Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn: The Complete Guide

While looking through pregnancy books, I got tired of reading about how you got a second line, got sick, got fat, and squeezed out your "bundle of joy." What about the reality of the situation and how exactly that "bundle of joy" finds its way out of me and into this world? I could not be happier with my purchase of this book. It starts with a few chapters on the typical progression of mother and baby during pregnancy. It includes exercise and diet tips (with pictures) for pregnant women. There is a chapter on complications during pregnancy as well as one on how to plan for a birth. Birth plans are discussed in good detail, as well as interview questions for your OB/Midwife/Doula. In fact, there are different lists for each of those. Although doulas are discussed, this book does not assume you will have either a medicated or a natural birth. Those decisions are left to you. There are several chapters on labor and delivery. It was extremely informational to learn about the different "stages" and how they progress, as well as positions and situations to help ease the pain during each of these stages. I feel like I'm much more informed about labor now than with any other resource I've come across. Does the phrase "perineal stretches" sound familiar? It does now! The final few chapters review what to do once the baby enters the world. How do you breastfeed? How do you position your child? How many times should you feed each day and how many wet/poopy diapers should you expect? What are some common causes for concern? Answers to all of these questions are provided, as well as illustrations for breastfeeding, holding your newborn, etc. There are a few paragraphs scattered throughout this book for Dads, but this book is not geared directly towards men. I'm sure they would find it very informative, although the squeamish ones might shy away. I give this book four thumbs up (two from me, two from my baby in utero). I finally feel like I am better informed. This book respects you as a mother and aims to give you information in a very easy readable format. I cannot recommend this book highly enough!

I really liked this book. I was planning on my first unmedicated birth and this book was phenomenal. It’s along the lines of an easy read informative text almost like a textbook. It is much easier to read and more interesting than a textbook though. It presents all aspects of pregnancy and birth from complications to normality. I found it to be comforting to get the information up front without a hidden agenda , just facts. It also addresses how a partner can be supportive and the things they may be going through. It covers pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum. I think this book is better than a lot on the market.

For my first pregnancy, I read The Mayo Clinic Pregnancy Book, What to Expect, The Husband-Coached Childbirth, and this Penny Simkin book, Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn. This book had the best balance of stats based on evidenced based medicine but also real life anecdotal vignettes from mothers. Throughout the book, there are quotes from mothers sharing their expectations and experiences - these voices put into perspective that there is no one right way, just a few different options that might work for me. For full disclosure, I approached this first pregnancy considering a natural childbirth but open to using drugs if needed. Since I come from a family of physicians I was skeptical of going too far off the holistic deep-end. I wanted to stay within a comfort zone that balanced following my body and practicing the best evidence-based medicine. After reading many Amazon reviews, I bought this book and was very very happy in its approach to preparing for and giving birth. The book does a great job of showing the range of options. For example, The book provides at least 3 sample birth plans ranging from mothers who wanted and epidural to mothers who wanted to give birth in a birthing center. A potential con is if you're interested in week by week drawings of your little fetus and getting updates on what fruit or vegetable s/he is, then you'll need to augment this book with the Mayo Clinic Pregnancy Book or sign up for Baby Center's week by week email. Penny Simkin's book will cover general fetus development and what you can expect in each phase of your pregnancy but invests much more in the types of proactive exercises you can be doing to prepare for the birthing process. There is also a section at the end on how to prepare for the newborn, breastfeed and other aspects of basic newborn care. The book has simple pictures to illustrate techniques. My husband and I started about 2 months before our due date by spending 5-30 minutes each night practicing some of the suggested natural birthing management techniques. There were so many different techniques but the book did a great job of suggesting short routines so that we could work on a few techniques each night. It was great "us" time too! In addition, there are also sections on possible interventions such as a c-section, different drug options, membrane stripping, etc. It was great to be exposed to these possibilities early on so that I could make the appropriate decision and refer back to the book as needed. I highly recommend this book for people that are looking for a little more information on what you can do proactively as you're preparing for your childbirth. The book is supportive of both drug-assisted and drug-free deliveries. We lucked out and had a drug-free delivery - I really surprised myself! It was a fantastic experience and this book really helped me prepare.

While I was expecting my first, I read Penny Simkin's Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn: The Complete Guide. It was by far my favorite pregnancy book. I bought it at first in Nook format, but quickly decided I wanted the paper version. The diagrams and charts didn't show up well in digital format. This book is a great overview of pregnancy, childbirth, and the newborn - just as you would expect from the title. This book begins with information on interviewing doctors, evaluating hospitals, and choosing a doula. I printed many of the handouts on http://www.pcnguide.com/ to help me with this process. The sections on pregnancy and fetal development were not as detailed as other books. I supplemented with reading from other books and pregnancy aps on my iphone. This book doesn't have a weekly summary of fetal changes, but instead features a more of an overview of developments each trimester. I found the exercises and stretches useful. The real value of this book lies in the labor and delivery section. Admittedly, it is a little biased toward natural delivery, but does include information on interventions. I was considering a natural birth when reading this book, but I was also open to intervention if I got in over my head. I printed the chart of coping techniques featured in this book, studied them, and included them in the documents I brought to the hospital. This book was also very helpful in writing my birth plan and featured a few examples of plans (from mothers with different goals). I used many of the strategies in this book to have the natural, in-hospital birth I wanted. Luckily for me, I had a normal, uncomplicated labor. Even if it had gone differently, this book gave an overview of interventions: why they might be recommended, what happens, and potential side effects. Overall, I highly recommend this book especially if you are considering a natural birth or if you want a different view than the typical hospital birthing class.

I ordered and read many books on pregnancy (including Mayo Clinic, Nurture, Bumpin, Expecting Better) and this was absolutely my favorite. I found it to be by far the most comprehensive, and even answered questions and gave tips and recommendations that my midwives, OB and doula couldn’t provide. By comparison, the other books had extremely limited information on breech babies, tips for turning breech babies, and on the facts and advice regarding c-sections. It also includes advice on making a necessary c-section more “family centered” or holistic/natural in its own way. I appreciate that this book pairs holistic and natural advice and approaches with the medical facts and information on the full range of options, without judgment. In addition to being a great resource on pregnancy and childbirth, it also includes a really useful amount of information on exercises and stretches to help with discomfort, post-partum recovery, breastfeeding and newborn care. It was really the only pregnancy/childbirth book I needed and I wish I had read it first!

Wish I would have purchased this at start of pregnancy. This book is awesome! It is packed with information about pregnancy, childbirth, and caring for your newborn (exactly as the title implies). I really love how much detail this book goes into regarding the labor and delivery process. I would say this book would be especially beneficial for any woman hoping to have a NATURAL childbirth. It goes into great detail about coping techniques etc during the labor process. That being said, if you are planning to get an epidural or even know you will need a c-section, this book would still be extremely informative (mainly for a first time mom-although I'm not saying the info is super basic). The book is full of very detailed info. However, unlike some books that cover such technical info, it does not read like a boring textbook. It also does not read like a goofy "humorous" book where the author is trying to funny in every sentence. I love that the authors made it very easy to read and not boring but didn't try to be hilarious (which usually ends up being annoying instead of funny). As far as the Newborn section-I am finding it to be very helpful and informative just as the rest of the book has been. If you only go with one Pregnancy/Childbirth book-this is the one I would invest in. (And I had about 9 between the ones I bought and ones that were given to me).

So many pregnancy and childbirth books can come off as judgy - if you don't conform to the mindset they are espousing, you end up feeling lesser or frustrated. This book however did a great job providing medically accurate info and educating readers about the pros and cons of each possible choice. It's not about what is objectively right, but more what's right right for you and your family (choices in pain management during labor, anyone?). Out of all the books I read during pregnancy and to prepare for birth, if I could only keep one, this one would be it. Lots of info, easy to follow, and a great all around reference guide.

As a first-time mom there are many uncertainties during your pregnancy, including understanding your options during pregnancy, what childbirth is really like, and what life with a newborn is like, How I used this book: I definitely recommend the Kindle version if you have a Kindle or if you have the iPad you can download the Kindle app. The reason for my recommendation is that this book is very long and there's a substantial amount of information here. What's great about the Kindle version is that you can look up certain terms for example - circumcision you can search "circumcision" and it will literally pull up every page that discusses circumcision. It's much easier to do this with a digital version than with a print version. As you go through your pregnancy and get closer to your labor and ultimately have your baby it's likely that you'll use this book as a reference. When I was pregnant I essentially read every single page about pregnancy. As I got closer to the end of my pregnancy around week 30-32 I read everything about the labor, and when I actually did begin to go into labor I used this book as a reference to make sure that the signs that I was experiencing were actual signs of labor. Now that I've had my baby I have used this book on a daily basis to understand my newborn and her different stages and phases. I highly recommend this book for someone that wants to know all of their options and truly understand the miracle of pregnancy and childbirth.

Excelente material. Muy buen regalo para una futura mama. Muy completo. Lo recomiendo.

Both me and my wife read this book as we prepared to the birth of our baby. What I liked most about this book ( that is besides being truly a complete guide filled with information on your options and preparing you for the possible reactions of all parties involved [ including family members and medical staff ], or containing many techniques and recommendations, or summarizing the labor process in the most detailed and instructive way [ including drawings and pictures ] --- besides being great at what the authors proposed to do ) is that all messages are written with strong ethics and scientific paper references are always included as a justification ( rather than "just because the authors say so" ). Truly a valiant effort and a success. I recommend this book to everyone thinking on having a baby.

good service. On time. Recommended seller.

This is the only book you’ll need for your first pregnancy. I bought and read 3 other popular pregnancy books— What to Expect When You’re Expecting, Ina Mays guide to Childbirth, and Mayo Clinic’s Guide to Healthy Pregnancy— and I found this book to be the BEST in all aspects of pregnancy and birth. It is the most realistic, detailed, comprehensive, and well organized. I highly recommend!

book is nice but no picture and only for USA market not for Europe u should have writen that! its like reading a tel directory...