Ina May's Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin
*This is the book that I had with me while I was home. The first part is various successful natural birth stories. The second part is the actual "how-to" and explanation of the labor process. Ina May is very much into the emotional-physical connection, but is backed by years and years of personal experience as a midwife. She is known as the "Mother of Modern Midwifery" or something like that. She's been on every birth documentary I've seen and highly referenced. She just published a book on breastfeeding that I will be getting with my C-mas gift card from Dirt & Megan.
Husband-coached Childbirth by Robert Bradley; revised by Marjie & Jay Hathaway
*I really enjoyed this book. This book is written to husbands, and has a slight spiritual tilt (like babies are a gift from God, for example). I liked this book because it was straightforward and clear. It provides a good analogy of birth as an athletic event and how the athlete should practice to prepare for it and how the muscles needs to warm up before the event (pre-labor contractions), etc. He also grew up on a farm, so he makes comparisons of human birth and other animal births. This books also goes through some common husband concerns in a sort of Q&A style and suggests to the husband ways to be supportive and helpful. This book doesn't use a lot of medical jargon or get unnecessarily medical, just the basics of what you need to know. I think this is a good first step for those wanting to learn about natural childbirth. I am getting this book for Stas. He has agreed to read it as long as I refer to it as "Dummies guide to childbirth." Oh there is also a chapter dedicated to diet and nutrition, which I skipped completely because it is heavy in animal products. There is also another book called Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way written by Dr Robert Bradley & someone else, but I haven't read it.
The Birth Partner by Penny Simkin
*I read about the first half of this book last summer before I had to return it to the library. I was sick of reading fertility books and wanted something else to learn about. This book is extremely thorough and stays pretty unemotional from what I remember. It goes through every single step of labor with what to expect, what to compare the pain to, how the manage pain, what to try, etc, etc. I look forward to going back and re-reading this with a much better foundational understanding of the birth process. I am also getting this book as a "standard reference" for birth and pain management.
Book's that I want to read, but haven't gotten to yet:
Birthing from Within by Pam England and Rob Horowitz
The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth by Henci Goer.
Birth: the surprising history of how we are born by Tina Cassidy
Here is the link to a post "What are you reading?" from my March 2010 Natural Childbirth Board:
http://community.babycenter.
*If you can weed out those reading non-birth related posts, there are some good suggestions and interesting commentary.
Another link for reading material:
http://www.beautiful-births.
*This is the book that I had with me while I was home. The first part is various successful natural birth stories. The second part is the actual "how-to" and explanation of the labor process. Ina May is very much into the emotional-physical connection, but is backed by years and years of personal experience as a midwife. She is known as the "Mother of Modern Midwifery" or something like that. She's been on every birth documentary I've seen and highly referenced. She just published a book on breastfeeding that I will be getting with my C-mas gift card from Dirt & Megan.
Husband-coached Childbirth by Robert Bradley; revised by Marjie & Jay Hathaway
*I really enjoyed this book. This book is written to husbands, and has a slight spiritual tilt (like babies are a gift from God, for example). I liked this book because it was straightforward and clear. It provides a good analogy of birth as an athletic event and how the athlete should practice to prepare for it and how the muscles needs to warm up before the event (pre-labor contractions), etc. He also grew up on a farm, so he makes comparisons of human birth and other animal births. This books also goes through some common husband concerns in a sort of Q&A style and suggests to the husband ways to be supportive and helpful. This book doesn't use a lot of medical jargon or get unnecessarily medical, just the basics of what you need to know. I think this is a good first step for those wanting to learn about natural childbirth. I am getting this book for Stas. He has agreed to read it as long as I refer to it as "Dummies guide to childbirth." Oh there is also a chapter dedicated to diet and nutrition, which I skipped completely because it is heavy in animal products. There is also another book called Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way written by Dr Robert Bradley & someone else, but I haven't read it.
The Birth Partner by Penny Simkin
*I read about the first half of this book last summer before I had to return it to the library. I was sick of reading fertility books and wanted something else to learn about. This book is extremely thorough and stays pretty unemotional from what I remember. It goes through every single step of labor with what to expect, what to compare the pain to, how the manage pain, what to try, etc, etc. I look forward to going back and re-reading this with a much better foundational understanding of the birth process. I am also getting this book as a "standard reference" for birth and pain management.
Book's that I want to read, but haven't gotten to yet:
Birthing from Within by Pam England and Rob Horowitz
The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth by Henci Goer.
Birth: the surprising history of how we are born by Tina Cassidy
Here is the link to a post "What are you reading?" from my March 2010 Natural Childbirth Board:
http://community.babycenter.
*If you can weed out those reading non-birth related posts, there are some good suggestions and interesting commentary.
Another link for reading material:
http://www.beautiful-births.
Documentaries-
Orgasmic Birth
The Business of Being Born
Born in the USA
What Babies Want
Breech Help
Chiropractor -
Natural Induction
First off, you need to understand you started your thread saying "I'm scared" -- and that fear comes from a lack of confidence. Knowledge and self-empowerment is the key to building the confidence you need.
Here's my suggestions to get you some more info and confidence:
1. Get Support! - Join a couple of the natural child birth groups here that more people are members of (this one's only march 2010 and is somewhat small). Here are some of my favorites:
Natural Unmedicated Childbirth: http://community.
Natural Pregnancy & Child Birth (private group): http://community.
Home Birth and/or Water birth supporters: http://community.
Hypnosis for Child Birth: http://community.
I think there are groups for the various teaching methods (Bradley, Lamaze, Hypnobabies) as well if you do a search of groups.
2. Start reading! Either some of the books suggested above or looking here:
3. Start Studying! - Get familiar with some terms and facts about natural birthing and those who fight for home birth and midwives (and those who are against it):
American College of Nurse Midwives:
Waterbirth.org:
Gentlebirth.org:
Birthing Naturally:
These are just a few I use regularly for information and support.
You'll hear reference to ACOG - this is the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. They are the ones who 'frown' on midwives and home births, yet they do have some good info there you can use as an arsenal of info for your OB if you are going the doctor / hosp. route and happen to get one who's very conservative or not cooperative with your natural birth wishes:
(this particular page is about going overdue and what ACOG recommends, which is good defense for many women being bullied into early inductions... their own group doesn't recommend it before 42wks!)
4. Learn Alternatives! - Episiotomies/epidurals/
- learn better pushing positions to use gravity and opening of the pelvis to help your baby through easier
- explore perineal conditioning and pre-labor preparation
- learn how pushing too soon or too long, while holding your breath contributes to tearing
You also can learn alternative pain management so that an epidural isn't even necessary such as Bradley, Hypnobabies, waterbirth.
5. Consider a Midwife or Doula! - "Going Natural" all the way may mean you'll make the best decision of all... ditch the doctors and learn how midwifery can not only make your birth experience less painful and stress free, but actually enjoyable! Leaving fear and scary hospital interventions behind in favor of letting your body do the work is the best possible choice you can make. You'll feel so empowered, so strong, and so vibrant when you do so and birth your baby completely on your own!
Our modern society has started to equate child birth with a disease or condition which must be treated as a 'procedure' in a hospital with bright lights, tubes, wires and pure misery for you and baby. You've already experienced some of it, and you know you don't want it again. Now its time to meet the trained and knowledgeable and CARING women who can help you achieve it. Midwives and Doulas are wonderful. You are not a name/number on a chart, you are not a statistic, you're a real living human being with feelings and needs and they develop a relationship with you, not just monitor your vital signs, run tests on you, and 'deliver you' of a baby the way a tooth is extracted.
You can do this. I love seeing transformations of women who went from multiple unsatisfying or traumatic hospital birth experiences (like myself twice before) to having natural, gentle births without pain, suffering or frightening procedures or rough handling of you or baby.
How to find a midwife: http://www.midwife.
What is a Doula?: http://www.dona.org/
Welcome to your journey. Don't be afraid. If you are confident and calm and well informed, your husband will see you radiating this confidence and he too will support your decision!
