Take active steps towards a Calm and Confident birth

What if there was a way to step towards labour and birth feeling confident and empowered? A way to support yourself with a swag of tools to take to labour and enable the mother to be in you.

  • Just imagine...

  • Feeling more confident leading up to the birth.

  • Releasing your fears and building trust in your own body.

  • Staying present to your experience and your baby through labour and birth.

  • Being able to receive information and respond mindfully as things change.

  • Actively participating in the birth to enhance the process and reduce your pain.

  • Applying proven comfort measures to trigger your natural instincts for birthing the baby.

Your baby is ready.... are you?

Increase your knowledge and practical birthing skills to respond to your baby's signs to be born

Get started now

Introducing... 8 Active Birth Skills

This is your best opportunity to learn and feel prepared, increasing confidence in yourself and your ability to navigate the birth journey.

  • Relaxation & Mindfulness:

  • Releasing fears & Affirmations:

  • Optimal baby positioning

  • Breathing for pregnancy, labour & birth

  • Vocalisation in labour & birth

  • Labour : first stage using active birth positions

  • Birth: second stage using upright birth positions

Course Structure

All eight active birth skills are available for you to review over six months

  • 8 Active Birth topics delivered in short videos (20min- 75 min) plus readings and handouts (pdfs)

    Which means you can set your own pace. Do what you can in the time you have - match your mood to the task, or do a whole lesson at once if you can. Learn in your way.

  • Practical Experiential Learning - Yoga Classes

    Designed so you know what to expect. Experience what it might feel like to labour give birth. This increases your chances of responding rather than reacting to the dynamic environment of labour & birth.

  • Accessible anytime anywhere on any device

    Listen to the talks on the train, got a half an hour before the kids are up - jump into a practice, printout the techniques and take to the labour room (as many of our mums have done).

Watch Intro Video

Active Birth Skills with Suzanne Swan

Course curriculum

  • 1

    Welcome to the Active Birth Yoga Series!

    • Welcome

    • What the Active Birth Yoga Series involves...

    • To begin with...

    • Setting up your space...

    • Five points to remember when you're participating in a yoga class

    • DOWNLOADABLE: Active Birth Yoga Workbook
  • 2

    Relaxation in Labour

    • READ: Relaxation and Meditation skills

    • READ: Hormones of Labour & Birth

    • YOGA: Yoga Practice (1hr 5mins)

    • RELAXATION: Relaxation Practice (18 mins)

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 1

    • AUDIO: Mindfulness Practice 9 mins
  • 3

    Releasing Fears & Creating Affirmations

    • READ: Releasing fears & creating positive affirmations

    • TALK: Releasing fears: Lecture & Breathing practice

    • YOGA: Releasing fears_ Yoga Practice

    • RELAXATION: Releasing fears_ relaxation

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 2

    • AUDIO: Letting go into the flow 7 mins

    • EXERCISE: A healthy response to fear exercise

    • PRACTICE with your partner/friend: Fear Release exercise
  • 4

    Optimally Positioning Your Baby

    • READ: Guiding Your Baby into an Optimal Position

    • TALK & YOGA: Optimal Baby Positioning Lecture & Yoga Practice

    • RELAXATION: Safe Place Relaxation

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 3

    • AUDIO: Open Awareness Relaxation 16 mins
  • 5

    Visualisation in Pregnancy, Labour & Birth

    • READ: Do you know your power to visualise your future

    • TALK & YOGA: : Visualisation in Labour & Birth

    • RELAXATION: Flower Visualisation

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 4

    • AUDIO: Baby Visualisation

    • PARTNER EXERCISE: Visualising the opening flower

    • BIRTHSTORY: Violet's Birth of Eva
  • 6

    Breathing in Labour & Birth

    • READ: What is Yoga Breathing for Labour

    • TALK: Breathing in labour

    • YOGA: Breathing techniques

    • RELAXATION: Breathing Waves

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 5

    • AUDIO: Relaxation to sleep

    • BIRTHSTORY: Rebecca's Beautiful Birth

    • READ: How your partner can be the best coach ever!
  • 7

    Vocalisation in Labour & Birth

    • READ: What sounds will you make in Labour?

    • READ: What are the 'O' rings

    • TALK: Vocalisation Lecture

    • YOGA 1: Toning Practice Mmmm & Ooohh

    • YOGA 2: Practicing Arhhhhh

    • YOGA 3: Vocalising the Chakras & more

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 6
  • 8

    1st Stage Birthing Positions

    • YOGA: Practice Labouring Positions

    • RELAXATION: Guide to your Birth Journey

    • READ: Setting up your birth space

    • READ About the 3 R's : Relaxation, Rhythm & Ritual

    • DOWNLOADABLE: Active Birth Positions Handout

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 7
  • 9

    2nd Stage Birthing Positions

    • READ: Why do 70% of women still give birth on their back?

    • TALK & YOGA: 2nd Stage Positions Lecture, Yoga & Visualisation

    • READ: Perineal Massage

    • DOWNLOADABLE: Benefits to Upright Birthing

    • BONUS: Pregnancy Yoga 8

Bonuses

Pregnancy Yoga practices

  • Pregnancy Yoga Videos

    Join Suzanne's Pregnancy Yoga class. You will be guided into deeper relaxation and physical support to prepare both your body and mind, all in the comfort of your own home.

Testimonial

Vocalisations and movements were extremely helpful to me during the longest parts of my labour.

Christine

Thank you from the bottom of my heart! I really do feel like everything learned in the online Active Birth Skills course was incredibly helpful to make the birth of our son a wonderful experience. I’ll definitely take the course again, should we decide to have another baby in the future ;). I was in labour for about 20 intense hours and I strongly believe, that the skills learned in this class enabled me to have a natural birth that was a thoroughly positive experience. The exercises, classes and information provided made me feel like I could approach my delivery with confidence and calm. I’m sure this attitude and preparation was so incredibly important for my positive birth experience. The course also really helped me understand what was happening to my body and my baby at all times during the process. Vocalisations and movements were extremely helpful to me during the longest parts of my labour. While the final phase of delivery went very quick and I didn’t really have time to think about birthing positions, I quite naturally found myself on my knees, leaning over a ball with my partner supporting my hands. It just felt like the perfect way to bring our son into the world and I’m sure when the time came, this course gave me the confidence to just trust my instincts. All in all I would say the online Active Birth Skills course teaches you wonderful techniques and skills that are invaluable to any mom to be! And the Yoga classes (that originally drew me in) are a great bonus that further help prepare your body and mind. I'd highly recommend this course to anyone!

Other courses for your partner & baby too!

Invite your important people to join you