Reviews
Read participant reflections from our Hava NaBaby Alumni.
Hava NaBaby was more than a birthing class for us. We moved to Baltimore mid pregnancy which brought us away from friends and family.
Miriam cultivated our cohort into a community that supported us during a time of great transition and provided reliable and useful information that helped us during pregnancy, birthing, and early infancy.
— Melissa and Elliott
My husband and I decided to go with Hava NaBaby because it is based in the Jewish faith. My husband is Jewish, I am not, however, we both believe that our son needs to know part of his ancestry. We found the classes to be extremely informative in both the medical aspect as well as the faith based aspect.
As someone who is not Jewish, I found the class taught me many traditions that have been followed for generations. It also helped heal a part of my heart that had been broken due to a prior miscarriage. Thanks to the class we also were prepared and informed for the birth. Our medical staff was quite impressed by what we knew! We could not have been happier to found Hava Nababy!
— Kathryne
Hava NaBaby was exactly what we needed, comprehensive child birth education with space to reflect on ways that we could bring our Jewish values into the experience. Rabbi Miriam was a knowledgeable and supportive resource.
— Becky and Teddy
Preparing for childbirth was so overwhelming, there are so many resources offered by so many different types of services. The Hava NaBaby class taught us everything we needed to know and added a meaningful Jewish perspective.
Miriam's thoughtfulness also helped us to prepare emotionally and really think meaningfully about the life transition. My favorite part of the class was how Miriam fostered community. We really got to know the other families and ended up with a happy and healthy baby as well as a group of families that also have young babies.
Knowing other young families and having them as a sounding board has been invaluable. We're all still in touch and message each other to check-in and ask questions.
— Rachel and Warren
Hava NaBaby was a great chance to learn about pregnancy and the birthing process with a Jewish angle and with a Jewish community.
We had not taken any birthing class when we first signed up, so it was really great to receive useful information about pregnancy, labor, delivery and postpartum processes.
At the same time, it was very exciting to meet other Jewish couples from our community, and to go through this process of learning all together. We have stayed in touch with the couples, and we look forward to our children growing up together in the... community!
— Sarah and Adam
When preparing for our first child, my husband and I chose the HavaNa Baby class taught by Rabbi Miriam Burg and were completely thrilled with the results. There was so much useful information that was geared towards both the birthing and support parent, as well as what to expect in the very early days of having a new baby at home.
The specialists who came in were a wealth of knowledge, and we ended up using a few of them later on. We mainly appreciated the Jewish perspective that was applied to the material, as it really tied the spirituality of it all together for us. This class was everything that we wanted (and needed) as first time parents, and we're so thankful for the experience that Miriam provided!
— Mekenna and Garrett
We really enjoyed taking the Hava NaBaby class with Miriam Burg because not only did we get to learn about Jewish traditions regarding pregnancy and birth, but we also met other lovely expecting couples.
Hearing about each other's journeys helped us appreciate the beauty of growing our family. It was so rewarding to be able to support each other!
— William and Tiffany
I VERY much enjoyed Hava NaBaby! It was the perfect combination of informative, social, and spiritual for me. It provided a broad, holistic understanding of the labor and delivery process to both my partner and me, including just enough detail and providing plenty of opportunity for further questions and discussion.
It created an opportunity to connect with others within a faith-based community setting, as well as a pathway to reconnect with my Jewish roots/spirituality, which became unexpected sources of personal fulfillment and inspiration.
I also found several of the breathing and relaxation techniques, as well as a few of the Hebrew prayers presented in this class to be relevant and welcome additions to my own labor and delivery experience.
I would highly recommend this class to anyone navigating pregnancy, with or without a birthing partner, with an interest in incorporating spirituality into their pregnancy journey.
— Melissa
Hava NaBaby was a very helpful part of our childbirth prep. We loved finding ways to incorporate Jewish wisdom to help us get ready for our little one. Thank you, Rabbi Miriam and Hava NaBaby for giving us space to learn and grow.
We really appreciated the wonderful array of materials and speakers who were part of the training and how each of them, and Rabbi Miriam, encouraged us to make the childbirth experience meaningful to us and not just a clinical moment. Thank you!
— Sherri and Ilan
We signed up for this class a little earlier in our pregnancy (around 20 weeks) in order to complement the more clinical childbirth class offered by our hospital. And were we ever glad we did it.
While the other class offered more medical information, this one made us feel more prepared: there was an opportunity to bond with each other, with the baby, and learn about other couples. The Jewish aspect of this course really felt intuitive and warm and welcoming, especially in today's climate. It made us feel even more excited about bringing a new baby Jew into the world!
— Anonymous
It was so lovely to be in a (virtual) room with other couples that are like us (interfaith, raising Jewish children) going through the same thing as us. Rabbi was so warm and welcoming and I am so grateful to have met her!
— Anonymous