont need marketing or publicising : demand really high around here, just sad I couldn't make any of them as were scheduled for a day i work..

Our NCT teacher made it very clear that official advise was NOT to have baby in bed with you, but also gave us statistics about how many mums end up with baby in with them each night and said if we were going to do it we may as well do it as safely as possible then referred us to a unicef leaflet about it. There was certainly no pressure to do it.

Home births though... now that was something she was keen on!!

(My point is that it depends on the teacher, and surely we're all adult enough to work out if our individual teachers have any 'agendas' and make our own decisions about what's best for us)

The big plus of attending NCT antenatal classes is meeting other parents who are having a baby at the same time as you, who are happy to keep meeting up at NCT coffee mornings etc, which didn't happen with the NHS course I attended.

Cesarean sections/ post natal depression/going back to work were all covered on the NCT course I attended. As was manual expressing and paper pants, neither of which DH has yet recovered from.

With DS2 I attended a hypnobirthing course and learned far more about how a baby comes out of a womans body than on the other 2 courses put together. I would recommend it even to some one who was planning on a cesarean.

Bottle feeding wasn't covered on any course, but there are instructions on the side of the tin IIRC.

No not a journalst , just work as GP and got conerned about advice given to one of my patients, and thought mumsnet wouldgive me some useful feedback. I used nct 12 years ago, found bits really good, other bits not covered..just wondered if this was what others had found.

wasnt quite expecting cynical assassination

VB3, I bet very few people who attend NCT classes don't take information from anywhere else. They will be searching for information from peers, the internet, books, etc.

At my group (now 4 years ago) we talked about whatever the parents wanted to discuss. So we covered induction, I think we covered caesarean, there was a GREAT game about the unpredictability of what might happen and there was some practical info on what to do with a new baby. From what I recall the NHS class was fine but actually less helpful about what to do with a newborn, and gave more of an impression of a 'normal' course of events ie that you will go into labour, your waters will break (whereas mine went and I didn't go into labour! and most of my friends had to be induced or were trying to avoid induction). I found both classes to be informative in different ways BUT I am still in touch with my NCT class friends, and only one parent from NHS class (and that was because we knew them through a friend anyway). None of it was 'dangerous'! and there was no advice as such, because advice is recommending a course of action to someone. The course leader just gave information and tips on positioning etc. I'd still recommend the NCT class to anyone.

any body else had evening NHS classes? not so lucky around here..some sat morning sessions

here is link to nct website about co-sleeping

www.nct.org.uk/info-centre/information/view-126

I thought it was very well balanced and in no way does it suggest that co-sleeping is safe or not, it only says it's best that baby sleeps in the same room as mum for the first 6 months and there is a highlighted checklist of things that you should NOT do if you plan to co-sleep

Sorry, but still don't see what you are trying to say?

I had no antenatal classes at all, and a csection with my ds. First night in hospital the midwives tucked him in with me and gave advice on safe co sleeping to make healing easier. I was , but within 3 months was mostlyco sleeping and did it from the start with dd.

You've gone from making a sweeping statement about advice given by the NCT and making it sound like that's the advice given by all teachers, to saying that you are concerned about advice given to one of your patients.

Which is it?