Childbirth Preparation - Reading list

Here are my recommendations for the best books to read in pregnancy, especially if you are interested in a "natural birth". By which I mean, avoiding interventions unless truly necessary and using alternative methods of pain relief as first resort.


Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin
Written by a midwife at "The Farm" commune in Tennessee, where they achieved astounding results with very little medical intervention. It sounds just like something straight out of the 60's. Many beautiful birth stories are included, and a brief primer for midwives. Here is my favorite quote: "From that point on we just relaxed and tripped; each rush would get us higher, the vision got better, and folks got prettier." Yes, this is the book that refers to contractions as 'rushes'. They are also described as "an interesting sensation that gets your baby out." :)

Birthing from Within by CNM, MA, Pam England
Written by a midwife who was dismayed to have a very long labor and c-section in her first birth, despite her intentions and training. She then went on to a successful VBAC. "in the time it takes to frost and bake a chocolate cake." Many pain management techniques are discussed and readers are encouraged to try them using ice cubes to simulate pain. My favorite is the "make it stronger" method. She also explores and encourages healing through art of any emotional blockages that may exist in the mother to be. This is a great book to experience with a group in a series of workshops.


The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth by Henci Goer and Rhonda Wheeler
Addresses all the common birth interventions and how they aren't needed as often as they are used. This will make some people paranoid, but for others, its better to know what all the possibilities are before they come up in labor (and thus, you are out of your mind, hee hee.)

The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy by Vicki Iovine
This book is fun and you may need that! Not so factual, but you have other references for that. For ex: I don't think you need to worry about going through the airport metal detectors. Your plane flight will expose you to much more radiation than the metal detector will.