More Local Resources for Mamas and Partners
These resources center around Fremont, and extend to nearby in the East Bay, South Bay & Peninsula.
Exercise for Pregnant & Postpartum Mamas
- Dancing for BirthTM Classes – various Bay Area locations – A fun dance workout for pregnant and postpartum women. Visit the link for my Fremont class and links to classes in other locations.
- Prenatal Yoga – Wednesdays 6-7 pm & Saturdays 10:30-11:30 am @ Lifestretch Yoga, Fremont – Gentle classes for mamas.
- Yoga & Fitness for moms & families @ Harmony Birth & Family, Campbell – Harmony offers a range of yoga and fitness classes for pregnancy, postpartum, baby, kids, and families. A great place for supportive, empowering mama/family community!
- Yoga & Fitness for moms & families @ Blossom Birth, Palo Alto – Blossom is another great resource place! Blossom also offers a range of yoga and fitness classes for pregnancy, postpartum, baby, kids, and families, and is another great place for supportive, empowering mama/family community!
- Shaktimoon Prenatal and Mom & Baby Yoga with Cynthea Denise in Oakland – Cynthea teaches from a deeply intuitive sense of the spirit in mother and baby. Her classes are an awesome complement to inner-connected pregnancy and motherhood.
- Mommy & Baby Pi-Yo Play (Pilates/Yoga) & Prenatal/Postnatal Yoga @ Just Breathe Yoga, Santa Clara – Mommy & Baby Pi-Yo Play classes are a fun and unique blend of pilates and yoga for new mothers to help regain strength and muscle while singing, playing with other mommies and babies, and creating a special bond with their newborns.
Building Supportive Mama/Parenting Community
- Birthing Mamas’ Circle @ Tiny Tots, Campbell – A weekly gathering for expectant mothers to build community, share information, and learn about local resources. Led by seasoned doula Patricia Madden.
- VBAC Support Circle @ Harmony Birth & Family, Campbell – A safe place for moms to gather with the purpose of giving and receiving information and support around the many joys and challenges of VBACs! Ask questions, share resources, heal, and inspire, all while connecting with other moms who are exploring a similar path.
- Holistic Moms Network – Network of moms who are passionate about holistic health and green living. We now have a Tri-City (Fremont, Union City, Newark) Chapter! Other local chapters include San Mateo, East Bay and San Jose.
- Tri-Valley Natural Families – Community of moms and dads, parents-to-be, grandparents, and other like-minded individuals in the Tri-Valley area (Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and San Ramon), united by a common interest in natural family living, alternative health care, and gentle responsive parenting practices.
- Mindful Mothers’ Groups with Gina Hassan in Berkeley – Meditation/discussion/support groups where moms can practice mindfulness skills, build community, and discuss topics relevant to mindful mothering. Specific groups for new moms, second-time moms, and moms of older children, in 8-week sessions and ongoing.
- Pregnancy and Postpartum Wellness Support Group with Dolat Bolani, MFT in Los Gatos – Are you confused with the range of feelings you are having? Do you wonder why you are not feeling better? One in five women experience depression during pregnancy and/or after childbirth. This weekly support group is covered by most insurances.
Birthing & Care Provider Options
- The Birth Survey – Learn about your local options through mothers’ ratings and feedback about their experiences with specific doctors, midwives, hospitals, birth centers and home birth services.
Childbirth and Parenting Classes
- Ask the Experts in Palo Alto & Campbell, 2nd Thursdays (alternates locations) – A free community event for parents-to-be: a rotating panel discussion with local midwives, OBs, lactation specialists, doulas and other birth professionals.
- Homebirth-Focused Childbirth Education Classes in Oakland, Thursdays, 7-10 pm (5 week series starting 10/3/13) – Led by Licensed Midwife Esther Healey, this is in-depth class is geared toward preparing for homebirth.
- Shaktimoon Childbirth Prep & Infant Massage Classes in Oakland – Cynthea Denise has supported probably a thousand mamas in the last decade in her yoga, childbirth prep and infant massage classes and workshops. She is a very special teacher.
- Loving Arms Childbirth Class in Albany – This class offers techniques from a variety of the methods out there, and with twenty hours over eight weeks plus a postpartum reunion, it’s ideally supportive.
- Mamacare: How to Prepare for the 4th Trimester with Gina Hassan in Berkeley – Understand the physical, emotional and social changes that happen after the baby is born and how to navigate them as co-partners in the parenting journey. Topics include rest and recovery, nutrition for lactation, relationship issues, postpartum depression and shifts in identity. Contact Gina Hassan for upcoming class dates.
- Childbirth and Parenting Prep classes at your local birth resource center – These birth resource centers are excellent places to find classes, support groups and community. They generally offer a variety of chilbirth prep classes, and many of them offer free “How to Choose Your Childbirth Prep Class” sessions.
- BirthWays, Berkeley
- Blossom Birth, Palo Alto (check out the regularly offered free talk, “Choosing Your Childbirth Prep Class”)
- Harmony Birth, Campbell (check out the regularly offered free talk, “How to Choose Your Childbirth Prep Class”)
- The Nurture Center, Walnut Creek
Homebirth Resources
- Homebirth Lunch Lounge in San Jose and Palo Alto – Bring your lunch and meet with other homebirth parents, parents-to-be, and families interested in homebirth. Informal and unfacilitated.
- Midwives Mingle – A casual way to learn about homebirth midwifery care and meet the midwives working in your community. Held quarterly on the 2nd Wednesday of the month in December, March, June, and September.
- Homebirth-Focused Childbirth Education Classes in Oakland (5 week series starting 10/3/13) – Led by Licensed Midwife Esther Healey, this is in-depth class is geared toward preparing for homebirth.
- Meet the Midwives Teas – Several midwifery practices offer their own events for informally getting to meet the midwives, ask questions, and get a feel for the practice. For example, check out this one with California Midwifery.
- Midwifery Listings – We are blessed to live in a region rich with midwives! Check out these listings to explore your options: Bay Area Homebirth Collective’s East Bay listing, BayAreaMidwives.com listing, Bay Area Birth Info (BABI)’s directory (search for “midwife” or other types of services)
Breastfeeding Support
- La Leche League – Click the link to find the chapter that meets closest to you. All women interested in breastfeeding are welcome.
- Nursing Mothers Council – Offers free, one-on-one assistance and free breastfeeding classes by highly trained counselors who have also breastfed. One-on-one support may be by phone, or as a home visit for challenging problems.
- Breastfeeding Support Groups at Harmony Birth & Family (Campbell) and Blossom Birth (Palo Alto) – Drop-in breastfeeding support is just one of many great groups for new moms/families at these awesome resource centers. Check them out!
- Drop-in Breastfeeding Support with Peggy Hinkle in Alameda – Safe, supportive space to meet other moms, and share tips, joys and struggles. Feel free to bring your nipple shields, tubes, syringes, bottles – whatever is working today. Ask questions and get help if desired; weigh your baby – professional scale accurate to 2 grams. For those interested in learning about breastfeeding, those who are working on breastfeeding, or those having no problems breastfeeding. Monday mornings, 10 am – noon, at Immanuel Lutheran Church at Santa Clara & Chestnut, Alameda. $10 per group. Questions? Contact Peggy at 510-504-9413.
Meet the Doulas Events
Considering hiring a doula? Attend one of these events to meet local doulas, learn about their services, and ask questions. Please RSVP for these events.
- More Bay Area Meet the Doula listings are posted on this site.
Holistic Parenting Resources
There are so many great resources available for holistic parenting! Here are a few, to get started.
- Holistic Moms Network – Network of moms who are passionate about holistic health and green living. We now have a Tri-City (Fremont, Union City, Newark) Chapter! Other local chapters include San Mateo, East Bay and San Jose.
- Pathways: to Family Wellness magazine – I love the articles in this magazine! Take a look.
- Herb Lore – Great herbal care information and organic products from a local woman who specializes in women’s health and the childbearing year.