Mindful Birthing and Parenting

Mindful Birthing and Parenting Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting (MBCP) Program with Nancy Bardacke, CNM

The birth of a child is truly a beginning, not only of a new being entering this world, but of individuals becoming or deepening their role as a parent. Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting (MBCP) Program has been created to serve those going through this profound transformation and who then continue to work at one of the most important, joyous and stressful jobs on the planet, that of nurturing and caring for the next generation.

We're growing our board!The Mindful Birthing and Parenting Foundation is recruiting 4 to 6 new directors to help guide t...
06/17/2026

We're growing our board!

The Mindful Birthing and Parenting Foundation is recruiting 4 to 6 new directors to help guide the next chapter of this work. We're a small nonprofit with a real reach, supporting families and perinatal professionals with evidence-aligned, trauma-sensitive mindfulness education for pregnancy, birth, and early parenting.

We're looking for people who bring:
– fundraising and philanthropy
– legal and nonprofit compliance
– finance and audit
– research in the perinatal and mindfulness fields
– marketing and communications
– technology and digital strategy, global health
– strategic planning and governance
– HR and organizational development
– policy and advocacy, program evaluation
– DEI

We also welcome candidates with strong community networks, cultural fluency, and lived experience in birth and parenting systems.

If you've ever wondered how to help this work beyond taking a class or making a donation, this is one of the most meaningful ways.

Apply for the board at mindfulbirthing.org/board
Know someone who'd be a fit? Send this their way.
💛

06/16/2026

We made this for the moments when the to-do list feels louder than the baby kicking.

Pregnancy and early parenthood come with a steady current of things to track, plan, prepare, and optimize. It's exhausting. And it doesn't actually make us better parents.

This is a 60-second practice. One breath in. One breath out. A moment to remember that you, right now, are already enough.

It's drawn from Mindful Birthing, the evidence-based program our nonprofit teaches, founded by Nancy Bardacke nearly 30 years ago. It doesn't end when the baby is born; it keeps showing up for the rest of parenting.

If you're pregnant, or you know someone who is, take the 60 seconds. Then send it to them, or to their partner.

Our next parent class and teacher training are open: mindfulbirthing.org/parents
🤍

"A real teaching about labor — and life:A contraction is about 3-5 seconds of intense pain, then about a minute of rest....
06/16/2026

"A real teaching about labor — and life:

A contraction is about 3-5 seconds of intense pain, then about a minute of rest. Then again. This goes on for hours.

Here's what most birth education doesn't teach: the difference between the trained mind and the untrained mind isn't what happens during the 3-5 seconds. It's what happens during the minute of rest.

The untrained mind uses the minute to dread the next wave. To narrate (""this is getting worse, I can't do this, when will this end""). By the time the next contraction arrives, the mind has already been suffering for a full minute on top of the actual pain.

The trained mind rests when there's rest. Lets the wave come when it comes. Returns to the breath, again and again.

One of our graduates called this ""the contractions of birth and the contractions of life."" Because it's not just about labor. Anywhere life comes in waves of intensity and recovery, this practice serves.

Our 4-Week Essential class starts July 11.

Learn more → mindfulbirthing.org"

Most birth preparation teaches you what to expect on one specific day.The Mindful Birthing 4-Week Essential Class teache...
06/15/2026

Most birth preparation teaches you what to expect on one specific day.

The Mindful Birthing 4-Week Essential Class teaches something different: how to be present with whatever that day, and every day after it, actually brings.

Designed for expectant parents in their second or third trimester, this live online program offers a condensed version of our full nine-week course. Same foundation. Same lineage, rooted in Jon Kabat-Zinn's Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. Taught by certified Mindful Birthing teachers.

Four weeks. Starts July 11.

For parents who want something evidence-based and real before their baby arrives.

Enroll → mindfulbirthing.org

Questions? Comment below or DM us.

"

28 years of teaching. One direct lineage from Jon Kabat-Zinn's Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. An active research co...
06/12/2026

28 years of teaching.

One direct lineage from Jon Kabat-Zinn's Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. An active research collaboration with the University of Wisconsin-Madison. More than 1,500 expectant parents taught directly by our founder Nancy Bardacke, CNM.

This is what ""evidence-based"" actually looks like.

Learn more → mindfulbirthing.org

"It’s going to help us with the birth, but it’s not about the birth. It’s about our lives."That's how Will described wha...
06/11/2026

"It’s going to help us with the birth, but it’s not about the birth. It’s about our lives."

That's how Will described what changed after completing the Mindful Birthing program.

Birth is the door. The practice is what you build walking through it, and it stays with you long after that day.

Follow if this is the kind of birth preparation you've been looking for.

presence — /ˈprez·əns/ — Noun [Mindful Birthing]The practice of being here, in this breath, with whatever is actually ha...
06/10/2026

presence — /ˈprez·əns/ — Noun [Mindful Birthing]

The practice of being here, in this breath, with whatever is actually happening. Not the birth you imagined. Not the parenting you planned for. The one you're actually in.

This is what we mean when we say mindfulness is a foundational skill, not a birth technique. The skill is being here. Birth is one place it shows up. Postpartum is another. The 3am feed is another. A hard conversation with your partner is another.

Learn more → mindfulbirthing.org

Let’s be completely honest: it is normal to feel scared of giving birth. Between many told horror stories and unsolicite...
06/03/2026

Let’s be completely honest: it is normal to feel scared of giving birth. Between many told horror stories and unsolicited advice from strangers, it’s easy to let fear take the driver's seat.

But fear creates physical tension, and tension makes suffering. You don't have to walk into your birth feeling powerless or full of dread.

In 4 weeks, we help you rewire that fear-tension cycle. You’ll learn how to work with your body, take labor one breath at a time, and build a toolkit that leaves you feeling calm, capable, and ready, no matter how your birth unfolds.

💛 Ready to trade anxiety for confidence? Visit the link in our bio to register for our June 6 class. 3 DAYS LEFT TO JOIN!

Labor is typically just day one.A lot of prenatal classes stop the story the second the baby arrives. But we think about...
05/29/2026

Labor is typically just day one.

A lot of prenatal classes stop the story the second the baby arrives. But we think about what happens next, the moments right after birth, the first 3:00 AM crying, and the massive identity shift of becoming a parent.

In ONE week, we will start the 4-week mindfulness class that gives you a physical and mental toolkit for labor. The real magic is how those same skills show up for you in postpartum life. It’s a 4-week investment that changes how you experience your entire transition into parenthood.

🗓️ Class starts June 6. Spaces are limited to keep the group intimate. Click the link in bio to register.

05/27/2026

You’ve probably got the nursery painted, the car seat installed, and a 3-page birth plan typed up. But have you prepped the most important tool you’ll bring into the delivery room?

Your mind.

Many childbirth classes focus entirely on the medical anatomy of birth. But labor isn't just a physical event, it’s a mental marathon. In our 4-week mindfulness class, we don't just teach you what happens to your body, we teach you how to handle the mental game of contractions, unexpected pivots, and early parenthood.

It’s the short, practical prep you didn't know you were missing.💛

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