NCT - is it worth it? Are there any alternatives?

[Dillydallydilly]

Hi all

Im pregnant with my second child but my first was born while I was living overseas - so I’ve never done the NCT thing before.

Can someone explain to be what the benefits are? How does it work?

The website isn’t the most helpful - friends have said they the major benefit is making friends who are at the same stage as you but this isn’t on the website at all…

thanks

Hopeful bump?

not sure if parenting might be a better place for this…

For me it was helpful as I didn’t know much about labour or newborns at all so it was nice to start from scratch. I’ve heard from friends who had varying levels of how helpful it was, might be unique to your own circumstances and maybe something of a postcode lottery too. We had a good instructor and a nice group.

We covered knowing when you’re in active labour and when to go into the hospital, inductions, c-sections, pain relief. Things you can do at home when labour starts to help you feel calmer etc. The importance of advocating for what you want (and your birth partner doing so on your behalf). Things to pack, things to help post partum. Basic babycare (changing nappies on dolls!), how to recognise if baby is sick/if it’s serious. Differences between PPD and baby blues/struggling with sleep deprivation and adjusting to your life changing. Feeding, breastfeeding positions. How many times newborns feed in the night/how much they sleep and wake etc. You might find you know all this from your first DC.

But yes the biggest plus for me was meeting other local mums around my due date. We are all in a WhatsApp group and you could send a message at 3am knowing someone would be up and feeding too, or meet for a coffee with baby. Mat leave can be a bit isolating especially if you don’t have much family local or your friends’ kids are at different stages. Having that network of people going through the exact thing you are at the same time (give or take a few weeks) is really useful.