This book changed the way I think about birth

[CraftyEarthMama]

With my first I had a natural birth (not on purpose just waited wayyy too long to go to the hospital and 20 minutes later DD was born). 

So I thought if I did it once I can do it this time around too. So I picked up a copy of "ina may's guide to childbirth" and its AMAZING.

Have any of you read it? Any thoughts or other books to suggest?

[artekah]

I love Ina May!!

Here are a few great ones I've read:
Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth by Henci Goer
Birthing From Within
Active Birth by Janet Balaskas

[Inkedstar]

LOVE Ina May's Book. Her guide to childbirth really struck a chord with me. She has another book (Spiritual Midwifery) which I also liked alot.

The Birth Partner is also a great book with lots of ideas for how someone (doula, partner, family member) can help the birthing mom.

Heart & Hands by Elizabeth Davis is more from the midwife perspective but I enjoyed the in depth info it contained.

[CraftyEarthMama]

i'm totally looking these books up now! I've been tempted to find a doula (after reading ina mays book). 

[Gismobabe]

I love the book!

[AubreyJo]

I want to read it. 

I read her Spiritual Midwifery when I was pregnant with #2, and it led to an unassisted childbirth that was awesome! 
I'll be buying it again for this pregnancy. :) I gave it to my sister when she got prego, but I don't think she appreciated it, ha. 

[mamaw/two]

I love that book!  I'll have to get it out and read it again:)

[noahs.mom06]

Some of my favorite books (and ones I recommend to clients, not including those already listed)-

-Natural Childbirth, the Bradley Way
-Hypnobirthing, the Mongan Method (comes with a CD that's great if you have trouble sleeping!) If it works for you, I strongly recommend looking into Hypnobabies for a class or the homestudy
-Orgasmic Birth (read it, it's not about sex!)
-The Birth Book, by Dr. Sears
-The Pregnancy Book, also by Sears
-Your Best Birth
-Voices: VBAC Women Share Their Journey

[samhope]

I also loved spirital midwifery (just the first section about the births).  It was so great to see all these families kissing and celebrating the birth process:)  Really inspiring for my future homebirth (although I think it would be helpful for natural hospital birth too).

Others I gained alot from have already been mentioned:)  They were the bradley method book and birthing from within (loved the terminology of switiching c-section to a belly birth:)

[gardenofsimple]

I'm reading Birthing from Within right now and really like it.

[DrBrockBaca]

I love Ina May's childbirth book! I'm reading her breastfeeding book now. 

I have also read the following books that I recommend: 

The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth by Henci Goer

The Birth Partner by Penny Simkin (for my husband, but I read it too and found it very worthwhile)

Pushed by Jennifer Block (if you want to know the research behind natural childbirth vs. hospital interventions)

The Baby Catcher: Chronicles of a Modern Midwife by Peggy Vincent (very enjoyable autobiographical book of birth stories from a Bay area midwife that is also informative)

The Complete Book of Pregnancy and Childbirth by Sheila Kitzinger

The Natural Pregnancy Book by Aviva Jill Romm

Birthing from Within by Pam England (not very informative, but helpful for examining your fears and attitudes)

Enjoy your reading!

[DrBrockBaca]

Also, I've seen the documentary based on the Orgasmic Birth book, and it's very good. It features Ina May and Christine Northrup, among others.

Another good documentary is The Business of Being Born, which discusses the medical/insurance/legal side of birth in the U.S. and the reasons that doctors perform so many unnecessary interventions. It highlights the differences between home births and hospital births. 

[mugglesmom]

I loved The Business of Being Born.  This was the film that convinced my hubby to get on board with homebirth!  He actually saw it before I did and said he now saw my perspective.

I'd love to see or read the Orgasmic Birth.  It's on my list.

I loved reading the stories of birth in Ina May's Guide to Childbirthing.  I think I cried every few pages they were so beautiful.

[DrBrockBaca]

Oh, another fun book is Origins by Annie Murphy Paul. It's not about childbirth, but about how what happens during pregnancy influences the life of the child later on. It discusses nutrition, illness, blood sugar, weather, emotions/depression, and lots of interesting things. I really enjoyed it.

[melinstar]

Thanks for your suggestion.  Just Netflixed Orgasmic Birth, and watched it with my husband.  I had a pit-induced, vacuum assisted birth of DD, and after this video, my husband said what I already knew--that the "emergency" that necessitated the vacuum (and the use of pit) probably caused that "emergency."  (he also said he'd be on board with any birth option I chose for this pregnancy--this is a guy who before my first pregnancy thought formula was perfectly fine, couldn't imagine why anyone would sleep with their kid, and thought a stroller was just fine.)  It was wonderful to watch the home births, and the comparison to the snippets of hospital births, which were presented without commentary, but the message was loud and clear on its own.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrBrockBaca 

Also, I've seen the documentary based on the Orgasmic Birth book, and it's very good. It features Ina May and Christine Northrup, among others.

Another good documentary is The Business of Being Born, which discusses the medical/insurance/legal side of birth in the U.S. and the reasons that doctors perform so many unnecessary interventions. It highlights the differences between home births and hospital births. 

[noahs.mom06]

Originally Posted by melinstar 

Thanks for your suggestion.  Just Netflixed Orgasmic Birth, and watched it with my husband.  I had a pit-induced, vacuum assisted birth of DD, and after this video, my husband said what I already knew--that the "emergency" that necessitated the vacuum (and the use of pit) probably caused that "emergency."  (he also said he'd be on board with any birth option I chose for this pregnancy--this is a guy who before my first pregnancy thought formula was perfectly fine, couldn't imagine why anyone would sleep with their kid, and thought a stroller was just fine.)  It was wonderful to watch the home births, and the comparison to the snippets of hospital births, which were presented without commentary, but the message was loud and clear on its own.

Quote:

 

If you liked the movie, you should really read the book. I watched the movie right before I attended an advanced doula training with Debra Pascali-Bonaro (co-author of the book and maker of the film), and read the book after the training. The book is much more in-depth and really great. I am planning to read it again in the next couple of weeks (DH has to be gone for a couple of weeks for military training, so I figure I can read it again while he's gone). After I read it the first time, I really truly believed that this birth could be a wonderful, peaceful orgasmic birth, and I want to make sure I stay in that frame of mind :)

[ebegreen]

Ina May's spirtual midwifery and guide to childbirth have been my constant bed-side companions since I found out I was pregnant.  Whenever I feel fearful or unsure I read the birth stores and it makes me feel so much better, like YES I can do this, my body was made to do this. 

My other nightly read is Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way by Susan McCutcheon.  My husband and I are taking Bradley classes and I actually prefer this book to the workbook we were given in class.   I think The Birth Partner would be a great book for my husband to look at.  He has been expressing his concerns about what he will be able to do for me in labor when there are going to be a bunch of women around helping me. We are planning a homebirth with a midwife, mw assistant and doula.

I read Peggy Vincent's The Baby Catcher - a quick read, I really enjoyed.

I'm also planning to work through Birthing from Within to get my mind in a good place in the weeks leading up to the actual birth.  The birth labrinth and birth art I think will be really helpful to me.

Another movie we watched but I did not see mentioned  here was Birth of a Family,  not sure if you can get that on netflix or not. I borrowed it from a friend. It shows the 4 homebirths of a family in Maine.  It really helped my husband understand how the birth experience profoundly effects not just the mother but also the father.

[sunnymw]

I loved Spiritual Midwifery and a ton of the others listed!

One that I didn't see listed was one called "Birthing the Easy Way--by someone who learned the hard way". It gives a ton of FUN analogies and statistics, and is super funny and easy to read. :)

[mamahen2coop]

Does anyone have any more info on the Movie Birth of a Family?  I keep getting hits for a korean comedy.

Originally Posted by ebegreen 

Ina May's spirtual midwifery and guide to childbirth have been my constant bed-side companions since I found out I was pregnant.  Whenever I feel fearful or unsure I read the birth stores and it makes me feel so much better, like YES I can do this, my body was made to do this. 

My other nightly read is Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way by Susan McCutcheon.  My husband and I are taking Bradley classes and I actually prefer this book to the workbook we were given in class.   I think The Birth Partner would be a great book for my husband to look at.  He has been expressing his concerns about what he will be able to do for me in labor when there are going to be a bunch of women around helping me. We are planning a homebirth with a midwife, mw assistant and doula.

I read Peggy Vincent's The Baby Catcher - a quick read, I really enjoyed.

I'm also planning to work through Birthing from Within to get my mind in a good place in the weeks leading up to the actual birth.  The birth labrinth and birth art I think will be really helpful to me.

Another movie we watched but I did not see mentioned  here was Birth of a Family,  not sure if you can get that on netflix or not. I borrowed it from a friend. It shows the 4 homebirths of a family in Maine.  It really helped my husband understand how the birth experience profoundly effects not just the mother but also the father.

[ebegreen]

Birth of a Family

http://www.midwiferytoday.com/merchant2/merchant.mv?Store_Code=MT&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=09VBF