SK any parent, there is much to be said for having access to a wealth of information during pregnancy and in the early stages of childcare.

Two mothers have responded to that need and are now offering a series of workshops designed to support and enable women and their partners to make informed choices.

Called Birth Matters, the workshops are run by childbirth experts Sophia Cannonier and Fiona Dill. Each brings a different set of skills ? Mrs. Dill is a trained nurse and a qualified antenatal teacher. Ms Cannonier is a maternal fitness expert who, after the successful home birth of her own son, developed her skills as a doula and childbirth educator so that she might help other women experience their idea of an enjoyable pregnancy.

"We are here to offer support, information, practical skills and resources to help you make informed choices for you and your baby," Mrs. Dill explained.

"Our philosophy encourages a woman-centred approach to the birth process, it regards pregnancy and childbirth as normal psychological processes ? not an illness. It acknowledges the social, cultural and psychological factors influencing childbirth and parenting and it emphasises women's rights to make informed choices about their births and how she and her partner parent."

A Bermudian, Mrs. Dill had already trained as a nurse when she decided to pursue studies in childbirth. Then living in England, she opted to pursue a diploma in antenatal education with the National Childbirth Trust, a respected facility there.

"I was always interested in birthing matters," the mother of five explained. "My first birth was hard. I didn't have all the information I now have and so I wanted to help others to avoid that.

"I also used to find that friends would approach me with their worries, their ideas about pregnancy and so forth and so I decided to undertake training so I could provide them with the correct answers. The programme took two-and-a-half years and I am now a trained childbirth educator."

Having first offered the courses in England, Mrs. Dill said she was amazed at the enthusiasm it generated among participants and the bonds established between them.

"One of the things I noticed in working with women is you have a range of attitudes when it comes to giving birth. The classes are not about natural birth. They're not about pushing for home birth. They're about choices, informing people about the choices they have and the implications of those choices.

"I found the groups were fun to do. Because there were never more than eight couples at a time, they all learned a lot and they bonded really well as they were all sharing an experience ? many of them I taught in England are still friends."

Aware that she and her Bermudian husband Nicholas ? now the Rector of St. John's Church in Pembroke ? would one day return to the island, Mrs. Dill confessed to hoping that she might one day be able to put her studies to good use here.

"I knew that we would eventually come back to Bermuda and I hoped to use my training here. I came back with that knowledge, five children, and a passion for helping women and their partners to achieve the best possible experience.

"In England you have a lot more options. There, more people give birth at home, there are practising (traditional) midwives, there's a huge range of choice when it comes to pregnancy.

"Here, the choices are more limited ? when Sophia had her son Ravi at home, that was quite a controversial move for Bermuda but for me it was exciting, they were forging a way forward for Bermuda to rethink, if not change the options here.

"Our classes are able to cope with all situations and we were hoping we could explore more choices."

The antenatal teacher explained that she was contacted by Ms Cannonier while still living in England. An article in thealerted the well-known Pilates instructor to Mrs. Dill's birthing expertise and she suggested that they might perhaps join forces.

"Sophia contacted me," Mrs. Dill said. "She was already running her childbirth classes at The Health Co-op and she felt with my knowledge and her physical expertise, we could be a great team.

"She was really interested in offering options to people who want to know more about birthing practices but at present she doesn't have the knowledge or the time.

"She's a very controversial figure. She's beautiful and very enthusiastic and passionate. Whereas I bring a university background. I'm also passionate but any information I provide is evidence-based."

present, there are only two options available to mothers and mothers-to-be on the island interested in similar courses of study ? the Nurses' Practice, run by Liz Boden and Rita Stevens, and a more specialised method taught by another practitioner, Lisa Blyden.

Topics included among the many covered by Birth Matters workshops are the physiology and anatomy of pregnancy and birth, recognising labour, coping with fears and feelings about birth, pain management options, the early days of parenting, coping with crying babies and the expectations of parenting.

"We're an alternative now," explained Mrs. Dill. "I believe that Sophia and I can perhaps have the most significant impact on women's experience of birth by our doula work. A doula is someone who provides emotional and practical support to the woman and her partner during labour and birth.

"Research shows there is a definite positive impact that having a doula can have on the birth experience. This can can be seen in terms of reduced length of labour, less likelihood of needing an epidural or even of having a Caesarean section.

"We do not offer medical advice. Parents are asked to take any questions about their medical care or that of their baby to their obstetrician but I personally think that what we offer is very important for people.

"We also offer refresher courses for those who have had a first or second birth which still grieves them and they want to do it differently this time. We explore their feelings, consider why it happened, how it happened and what could be done differently.

"It's serious stuff, but it's also a lot of fun. There's a lot of couples' work, they practise positions, there's a lot of visual aids."

She added that she had written to all the obstetricians on the island to try to meet with them to gain their input and philosophy with regard to birth as well as the head of the delivery suite at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, Roxanne Kipps Jackson. "I wanted to be able to determine where they are coming from, what their philosophy is and what their clients' options are," she said.

"The idea is to work with them. I'm hoping the boundaries may be pushed a little ? we all work within our comfort zones. Most American-trained obstetricians, for example, are used to medicated hospital births."