Learn about the humoral theory and it’s ideas about pregnancy, birth, and infant care including breastfeeding.
Looking for the less obvious signs of labor? These weird and non traditional signs of labor might happen to you!
A doula is support person who does not perform any type of medical role but instead offer other methods of support during pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
Full of honest advice and inclusive options, Why Did No One Tell Me This? is the funny, personality-filled, illustrated guide to pregnancy, birth, and beyond that modern parents have been waiting for. Pregnancy and childbirth are full of big questions — what if my baby is enormous? Will my water break naturally? What even goes into a 'birth plan'? How on earth am I going to keep this child alive once it's here? And where do I turn for advice that will really work for me and my life? In Why Did No One Tell Me This? doulas and reproductive health experts Natalia Hailes and Ash Spivak answer these questions and more for today's wellness-focused, intersectional parents-to-be. Drawing on years of experience in their birth doula practice Brilliant Bodies, Natalia and Ash guide readers through the entire process, from the earliest stages of pregnancy to the jungle of postpartum feelings and responsibilities. Bite-sized pieces of advice are interspersed with vibrant illustrations by artist Louise Reimer to break down the doubts and fears that often surround childbirth, empowering readers to explore their own individual needs, know their rights, and find their voice both during and after pregnancy. By addressing common fears, incorporating regular tips for partners, and providing information on a wide array of birth and parents styles, this unique and inclusive guide is the perfect tool for a new generation of parents. Product DetailsISBN-13: 9780762495665 Media Type: Paperback Publisher: Running Press Book Publishers Publication Date: 04-07-2020 Pages: 272 Product Dimensions: 6.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.00(d)About the Author Ash Spivak is an Internationally Certified Birth Doula and co-founder of Allbodies (allbodies.com), a digital platform for modern health education. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Forbes, Newsweek, and Teen Vogue. Natalia Hailes is a birth doula, lactation specialis,t and reproductive health educator. She's worked with hundreds of families supporting them through pregnancy and beyond, and as a mother herself she speaks from experience. Originally from Colombia, she spent 15 years in NYC and recently moved to Richmond, VA. Her work has been featured in Newsweek, Refinery29, Well+Good, Business Insider, and MindBodyGreen, among others. Learn more at nataliahailes.com.Table of Contents Table of Contents Hello! Start Here 1 Dear Readers 1 What Is a Doula Anyway? 3 Setting the Foundation 5 Part 1 Drowning Out the Noise and Learning to Listen to You 7 Tuning In: Learning to Listen to You 12 Let That Baby Guide You 15 What Is Your Body Telling You?! 17 Go with Your Gut: #ThisIsHowIWasBorn 22 Your Emotions Are Telling You Important Shit 24 The Soundtrack in Your Head 28 Getting Support: Setting the Record Straight (WTF?!) 34 Getting Support: Building Your Squad 41 Getting Support: Working through Those Extra Blocks for LGBTQ+ Folks 43 Putting It All Together: This Is Your Birthday Party. You're the Boss 49 Part 2 This is Why You're Boss: The Crazy Cool Shit Your Body Can Do 53 Your Body Has Been Prepping for This from the Beginning 55 This Is How You Grow a Baby: New Ways to Think about Your Changing Body 58 Meet Your Hormones 62 Welcome to Your Baby's Home-That You Freakin' Made from Scratch! 69 The Uterus Part 1: Oh How it Grows (and Shrinks!) 73 The Uterus Part 2: Demystifying Those Contractions 75 The Almighty Cervix 80 The Pelvis Part 1: A Pelvis like Elvis 82 The Pelvis Part 2: I Have a What?! Discover Your Pelvic Floor 85 Got Milk 88 Don't Forget Your Baby: It Takes Two 92 Part 3 The Perenatal What-IFS 97 What If … I Don't Get the Birth I Want? 98 What If … I Stay Pregnant Forever? 101 What If … I'm Told I Need to Be Induced? 103 What If … My Water Breaks on My Boss's Shoe? 108 What If … I Give Birth in the Car? 112 What If … My Baby Is Too Big? 115 What If … My Labor Stalls? 118 What If … I Have Back Labor? 121 What If … I Have a 72-Hour Labor? 125 What If … It Hurts Like Hell? 131 What If … I Have to Transfer? 134 What If … The "Cascade of Interventions" Happens to Me? 136 What If … I'm Told I Need a C-Section? 141 What If … I Poop Myself While Pushing? 146 What If … My Vagina Tears Open? 147 What If … Something Goes Wrong? 152 Part 4 The Postpartum What-IFS 155 What If … I Can't Stand My In-Laws? 156 What If … I Lose Myself? 158 What If … I End Up with a Saggy Chest, a Pooch, and a Stretched-Out Vag Forever? 162 What If … I Don't Have Enough Milk? 165 What If … I Irreversibly Mess Up My Baby? 171 What If … I Never Sleep Again? 176 What If … My Baby Never Stops Crying? 179 What If … I Get Postpartum Depression? 181 What If … I Never Want to Have Sex Again? 185 What If … I Don't Feel Ready to Go Back to Work? 189 Part 5 Your Tools to Return to 193 Can Your Birth Place and Care Providers Actually Give You What You Need? 194 Building Your Dream Team 199 Rethinking Stages of Labor 203 Cheat Sheet: Coping with Labor 212 Positions to Open the Pelvis (Prepping for and during Labor) 218 Resting Positions (In Labor) 223 Top Tips for an Epidural 224 Top Tips for Breast/Chest-Feeding 228 Top Tips for Your Postpartum Body 232 Don't Freak Out If…: Quelling Your Postpartum Concerns 236 Don't Freak Out If…: Weird Baby Stuff That's Totally Normal 237 Partners, Read This Page 240 We'll Leave You with This… Birth as a Life Metaphor: Your Own Power as Creator 245 Acknowledgments 247 Resources 248 Citations 251 Index 260 Show More
Natural Cycles birth control is 93% effective with typical use and 98% effective with perfect use. Learn more about hormone-free birth control today.
“Real images of birth, breastfeeding, and motherhood.”
A birthing ball is an exercise ball that helps ease pregnancy symptoms, but can also encourage a less painful and faster birth.
Each year, the International Association of Professionals Birth Photographers hosts its annual “Image of The Year” competition honouring the best of the best from more than 1,200 member photographers working in 42 different countries. These photographs capture the intimacy, strength, power and raw beauty of birth.
Written by Diana, Contributing Writer
Love is a beautiful thing. It's amazing to find the person who is always there for you, helps you grow and become better, loves you with all your flaws and imperfections.
Brazil has one of the highest rates of C-section in the world. In a remote part of the Amazon, a group of midwives is working to change that.
While the imagery of women and children is greatly depicted throughout the history of art, pregnancy in art is much more of a rare sight.
Check out Lexi’s review of one year on natural birth control and what it was like quitting the pill. Learn more about your body with Natural Cycles today.
There are some exercises you could do to encourage your baby to drop deeper into the pelvis. Here's how to get your baby to drop during pregnancy. The exercises will also help you to prepare for labor and delivery.
This girl was born with a birth defect that completely changed the way she looked - but she looked absolutely stunning on her wedding day.
On March 24, Hilary Duff welcomed a new addition to her family, her daughter Mae James Bair. And now four months later, she shared her at-home water birth
You may be able to worry just a little bit less throughout your pregnancy.
Fertility awareness is a scientifically supported practice of self-monitoring your body's fertility signs and symptoms on a daily base to make an educated and informed accurate assessment of whether you are fertile or not. This information empowers women and men for both pregnancy prevention and c
The two most common questions I get about women’s health are with regards to contraception and its opposite, getting and staying pregnant. There are so many birth control options out there (w…
Jon and Kate Plus 8 is one of the most popular and exciting reality TV shows in America today! The amazing story of one couple’s fertility journey, culminating in welcoming a sextuplet pregnancy, captivated viewers across the nation.But it wasn't just the unique pregnancy and birth that had people gripped—it was also the ensuing marriage troubles and eventual divorce of this now high-profile couple. Let’s take a look back at the incredible true story of this tumultuous TV marriage.
What is the breech position and how common is it closer to term? Breech presentation is a fetal presentation in which the buttocks are at the opening of the womb. In a frank breech the legs are straight up in front of the body. In a complete breech the legs are folded, but the feet
Learn about the humoral theory and it’s ideas about pregnancy, birth, and infant care including breastfeeding.
Get the natural birth you are planning for by making sure your doctor with these 10 questions to ask your doctor for a narural birth.
Here is our sample birth plan from our natural hospital birth. A great Birth Plan example for a natural or unmedicated birth.
Trying to avoid an epidural and have a natural birth? Learn how to cope with labor naturally with these tips for natural birth!
You made this baby as a team, now it’s time to birth this baby as a team. One of my favorite things about birth is that it provides partners to rebirth their relationship and come together in a new and profound way. Any partner who is involved with helping his wife birth a baby will be absolutely stunned by her power and grace. To have your husband support you through birth can be extremely healing and even has the capability […]
Choose the most popular birthing positions to encourage dilation and an optimal fetal position therefore allowing for a shorter and less painful labor.
Some natural and effective methods to decrease the length of your labor so you can meet your little one faster!
What is an estimated due date, and how is it determined? What are the risks of going past your due date? Does induction increase the risk of Cesarean? At which point do the benefits of being electively induced outweigh the risks? Does a person’s goals and preferences for their births
Spinning Babies® has introduced a new way of choosing birth positions to a wider reach of pregnant parents and the birth care providers who serve them.
Here's how to do acupressure during labor—solo or with a partner's help. Acupressure can help jump start labor, relieve pain, and strengthen contractions.
Giving birth to a child can be an amazing experience. We all know that pregnancy can help empower women and be really difficult
So to say an "all-natural hospital birth" might sound like a contradiction, but it's basically occupying a hospital bed for a night. At the request of my husband, I decided to have my children in a hospital setting. He was, of course, afraid of complications that could be life-threatening, and being the loving wife that
Elowyn’s guess date was August 14th, and the five days we went over that day were the hardest days of my entire pregnancy. I was so anxious to meet her. I knew that babies come when babies are ready, but I was still so excited for her to come. I thought for sure she would come on August 15th, because it was a full moon, but that day came and went and still no baby! On Saturday, August 17th, I started having contractions, but they were spread about 30 minutes apart, and not super intense. I wasn’t convinced they were actual contractions! Little did I know it, but I was in early labor. Saturday night I ate Eggplant Parmesan because they say that induces labor. I also did 100 squats and walked up and down the stairs 10x.
Are you currently expecting and dreaming of a natural birth? Wondering what all you should be doing to prepare your body for labor? Women that have natural births typically have shorter labors, higher rates of breastfeeding success, and a quicker postpartum recovery. Not to mention, there's less stress on your baby and the fact that natural birth
Every now and then, when I’m driving in the car or when I’m gazing at Remy while he’s nursing, I think back to how Remy was born. When I was pregnant with him, I was terrified of giving birth so much that I wanted to stay pregnant forever! I mean, it was the most wonderful
Find out the pros and cons of having an epidural or having an unmedicated childbirth from a mother who has done both!
Learn about the 3 mistakes to avoid immediately after birth for a better experience for mom and baby. Your baby only gets one birth!
Can you imagine what it would be like to give birth and feel completely relaxed? For many women, just the thought of labor and contractions causes stress. It doesn’t matter if you are planning to deliver your baby at a hospital or in your bathtub, it's important to be prepared on how to have a calm
Learn about the best labor and birthing positions to get baby in the right position for birth and help you stay as comfortable as possible through delivery.
Part 2: Baby Steps for Successful Perineal Massage The ancient practice of antenatal perineal massage (APM), which aims to widen and relax a woman's birth canal during her last month of pregnancy using manual massage, has recently been shown to decrease chances of genital damage and chronic pain due to childbirth. In P
