A Fresh Approach to Childbirth Education: Meet HelloBirth

Meet Jenny Bennett, founder of HelloBirth Class! I’ve worked with Jenny for many years, and have watched her transition from part-time practitioner to full-time childbirth educator and doula, found an agency, train doulas, reestablish herself in a new state, and more. 

Like so many childbirth educators when I first started out I adhered closely to the structure offered by my chosen certification method curriculum. Over time, however, my own insights & experiments began to shape a curriculum that was uniquely my own.

This, I believe, is a normal transformation for most educators as we step into our expertise and begin to create our own path, while still rooted in core concepts that we learned at the beginning.

Jenny & team have created a new approach to hypnosis in childbirth called HelloBirth, “Hypnobirthing Childbirth Educator Training for 2022.”  Their goal:

HelloBirth hypnobirthing childbirth educator training teaches you how to teach, providing an inclusive, comprehensive curriculum in an easily digestible format. Tired of feeling tired as a birth worker? Lighten your load as your clients finally discover what empowerment truly means — on their own terms.

I’m delighted to share with you this interview with Jenny about how the concept of HelloBirth emerged and the process of bringing it to life.

How did the idea of HelloBirth Class come to life for you?

I’ve been at this childbirth educator thing for awhile! (Almost 10 years.) The audio part of the program I was teaching was working well for clients, so for a long time I was reluctant to create something new. The other components of the class however were not working so well. 

I connected with an amazing hypnotherapist who’s also an experienced doula, and she was the missing puzzle piece. I started writing the curriculum that I had always longed to be able to share with my clients. She wrote the hypnosis scripts and we collaborated together on the skills taught during the sessions. 

HelloBirth was born, and we got to work sharing it with other practitioners and creating a community of support around them so that it wasn’t just, “here, teach our curriculum” but more of an invitation to join a professional membership for educators.

You’ve been a childbirth educator for many years. What has it been like applying expertise from direct care to developing your own trademarked curriculum and instructor training process?

Whew it’s been exhilarating! When you create something of your own it’s easy to lose sight of how it looks to someone viewing it for the first time. So it’s been a year-long process of getting feedback and listening to other educators share some of the issues they were having as we developed solutions. Many of the same themes kept emerging so we knew we were on the right track.

We’ve developed a blend of print and digital materials, with the ability to continue growing and shifting with the needs of our field. We are actively guarding against getting stuck in our ways by surrounding ourselves with smart people and carving out room to grow.

What have you learned about yourself as a birth pro in developing this new program?

I’ve been reminded that our pregnant clients are seekers and they aren’t as loyal to brands as you might think. They want to be cared for. I truly believe that if we create a culture of care within groups of birth workers, it’s our clients who ultimately benefit.

What advice would you give a birth pro trying to decide between programs for instructor training and certification as a childbirth educator?

Look for something that’s structured enough that you won’t have to waste time re-organizing and re-writing, but with enough flexibility in the organization to allow for creativity and your own unique voice to emerge. You want support, guidance and clearly defined learning objectives without hard-to-follow rules or rigid methodology. 

Want to learn more about what HelloBirth is up to & their upcoming instructor training? Visit the HelloBirth blog and the instructor training page!