The Reykjavík Birth Center
Newsletter No.1
Reykjavík Birth Center: Finding our new home
We are very happy to be able to announce that we have finally found a location for our birth center! We have been looking for the perfect housing since this past summer – a place that would meet all our requirements for beautiful, bright housing that surrounds people in love but at the same time meets the strictest requirements for professionalism and safety. With some help, we found the perfect place, and we would like to thank everyone who gave us recommendations about housing. Special thanks go to Þorpið-vistfélag and Berglind Hálfdánsdóttir.
Our birth center will be located at Hlíðarfótur 17, 102 Reykjavík - close to life in the city center, the university community and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Landspítali. In the coming weeks, we will design and renovate the space specifically for services that we will be providing at the birth center. There will be a spacious meeting hall for our courses, birthing suites and treatment rooms/offices where there will be a variety of services available. In addition, we have recruited well-selected individuals to work with us. These include Steinunn Zophoníasdóttir, a midwife, who specialises in menopause, and Paulina, a Polish-speaking doula who teaches courses on childbirth in Polish. We look forward to expanding the group even further and invite those who are interested in joining us, renting office space or the meeting hall for a course, yoga or similar activities, to contact us as soon as possible. Limited space is available which will fill up quickly.
Follow us on Instagram to see the designing and building of our birth center.
Our first courses: Off to a good start
Our first courses have gotten off to a great start! In the past months, we have met expectant parents in small groups at Óskandi dance school on Eiðistorgi. Our courses are held in a pleasant environment and in small groups because we want to give everyone a good opportunity to discuss and ask questions. We use yoga mats, yoga balls, pillows, blankets and cozy chairs to change postures regularly and practice for labor and birth.
"We felt we had benefited more from the course than we had anticipated. We found it very detailed and it provided an insight into a part of the birth process that we had not considered at all. In retrospect, now that we have our child in our arms, I feel that my supporter was better prepared and everything he learned enabled me to have a more positive experience than I would have had otherwise. He was able to help me through the process with so much confidence. The midwives who led the course knew the material very well and were able to share the lessons in a very effective way. We left the course with so much knowledge not only about what to expect but how we can best deal with both the negative and the positive aspects of the whole birth experience. "
- Comment from a mother who attended a childbirth preparation course
Each course costs 15.000 ISK and expectant parents can receive a receipt and then request a refund from their union. Women who are unable to pay for the course and are not in a union are also encouraged to contact us, as we always offer some space on women's courses free of charge. Further information can be found on our website - which is in Icelandic, English and Polish.
Upcoming courses:
Childbirth preparation (Better birth) -in english, icelandic and polish
Course on the first days after birth, becoming a parent and breastfeeding -in english and icelandic
Online course on childbirth and breastfeeding -in english
Find out about the next courses and register here - Course information
Positive attitude and realistic expectations
In our courses, we talk about coping skills and how we can use them in labor and childbirth. We practice relaxation and various postures that expectant parents can take advantage of at the end of pregnancy and at birth. We also talk about when the plans change and how important it is to be open to the many possibilities of this journey. Our courses have benefited first-time parents as well as second- and third-time parents since we not only discuss the stages of labor and physiology, but rather how we can open our minds to the different options that are available to help deal with this challenge. We want to increase self-confidence and help you adapt a positive attitude - while at the same time having a realistic management of expectations. We have put one birth story on our website - which describes this so well.
After childbirth…
The postpartum course covers breastfeeding, newborn behavior, maternal well-being, and adjustment to the parenting role. We have found that parents who attend our courses are better prepared for the challenge that the first days may be, because their expectations of sleep, breastfeeding and well-being after birth were more realistic and they were better prepared.
Home care services
Emma and Embla provide home care services for new parents. They have provided home care for parents who have attended courses with us, parents who they have cared for before in homebirth or home care and also new clients who have given birth to their children at Landspítali. Soon, the midwives Edythe and Stefanía will join the group and start providing home care services.
Would you like to become a sponsor?
Many of you have asked how you can support the opening of the Reykjavík Birth Center. We are so grateful to you for your interest and support - which has been very encouraging to us. With your support, you can help us create a community that strengthens families during pregnancy, childbirth and when they take their first steps in parenting. You can support us in various ways. From the purchase of special products, gifts of furniture, plants or works of art, gift cards to monetary gifts.
Sponsors' contributions to the establishment of the birth center will be made visible on site and in promotional material.
Childbirth in the Reykjavík Birth Center
We have received inquiries from expectant parents who are interested in giving birth at the Reykjavík Birth Center, and we are very much looking forward to being able to meet them for an interview. Birth at our birth center is suitable for you if:
you are healthy and your pregnancy has been risk-free
labor begins when the gestation period is between 37-42 weeks
you are pregnant with one child whose head is presenting and is engaged
you want to get personalized service from midwives who know you and your preferences
You can send us an e-mail at info@faedingarheimilid.is to get on our list and we will contact you as soon as we start interviews.
Educational Resources
We have added various educational resources to our website. There is already information on preparation for childbirth, supplements during pregnancy, informed choices of women in the childbirth process, returning home with a newborn baby, exercise during pregnancy and nutrition during pregnancy. We are currently working on more education material about pelvic pain, leg cramps during pregnancy and contractions which will be done in collaboration with 1st-year midwifery students at the University of Iceland.
The Reykjavík Birth Center Midwives