NCT Antenatal Classes Review: Is it worth it?

Our First NCT Antenatal Meeting focused on getting to know our class mates with an introduction and some friendly group work. Learning about breathing, pain relief, how the baby will be born, your options for giving birth.

We found the first NCT class a little slow and were a bit worried for the rest of the sessions. However, we need not of worried as the paced quickened with the rest of the NCT sessions and still allowed plenty of time to chat to the other parents-to-be. 

Over the course we learnt about the different places you can give birth and their pros and cons, a detailed look at the labor process, what happens after baby is born and caring for baby. 

We also had an excellent lesson on feeding and breastfeeding - I was so impressed with the teachers level of knowledge and unbiased approach. 

The cost of NCT classes

NCT is not cheap. We chose a 6 session course held in Epsom that included a 2 hour reunion once babies were born and this cost £285. 

However, if you split this down on a cost per person, each of the 7 sessions will cost us roughly £40 as a couple. Still not the cheapest option but my husband and I treated it like date night - swapping a meal out each week for learning about baby!

Our experience of NCT classes

The main thing we wanted from the classes was the opportunity to meet other parents and to learn some of the basics. Whether you click with the people in the classes is a different matter and we were very lucky to get on great with every single couple - a rare thing I'm sure! 

We all got on so well that before babies had even arrived the boys had done a pub drink, we'd all been out for a Sunday pub lunch as couples and the girls had had multiple coffee trips together. 

This surpassed both our expectation as we'd heard plenty of horror stories around other couples at NCT classes! 

Getting excited about baby together
Something we did anticipate was how nice it was to do something together that would get us both excited about the new arrival. Everything was happening to me so it was really special to see my husband be able to get involved and start to get excited about what was to come. It's easy to forget that nothing has really changed in their world.

Should you do NCT classes?

Before doing NCT classes myself I'd heard a real mixed bag on whether to bother. Some said it was a waste of time and money and they didn't speak to any of the girls in the class. Some found that once babies were born it became a competition on 'whose baby did what first/best'. However, others said they'd made friends for life and loved it. 

In our group, babies are just starting to arrive but I feel that for us, NCT classes were definitely worth the money. It was great to learn some basics, meet new people and see my husband get excited for babies arrival. 

For me, I've just taken the fact that our NCT girls and guys are fun social, people as a massive win... and hopefully it stays that way. 

To find out more about NCT or sign up to a class go www.nct.org.uk

Love 
LauraClaire