Birth as a Heroic Journey Final Assessment (CBE)
Validation refers to:
Reflecting back what you hear someone say.
Expressing agreement with a person.
Offering empathy.
Expressing recognition that a person’s feelings/actions make sense and are worth taking seriously.
The difference between a mentor and teacher is:
There is no difference; they are basically the same.
A mentor helps direct a person back to their own inner wisdom and resources.
A mentor is the expert and imparts knowledge onto the student.
A mentor provides answers to difficult personal questions.
The Three Ways of Knowing refers to:
Introvert, Extrovert, Ambivert
Inner, Primordial, and Modern
Trial/Error, Practice, and Guessing
Mentor, Teacher, Student
It is important that we practice Trauma Informed Care because:
People will share their trauma history with us.
We don’t want to do anything to upset people we work with.
Discussions of birth, family, and sexuality can often bring up trauma, and we need to understand how to deal with this safely and appropriately.
It is important for birth workers to urge people to identify where their birth-related trauma lies, and work through that trauma with them.
Engaging parents in practicing during our time with them is what part of the five words framework?
Celebration
Motivation
Validation
Initiation
Doing Birth Art with parents is a way to:
Create something beautiful during your time together.
Uncover new insights and wisdom that may often be overlooked or surprising.
Help them work through fear of making art.
Prepare them for doing art with their child.
Unconscious preparation refers to:
Things people forgot in school.
Absentmindedly preparing for something.
Learning that began in childhood and of which people may not be fully aware.
Absorbing information in a dream-state or meditation.
The symbol of the labyrinth represents:
A metaphor for the heroic journey: preparation, ordeal, and return.
Only the labor experience.
Only the birthing person’s journey.
A map of how to reach the best outcome in birth.
Using ice in pain coping practices with parents is intended to:
Help parents have the experience of needing to find ways to move through physical and mental resistance/discomfort.
Simulate a labor contraction.
Help parents make lists of things that they know will or won't be helpful for labor coping.
Help people realize they may want to get an epidural.
Scaffolding a process refers to:
Having good notes when presenting it.
Knowing how to discuss the experience with parents afterwards.
Setting up a process so that people understand why we are doing it and are therefore more likely to want to participate.
Repeating a process multiple times.
A common attribute of the orphan archetype is:
They are able to respond with flexibility.
Their senses are alert and attuned to the moment.
They often feel they have to do something themselves if they want it done right.
They are highly self-critical.
When planning a module to offer parents, it is helpful to:
Fit in as many topics and details as you can so they don't miss anything.
Write a script of exactly what you will say so you get it right.
Start by creating a short list of what you think parents really need to know.
Leave out information that they can easily find in other places.
Non Focused Awareness is a process in which we:
Focus on the outward breath.
Use visualizations.
Keep the eyes closed.
Incorporate other sensory observations in addition to breath.
Solution-Focused Dialogue is:
A way to help solve people’s problems.
Based on the idea that we know what’s best for our clients.
The best way to guide people towards evidence-based medical decisions.
A way of asking questions to help people find their own solutions.
“Tasks of preparation” refers to:
Internal and external movements people can make to prepare for the birth of their child.
Having a baby shower.
Creating a gift registry.
Writing a birth plan.
Finding the Center:
Only works if parents stick with the specific visualizations that you suggest.
Is only for parents planning unmedicated labor.
Can help parents encounter intensity with a sense of moving into or through it, rather than avoiding it.
Can aid parents in understanding exactly where the pain is so they can communicate effectively.
Noticing which archetype(s) our client(s) are in is helpful because:
It allows us to judge where they are at in life.
We will know if they are our ideal client.
We will be able to predict what kind of birth they will have.
It allows us to better meet them where they are at.
It is important to talk to parents about even the things they are hoping to avoid because:
We want to make sure that they have a specific plan for every possibility.
It can help them imagine ways they might cope or get through unwished-for outcomes.
A cesarean birth is likely.
We want parents to overcome their fears.
We use the Inanna story in this course because:
It is the most important story that we can share with parents.
It is the oldest story known.
It represents all parents.
It is a good example of the arc of the heroic journey of birth.
The purpose of the Courageous and Compassionate Excavation of Fears process is to:
Validate that fears and worries are normal in pregnancy/postpartum.
Give parents an opportunity to talk about their fears.
Help parents imagine coping with an unwished-for event.
All of the above.
Vocalization in labor is:
Often a normal part of coping.
Something parents should only do if necessary.
Better if the sounds are low than high.
An obstacle to mindful coping.
The phases of the Heroic Journey include:
Initiation, The Ordeal, and the Return
Preparation, Celebration, and Motivation
Preparation, Ordeal, and Return
Pregnancy, Labor, and Postpartum
The Birth Story gates are:
The same gates people passed through in labor.
The different versions of a birth story that a parent may tell themselves or others at various points during their postpartum return.
A reminder to the birth worker to check that parents’ birth stories are accurate.
A reminder to the birth worker that their job is to lead parents to the last gate.
The Good Enough Parent is a process that helps parents:
Build self-compassion.
Create expectations for the right way to parent.
Compare their parenting styles with other parents.
Explain Freudian approaches to good parenting.
Helping parents to create a postpartum plan is important because:
It guarantees they'll have a detailed schedule to follow.
Like a birth plan, it will ensure that they know what is going to happen.
It can be used as a tool for considering many of the important touch points and decisions in the postpartum experience.
It encourages them to hire a postpartum doula.
The Fourth Trimester refers to:
The time past your due date during pregnancy.
Weeks 36-42 of pregnancy.
The time it takes to conceive.
The first three months after the baby is born.
Using an “intro that teaches” refers to:
Asking parents common questions like their name and due date.
Asking the parents to teach us something in their introduction.
Using introductions as an opportunity for learning and growth.
Using introductions as a way to inform parents of your birthing philosophy.
One of the ways to get started in offering classes is to:
Create a business plan outlining your goals and strategies.
Offer a “taster” class to local birth related professionals.
Develop your own brand.
All of the above.
Deciding what to include in your class plan is:
Easy because BfW gives you a template of what to include in your classes.
Personalized based on who your audience is and the amount of time you have.
Dependent on the birth outcome that you want for your clients.
Something to be done entirely ahead of time.
Class closings:
Generally include an element of celebration or ritual.
Always include a pain-coping practice.
Are less important than the processes and factual content that make up the body of the session.
Must make clients feel strong emotions.
Creating a special class for birth partners:
Is something we should always include in our classes.
Is not important if we are doing a private class.
May make the birthing person feel left out.
Is a way to allow partners space to talk openly about concerns or doubts they may have.
Postpartum reunions and gatherings:
Should always be offered as part of our classes.
Are a space for people to share their whole birth story.
Should only take place if everyone had a “natural” birth.
Need intentional guidance in order to hold and contain the conversation.
If we are working with parents who have birthed before:
It is important that we focus on what went wrong in their previous birth.
We offer the same material as we do to parents who have never birthed before.
We should focus mostly on sibling preparation.
We often explore what worked or didn’t work in their previous birth(s).
When thinking about what to include or leave out in our classes:
We should leave out topics that are uncomfortable for parents.
We should leave out topics that trigger us or make us uncomfortable.
We should have personal awareness of why we might be inclined to include and/or avoid various topics.
We want to help people focus on their ideal birth.
When working with groups it is important to:
Make sure that everyone shares equally.
Prioritize the responses of birthing people over partners.
Help to gently redirect if one person is continually taking up all the time in class.
Create opportunities for people to compare their experiences.
What tools are essential for a childbirth educator?
Whiteboard/chart paper and markers.
Model pelvis and baby.
Supplies for ice-holding exercises.
Nothing in particular; use whatever is available at hand to support the learning experiences appropriate to the clients’ needs.