Birthing book reviews
The following book reviews are reprinted courtesy of Midwifery Today magazine.
A Mother's Circle
Around The Circle Gently
Birthing From Within
Breastfeeding a Mothers Gift
Breastfeeding Your Baby
Diary of a Midwife
Eating Expectantly
Encyclopedia of Childbearing
Essential Exercises for the Childbearing Year
Heart and Hands
Herbs, Helps, and Pressure Points for Pregnancy
Is My Baby All Right?
Journey Into Motherhood
Life Before Birth
Life of a Midwife
Maternal Fitness
Medicine Women, Curanderas, Women Doctors
Mother Massage
Mothering Twins
No More Morning Sickness
Pregnancy and Birth for Women With Disabilities
Presenting Unexpected Outcomes
Scientification of Love
The Childbirth Kit
Waterbirth: A Midwife's Perspective
A Mother's Circle
by Jean Kunhardt, MA, Lisa Spiegel, MA, and Sandra K. Basile
This easily read book lets the reader eavesdrop on a composite group of nine new mothers as they meet weekly to discuss their changing lives and concerns under the watchful eyes of professional parenting counselors.
Much like La Leche League (LLL) meetings in the range of views and topics covered, most of the information is up to date and even-handed. New moms can find commiseration and support; professionals can gain insight into current attitudes.
The failure to mention LLL and an overemphasis on "sleep training" notwithstanding, this is an overall good treatment of how moms come into their own as their lives change, and hopefully the observable benefits of belonging to any sort of mother-to-mother support group will bring more mothers out of their isolation. For those who are physically isolated, this book could also provide a form of vicarious support.
After almost twenty years of working as a perinatal educator, doula, and birth activist, reviewer Sue LaLeike has decided to leave teaching to others. She is now facing her own personal transition stage—nineteen college credits in chemistry and the other sciences—in order to be admitted to Miami-Dade Community College’s AS/Midwifery Degree program sometime in the next few years. She is also chairperson of the Education
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Around The Circle Gently
by Lyn Moen
This is a delightful collection of quotations and observations about life, from pre-conception through death, gathered through the years by Birth and Life Bookstore founder Lynn Moen and her assistant Judy Laik. Many have appreciated the way these two women keep their fingers on the changing pulse of American childbirth and family life. This book is a distillation of germaine information Moen and Laik gleaned from years spent reading millions of pages of discourse on the family.
Nearly 1000 proverbs, quotes, and quips fulfill the promise of "less is more" in this volume, ideal for gift-giving or a self-indulgent treat. From Mr. Rogers to Mark Twain, Anne Morrow Lindbergh to Janis Joplin, Benjamin Spock to Drs. Seuss and Sears, there’s literally something here for everyone.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Birthing From Within
by Pam England, CNM and Rob Horowitz, PhD
This fantastic collection of stories, experiences, birth art, practical information, drawings and inspiration was written and compiled by a midwife/childbirth educator and her psychologist husband.
Pam England’s goal in her childbirth education classes is to "offer guidance through the emotional, spiritual, psychic and social mists that shroud birthing from within." Her philosophy of childbirth education is self-discovery rather than the assimilation of obstetric information, and assisting women and couples to discover and validate their true knowledge rather than directing a stream of information at them. The substantial obstetric information found throughout this book is incorporated in a nonauthoritative way, and the book is infused with the mindfulness and Zen influence from England’s training and interest in Zen Buddhist philosophy.
Birth art is used throughout the book. England shares the visualizations/exercises she uses in her classes as well as some of her students’ actual drawings and stories. By exploring their fantasy of birth through art, parents can come to visualize what being IN their birth will be like and how they need to prepare. This is distinct from what a health professional often teaches about what to expect AT birth. This distinction is the foundation of this innovative book and approach to childbirth education. "Just as a shaman cannot give a patient a healing vision, there are some kinds of learning a childbirth teacher cannot give a mother."
Included is an informative chapter on homebirth as well as a chapter on "How to Give Birth if you Need a Cesarean" and "The Compassionate Use of Drugs and Epidurals." She sends a clear message that to give birth in awareness is to "be open to each moment and to do whatever needs to be done, wholeheartedly."
Fathers and birth companions are needed not as labor coaches but as bringers of reassurance, protection and love, according to the author. Cutout reminder cards can help the birth companion remember pain coping techniques and labor support methods, and learn how to gather information and make informed consent about medical care. The book concludes with a practical and helpful section on babyproofing a marriage.
I recommend this book highly for parents as well as birth professionals. It encourages women to be powerful in birth, offers a wealth of resources and exercises, and can help couples move through their birth journeys with awareness, power and insight.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Breastfeeding: A Mother's Gift
by Pamela K. Wiggins, IBCLC
Lactation consultant Pamela Wiggins has distilled all the information about breastfeeding that really matters into one compact, easily read and used volume of advice and encouragement. The mother who simply needs a bit of information can find it quickly, even without referring to the index. The print is large enough to be read by sleep-deprived eyes, and the chapters are arranged logically and with easily located subheadings. Those who desire more details can consult the extensive research listed in the bibliography at the end of the chapter on the benefits of breastfeeding. A further plus for the reader is the chapter contributed by Dr. Thomas Hale, author of Medications and Mother’s Milk.
The delightful simplicity and honest enthusiasm that Wiggins offers her reader has won me over completely and has put her book at the very top of my list.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Breastfeeding Your Baby
by Sheila Kitzinger
This simple, authoritative guide to breastfeeding success upholds Sheila Kitzinger's tradition of excellence in childbirth education literature. The subtitle sums up the book's value perfectly, "The complete guide for every new mother or mother-to-be who seeks knowledge, encouragement, and self confidence to breastfeed her baby."
The photographs alone are well worth the price of this fine new breastfeeding manual. This book could even be of great assistance as a teaching aid with non-English speaking or reading clientele. The vast range of situations, positions, breasts and babies portrayed photographically is unequalled in this genre of books.
Each topic Kitzinger discusses is dealt with concisely in two to four pages; approximately half of that space is occupied by beautifully clear photos. The copy is easy to read and understand. Information is easily located via the detailed Contents listing or the index. In a time when lives are so rushed, the ease with which this book can be utilized should make it a top seller.
Breastfeeding Your Baby will be a popular addition to lending libraries and waiting room bookshelves. Mothers will benefit from owning personal copies.
Kitzinger's newest breastfeeding manual beautifully complements (and may outstrip in popularity) such perennial favorites as Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and Pryor's Nursing Your Baby.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Diary Of A Midwife: The Power of Positive Childbearing
by Juliana Van Olphen-Fehr
"All mothers remember the births of their children. A memory, conscious or not, stays with them for the rest of their lives."
If we can remember only that, then we can continue to commit ourselves to making birth the best possible experience for women everywhere. There is a great need for change in America's birthing system. The power of birth has been stripped from women by an overzealous medical establishment and the technocrats and pharmaceutical and insurance companies that drive it. Juliana Van Olphen-Fehr speaks the truth both as a mother who experienced the system and as an obstetrical nurse and certified nurse-midwife on the front lines of hospital birth.
This book demonstrates great courage.It gives an accurate account of issues we face in modern-day birth: separation of mother and child and the distress it creates; inadequate prenatal care due to lack of money and lack of workable systems for pregnant women; exorbitant fees charged by doctors and hospitals which could be avoided if more midwives were allowed to provide care. As well, Diary of a Midwife tells us what is really going on in the hospitals. It explains why homebirth can be an option, the differences in care between hospital and home, and the politics of and barriers to midwifery care in this country.
I was mesmerized by the power of Juliana's observations and insights. So much of what I believe in and strive for in my own practice is present in this work. As Juliana describes her own birth experiences, she instills new strength and resolve to fight for all women and babies so that they may have an empowered birth. I was rejuvenated and newly determined. I can't thank Juliana enough for sharing the truth and stimulating us to action. This fascinating book will inspire care providers and families to reclaim the power of birth simply by its honesty.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Eating Expectantly
By Bridget Swinney, M.S., R.D.
Both comprehensive and easy to read and use, this book is suited to a wide audience of consumers. It has a wide scope of information about nutrition and food preparation. Covering preconception through postpartum, Swinney uses research-backed facts, charts, illustrations, question-answer formats, kitchen hints, and recipes to tach readers how to achieve optimal nutrition, weight gain, and fitness during the childbearing year.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Encyclopedia of Childbearing
by Barbara Katz Rothman
The list of contributors to the Encyclopedia reads like a "Who's Who" of birth activists, reformers, and defenders from the last two decades, and more than 90 percent are truly birthing experts—they're women!
Well-organized, open-minded, up-to-date, and wide-ranging are just a few adjectives that describe this fascinating book, and readers of all persuasions will spend many a pleasant and educational hour with it.
As with any encyclopedia, readers will look up one thing, be drawn to another, and find themselves thinking about the whole from which they are drawn.
While the price is high enough to keep many individuals from acquiring their own copy, this does present an excellent opportunity to approach our local librarians about purchasing copies for public use and education. Our communities need access to this great volume.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Essential Exercises for the Childbearing Year
by Elizabeth Noble
This marvelous book's third edition is better than ever! Long acknowledged by birth educators as the most useful and popular exercise treatise, Essential Exercises for the Childbearing Year now provides a new exercise regimen for birth classes: partner exercises.
A common complaint of mothers-to-be is that exercising alone is boring. Another common cause of discontent is the lack of prodding they get from their partners to do prenatal exercises. Noble has outlined a series of 10 simple, yet beneficial exercises for partners to do together. The beauty of these is how well they fit into teaching about labor conduct itself. Beginning with a supported squat after a brief warm-up period, the set includes back-to-back positions and two forward stretch poses designed to help the parents discover their ability to surrender into muscular release.
While still retaining its conversational flavor the book improves on previous editions with new material about the muscular groups women must focus on. New trends and teachings are reflected in the text. It is written at an excellent level for either lay or professional readers. Adding the partner exercises at the beginning of each weekly prenatal class will benefit everyone: moms will get extra exercise and enjoy the educator's prodding of the father; the dads will laugh together (and tend to groan and resist more than the ladies in the forward stretches!) and see their peers helping their ladies, and educators can gauge parents' physical flexibility discreetly while knowing that more exercising is going on at home between classes. This is a very useful book!
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Heart and Hands
by Elizabeth Davis
I have always listened to Elizabeth Davis. Her wisdom is as friendly as it is deep, which makes it undeniably accessible. In 1981 when the first edition of her book became available, there were few of us who didn’t pore over it from cover to cover, many, many times over. She taught us the value of being caring midwives while being practical and alert. She instructed us in the basics of midwifery care, and gave us full chapters on prenatal care; problems in pregnancy, labor and birth; complications of birth; postpartum care; and the art of becoming a responsible midwife. Her third edition is a comprehensive revision on all these subjects, and in addition, gives us forty percent more material.
Heart & Hands is both a textbook for beginning midwives and a reference book for parents who want to expand their knowledge of pregnancy and birth. It furthermore serves the needs of experienced midwives by providing current information on topics such as hepatitis, HIV, GBS screening, group midwifery practice and malpractice concerns. There is hardly a subject that Elizabeth doesn’t address: everything from hard, practical skills and information to sexual problems, single mothers, estranged couples, herbs and homeopathy, death, and tips for expectant partners. Boxed information-at-your-fingertips facilitates quick reference. I found the section on training apprentices most helpful; Elizabeth puts this issue into compassionate yet practical perspective. Extensive appendices give us MANA standards, resources, sixteen pages of forms to use in one’s practice plus a supply list, and a listing of education programs.
Suzanne Arms’ warm photography and Linda Harrison’s exceptional illustrations lend their special credence to this book. Elizabeth gives us sound instruction and valuable advice from her long years as a midwife, teacher, and midwifery advocate. This book will inspire you, expand your knowledge, heighten your awareness, and deepen your wisdom.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Herbs, Helps, and Pressure Points for Pregnancy and Childbirth
by Katherine Tarr
Drawing on her more than 18 years of practice, midwife Katherine Tarr has created an easy to read and use collection of tips to help make pregnancies healthier. The information she has gathered is useful to parents and practitioners alike. Guidelines for healthy eating and diet supplementation with herbs, vitamins, and minerals share space with information about helpful, little-known pressure points. A list of supplies for homebirth and chapters on troubleshooting common prenatal and postpartum problems broaden the book’s usefulness. Some items, such as recommending the ingestion of comfrey, may be more controversial now than when Tarr first compiled her suggestions.
The best use for this handy collection of tips is probably as an introduction to possible remedies. The price is very fair, considering the wide range of topics touched upon in this visit to Tarr’s storehouse of experience-based recommendations.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Is My Baby All Right?
by Christine Gosden
"Is my baby all right?" is a valid question asked by many expectant parents. Today, there are many tests available to help identify abnormalities in babies, and prenatal testing is becoming a more prevalent part of prenatal care. As a midwife, I am aware that only 2 percent to 3 percent of babies are affected by a serious abnormality, leaving 97 percent unaffected. Although I do not routinely advocate the use of prenatal tests, more and more families choose on their own to use them, or a situation may require their use.
This book discusses abnormalities in babies, how they occur and are detected, and the options available to the prospective parents. It helps make sense of the testing system. By offering an in-depth summary of screenings and diagnostic testing methods, this book explains genetics and environmental and hereditary factors in an understandable fashion. Support services are described and case histories are used to suggest more effective choices in a difficult situation.
I feel comfortable about using this book as a reference for parents who have questions about potential abnormalities. It gives good, solid advice presented in a non-biased manner.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Journey into Motherhood
by Leslie Kirk Campbell
"Journal" and "journey" originate from the same Latin word, diurnus, meaning "daily." "Diurnata," the author points out, means "a day’s travel." This lovely book guides the reader through the writing process as she journeys through pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum. It is divided into four sections, each of which focuses on various phases of each trimester and the postpartum period, coming full circle to twelve months after conception. Gently, gently the author inspires the reader to get in touch with her body’s changes, her feelings, her wisdom, then record them. She intersperses the text with journal entries made during her own pregnancy, poetry from many authors, and journal entries from "Journey Into Motherhood" workshop participants. Several blank pages follow each section, handy if the reader chooses to use this book as her journal.
The benefit of a guided journal is that the more difficult issues of pregnancy, childbirth and new motherhood are presented in a reassuring and manageable way. Campbell’s writing style is thoughtful, almost dreamlike, and never directive or judgmental. The reader comes to her own awakenings at her own pace. She can think about and write her own truths with increasing ease.
I asked one of my clients, the new mother of a seven-month-old, to read this book. She said, "I found myself relating to the questions and concerns brought forth by the author. I kept my own journal during pregnancy, and as I looked it over I laughed with familiarity to see the same types of concerns being addressed."
Campbell uses thoughtful techniques: writing letters to your unborn/newborn, looking back to your ancestral roots, reacquainting yourself with your mother and your own birth, imagining, dreamwork, free writing, and many, many more.
I recommend this book not only to pregnant women and birth practitioners, but also to counselors and writing teachers. What a beautiful work of art Leslie Kirk Campbell has created!
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Life Before Birth
by Majore A. England
The first edition of this book, published in 1983, was the first book to show full-color photographs of normal embryonic and fetal development. The second edition continues in the same vein, with updated literature and photography, and uses the Carnegie system of staging to measure development and maturation. Contemporary ultrasound imaging augments the photographs and text.
This full-color volume takes the reader through the normal process of fetal development including pre-embryonic, embryonic and fetal stages. It continues with fetal membranes and placenta, head and neck development, followed by the formation of the thorax, abdomen, limbs, bones and joints, and muscles. All photographs and scans are meticulously identified, tiny feature by tiny feature.
This atlas of embryology is geared for all who might be interested: nurses, midwives, students and doctors as well as families and mothers-to-be. The photographs are astounding, and draw the reader deeper and deeper into the detailed miracle of fetal development.
It must be noted that all of the illustrations are from human specimans, many that were prepared over 40 years ago. Any individuals who object to this will most likely not be interested, but as the preface reads, "It is hoped that this second edition will serve the students of medicine and its allied fields to visualize the beauty and three dimensional nature of human embryonic and fetal development."
Reviewer Jill Cohen practices midwifery in the Eugene, Oregon. Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Life of a Midwife
Edited by Jan Tritten
Midwifery Today has brought together a rich and striking blend of voices and informative, thought-provoking, heartfelt and diverse material in its new book for both aspiring and practicing midwives. As I read it, I thought that if I could get through it, absorb it, understand it, live it, I could really be a midwife. This book is indeed a screening: for those women who have not the time, commitment, constitution or support for such life work, the true awareness of that reality may very well surface, long before the last of the pages is in sight. Midwifery is not for the meek or cowardly, nor for the arrogant.
The subjects of money and family support (or lack of it) are discussed in a frank and uncompromising way. The subjects of defects and death are met head-on. The practical, educational aspects of midwifery and the intuitive, unseen, spiritual aspects of this calling are fully addressed. Included are the trials and tribulations, victories and tragedies.
This book may give aspiring midwives cause for pause and reflection, as it did me. But its cautionary words woven with an absolute love for, and belief in, midwifery allow us to untangle our own cords of confusion, fear, and desire, and to float peacefully, head down, on our way through.
I loved learning about each of the women through their writing-what midwifery means to them, the reasons why they first decided to become a midwife, the reasons they stay.
I recommend this book unreservedly, not only to aspiring midwives and apprentice midwives, but to all midwives, childbirth educators, labor and delivery staff members, hospital administrators, postpartum care personnel. To read this book is to gain insight into the journey and struggles that today's midwife must traverse in a system that itself has a long way to go to understand the sacrifices and the struggles of the profession. This book is not only for self-evaluation; it is a lovely way to feel a strong pulse of the midwifery heart.
Reviewer Nancy Wainer Cohen is an aspiring midwife and author of Silent Knife, Open Season,and Birthquake. She lives in Needham, Massachusetts with her family.
Published in the Summer 1995 (No. 34) issue of Midwifery Today Copyright 1995, Midwifery Today, Inc.
Maternal Fitness: Preparing for the Marathon of Labor
by Julie Tupler, with Andrea Thompson
Julie Tupler is a registered nurse, a certified fitness trainer, and a childbirth educator. She is the founder of Maternal Fitness, a one-on-one labor preparation program based in New York City. Throughout her years of experience she has compiled data, expertise, and proven techniques into a new and innovative book of the same name.
This book takes us past the "Just keep fit" attitude and really shows women how to stretch, strengthen, and relax the muscles they will use most in labor, as well as instructs them in what changes occur in the pregnant body and how to work with these changes.
Maternal Fitness is a wonderful combination of exercise, education, and relaxation to help create a more enjoyable pregnancy and a quicker recovery. Some specific topics include: The do's and don'ts of prenatal exercise; the Tupler technique: getting to know the muscles you need for labor and birth; the do-it-yourself fitness evaluation; posture, muscle strength and flexibility, nutrition, and visualization. Julie defines the BAKs Basics: 13 moves that pregnant women should practice every day.
Drawings are liberally applied to the text to explain exercises, define correct posture and identify muscle groups.
Julie's primary goals for the pregnant woman are first, prevention of common pregnancy discomforts such as back pain, edema, enlarged painful breasts, etc; second, preparation for labor both through exercise and understanding the process of birth; and third, restoration. Julie explains it best by stating "It's just common sense that the more thoughtfully you exercise your body during pregnancy, the faster and more easily it will recover or restore itself to your pre-pregnancy shape and energy level."
Julie Tupler has a wonderful sense of humor and enthusiasm that keeps your attention on her instruction, and makes you want to learn more. She truly makes her program come alive.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Medicine Women, Curanderas and Women Doctors
by Bobette Perrone, H. Henrietta Stockel and Victoria Krueger
Medicine Women, Curanderas, and Women Doctors is, as co-author Perrone states, "storytelling." Over several years' time, the authors of this health anthology interviewed representative healers from three traditions: Native American medicine women; Hispanic curanderas; and female allopathic physicians. Told mostly in the subjects' own words, threads of compassion, selflessness, faith, strength, gentleness, wisdom and devotion to their work are apparent in each woman's mantle.
The authors sought out these glimpses into daily lives, beliefs and philosophies of caring to increase our understanding of the ways traditional practices affect communities and practitioners when the healers are female. The result is an excellent, affirming and enlightening view of possibilities for research and improved health care. The authors agree it is time to listen to the wisdom of other belief systems and to incorporate them into both personal and global healing and balancing. By bringing the female approach toward healing to the forefront, everyone's physical and spiritual health will benefit.
This book would be appropriate reading for many: people involved in women's health care, cross-cultural and cross-religious studies, sociology, public health, medical ethics studies, women's studies, and those simply interested in the lives of other female healers.
The essence of Medicine Women, Curanderas, and Women Doctors' message is summed up perfectly in co-author Stockel's closing comment, "To anticipate the enormous potential for improvement in the entire spectrum of healing, should this syncretic model of health care become a reality, the traits women healers hold in common may be combined with their natural empowerment to heal and to utilize spirituality in the forms of courage, communion, and connectedness in their healing ways. The total scope of what may then become possible is monumental."
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Mother Massage: A Handbook for Relieving the Discomforts of Pregnancy
by Elaine Stillerman
Educators, doulas, and midwives can enhance their practices with knowledge and use of appropriate massage. Seven forms of touch therapy as well as herbs, nutrition, and more are suggested as specific, effective comfort measures for pregnant women. Also given are instructions for full-body massage (suitable for anyone), labor, postpartum, and infant massage, and massage techniques for lactation. Two quick-reference tables provide easy access to details about reflexology, shiatsu, and herbs. Stillerman teaches a course in Mother Massage to professional masseuses, and it’s wonderful to study her techniques in this handy, useable form.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Mothering Twins
by Linda Albi, Deborah Johnson, Debra Florien Duerloo, Sheryll Greatwood
Here is an amazing tale of five women with twins and how they formed The Book Group to share and record all they knew about mothering multiples: the obstacles, trials and tribulations, and the many innovative changes that they made in their lives in order to adjust to their special situation. Having come from five different upbringings themselves, the mothers have different viewpoints, giving the reader a broad perspective on all subjects they discussed in their group.
With extensive content, 15 chapters cover diverse topics: finding out about having twins, working with the pregnancy, the birth experience, the first 24 months, establishing support systems, childcare, older children and twins, couple relationships, our own self, and perspectives from fathers. This book is packed with advice!
Linda Albi, who mothers two sets of twins, puts it into perspective as she writes, "I am encouraged by the fact that I’ve gone through this before, and I know, in order to endure, I have learned to keep an open mind and not fight against the many changes that have assailed me. I continue to grow along with my twins."
A thorough resource directory gives information on pregnancy and birth, prematurity, miscarriage, death of a child, child health and safety, breastfeeding, twin information services including twin equipment, parenting resources, and special needs child help services. There is also a good twins reading list.
These women encourage individuality in parenting twins. They encourage each mother to develop her own style and approach to parenting based on her needs and the needs of her children. Through this book, mothers of multiples can find a graceful path in which to nurture their families in a peaceful and happy manner.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
No More Morning Sickness: A Survival Guide for Pregnant Women
by Miriam Erick
Ask yourself this question: What food or beverage would ease your pregnancy-related nausea? Something salty, sour, bitter, tart, sweet, crunchy/lumpy, soft/smooth, mushy, hard, fruity, wet, dry, bland, spicy, aromatic, earthy, hot, cold, thin or thick?
Considering how common morning sickness is (it affects 50 percent to 90 percent of all pregnancies), I was happily amazed to find an entire book dedicated to this uncomfortable problem. Miriam addresses many views and strategies that can be used to offset this pesky problem.
The book gives information on the possible causes of morning sickness, its history, its physical and mental manifestations, and available resources from which to get help. Miriam has also included dietary suggestions and good recipes.
Chapter One begins with a thorough explanation of what morning sickness actually is, with a good look at feelings and how smells play a role. "Real Stories from Real Women" gives the reader a sense of purpose, and stories from fathers help to deal with issues on "the other side." The menu portion of the book is extensive, and contains good reference to calories, fat, cholesterol content, and protein as well as characteristics in regards to flavor, fiber content, bitterness, sweetness, etc.
This book is well researched and tastefully done. It’s an excellent reference book for all pregnant women as well as a very useful book for practitioners’ libraries.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Mother-to-Be: A Guide to Pregnancy and Birth for Women With Disabilities
by Judith Rogers and Molleen Matsumura
This very optimistic and comprehensive guide to pregnancy as experienced by women with disabilities is written for the expectant woman, but also has much valuable information for those who providce their prenatal care. Advice is also included for differently-abled women who are contemplating the impact of pregnancy on their bodies and lives.
The book's major strength is in the survey results that list physical changes and challenges that were the result of pregnancy for each of 36 diabled women. Some are charted as pregnancy-related, some as disability-specific, and some are the result of both conditions. Midwifery and out-of-hospital birth are viewed as positive and plausible options, depending on individual circumstances. Also very helpful are the practical discussions of adjusting to postpartum life.
This guide takes an open-minded approach and makes honest assessments. It is a welcome addition to an under-represented category of prenatal literature.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Presenting Unexpected Outcomes: A Childbirth Educator's Guide
by Sherokee Ilse
Sherokee Ilse has conceived five babies, only two of whom survived past birth. Her personal experiences with miscarriage, stillbirth, and ectopic pregnancy moved her to teach birth educators to realistically temper their tales of hard work followed by the joy of a perfect infant.
In Presenting Unexpected Outcomes, Ilse shares with educators the reasons and methods for bringing up this painful topic. It stands to reason that those who have experienced perinatal loss have the most insight to share. Knowing that it would be extremely difficult for a teacher to say "How could I have better prepared you for this excruciating disappointment?" to a couple who has been so devastated, Ilse takes the reader by the hand and advises birth educators how to teach so couples understand there are no guarantees. There are specific activities to use in class, a few handouts to reproduce, and plenty of insight and practical advice.
For those who have already tested the waters of realistically discussing such topics, Presenting Unexpected Outcomes offers ways to improve these segments. For the novice, Ilse presents her information in such a way that even newcomers to the field should have no excuse for avoiding discussions of sick infants, stillbirths, SIDS and more.
Expectant couples tend to wear rosier and rosier glasses with each passing year. This guide will encourage educators to find ways to reach behind the facades and protective mechanisms and get closer to the reality awaiting each couple as they travel toward parenthood.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Scientification of Love
By Michel Odent
Only someone who has been both a medical doctor/researcher and a homebirth midwife could write a book like this one, which explores love from a scientific angle yet with great respect for the beautiful orchestration of normal physiology as it works to its best capacity when it is undisturbed. Love, we learn, is a strategy for human survival.
The author begins with the primal period which includes fetal life, the perinatal period and early infancy. He explores the behavioral effects of various hormones on birth, postpartum, and the interaction of mother and baby. Using this lens, he then examines the offspring in adulthood: has an undisturbed birth resulted in an expansive capacity to love, or have interventions of many kinds resulted in violent criminality, suicide, impaired sociability, schizophrenia?
The book goes on to explore human sexuality, mysticism, death and prayer as changed levels of consciousness. Odent discusses peak experiences and their impact on human health and well being. The human attraction to water and the physical adaptations of the human body to life in water are given a chapter, as is love at a molecular level, a fascinating look into the physiology of emotional states.
Odent's book gives the reader just enough to think about in regard to each subtopic he raises, while the reader is then compelled to find out more-both by doing further research of a formal nature and obeying the urgent need to tap one's deepest, purest intuition. This in itself sounds like an amazing incitement for an author to accomplish, but for anyone who has been in Odent's presence, it is not at all surprising. This fine book is quintessential Odent -- passionate, inquiring and brilliant, with the kind of emerging logic that animates, excites and inspires.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
The Childbirth Kit: Ideas and Images to Help you Through Labor
by Marie Fellenstein Hale, Liz Chalmers
The Childbirth Kit was developed by two mothers who met after the births of their children, compared and combined their knowledge about techniques that worked in childbirth for both of them, and decided to share their findings with other women. This lovely and useful kit can help other birthing women focus on the energy of labor in a positive way.
The booklet details birth options, ideas and the basic how-to’s of labor. Divided into six sections, each offers succinct counsel easily accessed under bold sub-heads, with a "Remember" sidebar at the end. The first section, Opening, discusses planning for birth, and offers special tips for a birth partner, along with information on doulas and how a pregnant woman can find her own path in childbirth. The section entitled Progression discusses the anticipation of labor and how to prepare for and practice for it, from how to help create a more relaxed birth with the use of water, breathing, imagery, touch, and humor. The next sections address early labor, active labor, transition and pushing. There are many great ideas that both mother and her birth partner can use to facilitate these phases. Detailed explanations complimented by wonderful drawings give good examples of ways to create a satisfying birth experience.
The cards provided in the kit have a variety of uses. Each card has a beautiful image on one side, and techniques, trigger words, and visualizations on the other side. They are arranged in order so that a set of tools is ready to use at any point during labor and birth. Full explanations on when, how, and which cards to use at what points of time are also included in the booklet. For instance, for the pushing phase the picture of energy (which is a picture of a fiery red sun) and the picture of arrival (a beautiful baby) are used to remind you of the purpose of the intense journey, and to fill you with power. An additional card called Waiting Days Calendar is designed to help you plan fun, motivational, or distracting activities for before and after your due date. Just fill in the blanks per day. Having gone weeks over my own due date, I found this card a brilliant piece of work! Of course the authors offer lots of creative ideas in the booklet to help attain your goals with this card. Finally,there is a blank card so you can create your own image, techniques and ideas.
Marie and Liz help make the birthing experience fun and effective. The Childbirth Kit is very uplifting and positive, and I recommend it for any mother-to-be to help build self confidence while facilitating the natural process of birth.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
Waterbirth: A Midwife's Perspective
by Susanna Napierala
One day while doing prenatals, a client planning a waterbirth handed me a copy of Susanna Napierala's book. She had pored through it and said it had answered all her questions. Over the years I have read a lot of information on water in pregnancy and birth, but this book says it all.
First, the nature of water and its relationship to human beings is discussed. This gives the reader a foundation for understanding the relationship of water to childbirth. Susanna quotes the findings of major authorities in the field and adds her own findings as collaboration.
Birthing options, prenatal care, preparation,and the benefits of water are discussed. Laboring in water, postpartum, and birth stories are also included. A helpful chapter on how to make your own tub is a nice feature.
Susanna's midwifery experience and the testimonies of mothers is reassuring. This book should be read by parents and practitioners alike.
Reviewer Jill Cohen lives and practices midwifery in the Eugene, Oregon area. She is associate editor of Midwifery Today, and senior editor of The Birthkit.
Review courtesy of Midwifery Today.
