PREPARING for the birth of your first child is one of the most daunting feelings you can experience.

Not only do you have to try and get your head around what to expect during the labour and birth, you also have to think about how you're going to cope when the baby arrives.

It's a whole new scary world and although nothing can completely prepare you for it until it actually happens, there are ways of arming yourself with useful knowledge that will hopefully see you through the tough times — and allow you to enjoy those emotional and precious moments.

Up until recently the only way of being able to do that in Exeter has been attending local NHS antenatal classes or paying for them through organisations like the National Childbirth Trust.

But starting this month an alternative is being offered by midwife Paddy Cocking who has set up Parentwise — birth preparation classes for couples in and around the city.

Available as either a weekly six-week evening course or intensive two-day weekend course, the aim is to give parents the confidence and skills to cope with the emotional and physical strains of labour and the early weeks with a newborn baby.

Paddy, who has been a midwife for 12 years and is a mother-of-three, said: "The NHS and midwives are doing the best they can but sadly it is a question of time. The Parentwise courses I provide have the luxury of time to cover everything. I am also an experienced midwife so I have a lot of professional experience and knowledge.

"And, as a mother I know how special becoming a parent can be — and just how daunting.

"I took antenatal classes in addition to the NHS classes with my husband. It was, in my opinion, the best thing we did. The friends we made we still keep in touch with 10 years later.

"I had the idea to start my own parenting courses eight years ago, but with the commitments of a growing family and work it was a case of fitting it in and setting it up. I decided it was now or never."

Paddy, 42, from Pinhoe, is holding her first course on Tuesday, February 16, and she will run Parentwise alongside working for the local NHS Trust in and around Exeter.

Topics covered include positions in labour, birth massage, breathing, stages of labour, medical and non-medical pain relief, role of the birth partner, and caring for baby when it arrives.

The course also aims to generate lasting friendships and form a strong support network for those taking part.

Paddy, a registered midwife and nurse, said: "I give realistic outcomes to help plan for what might happen because I often meet parents who were disappointed with the outcome because they were perhaps not given the entire facts beforehand.

"There's lots of psychological preparation such as how to cope with a crying baby, excessive tiredness and fraught emotions.

"I am passionate about what I do and ensuring couples are adequately prepared for this amazing journey to parenthood."

A six-week course costs £135 and a weekend course £160. A free post-natal reunion is offered to course participants. Free taster sessions are also available. The first is being held on the evening of Thursday, February 25. For details, visit www.parent-wise.co.uk or telephone 07733 327161.