Are all these C-sections necessary, or are some of them done simply for the sake of convenience? Inductions seem to be the norm, but are they always needed? Today, expectant mothers are often left feeling powerless, as their instincts are replaced by drugs and routine medical procedures. What you are about to discover is that you have a choice, and you have the power to plan the kind of birth that's right for you-whether it is at a birth center, a hospital, or at home. In YOUR BEST BIRTH, internationally known advocates of informed choice RickiLake and Abby Epstein inspire women to take back the birth experience, with essential advice on:· Positive and negative effects of epidurals, Pitocin, and other drugs and interventions · Inducing vs. allowing your labor to progress naturally · The truth behind our country's staggering C-section rate · Assembling your birth team and creating your birth plan.With chapters such as "Obstetricians: Finding Dr. Right," "Epidurals: You Haven't Got Time for the Pain," and "Electronic Monitors: Reading between the Lines," Lake and Epstein will encourage you to consider whatever your doctor, mother, and best friend may suggest in a new light. The book also includes inspiring birth stories, including those from well-known personalities, such as Laila Ali and Cindy Crawford. Packed with crucial advice from childbirth professionals, and delivered in a down-to-earth, engaging voice, YOUR BEST BIRTH is sure to renew your confidence and put the control back where it belongs: with parents-to-be!"Abby Epstein and Ricki Lake have taken a wonderful and constructive approach to ensuring an optimal birthing experience. Their language creates a 'climate of confidence' for pregnant women and their families, who must make key decisions about where, how and with whom to give birth in a health care system often unresponsive to our needs. This book is like a good friend giving wise counsel." --Judy Norsigian, co-editor of Our Bodies, Ourselves: Pregnancy and Birth and Executive Director, Our Bodies Ourselves

    Many pregnancy guidebooks are conventional, fear-based, and written by male physicians deeply entrenched in the old-school medical model of birth. But change is underway. A groundswell of women are taking back their pregnancy and childbirth and embracing a natural way. Genevieve Howland, the woman behind the enormously popular Mama Natural blog and YouTube channel, has created an inspiring, fun, and informative guide that demystifies natural pregnancy and walks mom through the process one week at a time. The Mama Natural’s Week-by-Week Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth is the modern (and yet ancient) approach to pregnancy and childbirth. “Natural” recognizes that pregnancy and birth are normal, and that having a baby is a wondrous biological process and rite of passage—not a medical condition. This book draws upon the latest research showing how beneficial and life-changing natural birth is for both babies and moms. Full of weekly advice and tips for a healthy pregnancy, Howland details vital nutrition to take, natural remedies for common and troublesome symptoms, as well as the appropriate (and inappropriate) use of interventions. Peppered throughout are positive birth and pregnancy stories from women of all backgrounds (and all stages of their natural journey) along with advice and insights from a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) plus a Registered Nurse (RN), doula, and lactation consultant. Encouraging, well-researched, and fun, The Mama Natural’s Week-by-Week Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth will be an essential companion for women everywhere to embrace natural pregnancy and reap all the benefits for both baby and mama.

    Numerous navigation aides in the volume help parents to rapidly access critical information.The beautifully-illustrated, Your Pregnancy Week-by-Week section details every body change for both Mom and Baby for nine months with hundreds of timely coping tips. The Managing Your Pregnancy section includes: strategies for planning maternity leave; exercise guidelines; what to eat and what to avoid; safe and unsafe medications; and how to locate the best childcare and pediatricians. The illustrated Baby Gear Guide warns about unsafe products and offers solid, research-based facts for choosing the safest car seats, cribs, soft carriers, baby diapers and clothing. Your Guide to Giving Birth is the most up-to-date labor and birth resource available to parents today.Based on brand-new medical evidence, it helps families to realistically plan for labor and delivery, including detailed "you are there" descriptions for every major intervention and medication they re likely to encounter -- such as epidurals, inductions and cesarean sections. You and Your Baby presents a complete guide for the first six months of life after birth.There's mom-friendly advice for post-birth recovery, and baby-sensitive care strategies for feeding, bathing, diapering, soothing and helping a baby to sleep. The book s Resource Guide lists over 100 of the best Internet sites for parents. The comprehensive Pregnancy Dictionary translates 200-plus pregnancy and medical terms into easy-to-understand lay language."I have this book as well as "What to Expect When Expecting," and I find this book to be so much better as it gives a week to week breakdown of what is happening to both mom and baby. I pick up this book each week as my pregnancy progresses and even though not every issue listed in each week's summary necessarily happens to me, it's good to know what I 'could' expect. I would highly recommend this book to any expecting mom!" -- "Cynthia, an expectant mother""If you are searching for one book for your pregnancy or for that one book to refer all of your expectant clients to, this book is by far the greatest achievement in childbirth education reading material! Sandy Jones and her daughter Marcie Jones have included absolutely everything an expectant woman and her family needs to know. This book should be on everyone's recommended reading list"--"Connie Livingston, BS, RN, FACCE (Dona), CCE, CLD, ""birthsource.com""Great Expectations is the perfect resource for moms-to-be. Sandy and Marcie Jones speak to the expectant mother of today in a friendly, approachable tone, and present their thorough information in a way that's great for both quick look-ups, and in-depth reading."--"Stacia Ragolia, VP, Community & Parenting, iVillage.com""Accurate, comprehensive, empowering, and current. I see this as being the new Dr. Spock for pregnancy...This is definitely a book I will recommend to my clients who are planning a pregnancy or currently pregnant."--"Cherie C. Binns, RN, BS, MSCN""

    In Yeah Baby!, Jillian, along with her team of top-notch experts, will change everything you think you know about pregnancy, arming you with the most cutting-edge information available, so you can make the right choices for you and your little one. They will help you navigate the hidden dangers in your immediate environment; understand the check-ups, tests, and treatments your doctor recommends; and provide powerful solutions for all your issues, from heartburn and swollen feet to more serious medical concerns. Also learn how to optimize every facet of your child's development, from IQ and long-term earning potential to future level of physical fitness and even taste preferences! Yeah Baby! also features a complete meal plan with delicious, nutrition-packed recipes, and a one-of-a-kind, trimester-specific fitness program, to ensure you bounce back stronger and better than ever.Expert Dream Team: Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz, MD is an Ob-Gyn, a Clinical Ayurvedic Specialist, and board certified in Integrative and Holistic Medicine. Andrea Orbeck is a PregnancyFitness Specialist who holds an advanced degree in Kinesiology and Intracellular Physiology. Katja VanHerle, MD is one of America's Top Physicians in Endocrinology as named by Consumer Research Council of America. Cheryl Forberg, RD is an award-winning registered dietitian, chef, and New York Times bestselling author. Jay Gordon, MD, FAAP is a pediatrician who specializes in infant nutrition and breastfeeding.

     It doesn’t have to be that way. Rebecca planned to give birth at the hospital affiliated with her university, where she was an award-winning nurse researcher finishing her doctoral degree. But hospital practices and policies that were more than twenty years out of date left her with complications that seemed preventable. Worst for Rebecca, her healthy baby was whisked off to a nursery right away. She spent the first few hours after birth begging to see her own baby! A few years later and pregnant again, Rebecca put her research skills to work and examined the hard evidence on what went wrong with her first childbirth experience. She discovered shocking truths that not only impact millions of families every year, but would change the entire course of her life. Embark on a journey with Rebecca as she exposes the stark realities of institutional care during childbirth and reveals inspirational solutions for parents and professionals alike.

    They ate braised leeks. They played by themselves while their parents sipped coffee. And yet French kids were still boisterous, curious, and creative. Why? How?            With a notebook stashed in her diaper bag, Druckerman set out to investigate—and wound up sparking a national debate on parenting. Researched over three years and written in her warm, funny voice, Bringing Up Bébé is deeply wise, charmingly told, and destined to become a classic resource for American parents.

    Simple & Safe Baby-Led Weaning empowers you to help your baby feed themselves, developing motor skills and an adventurous palate—while meal preparation becomes easier and cheaper for you!Learn when to begin baby led weaning, and find out what to expect along the way. Pick up practical advice for creating balanced meals and eating them together. A handy to-scale diagram takes the guesswork out of safe serving sizes.Simple & Safe Baby-Led Weaning includes: 26 favorite foods—Get to know 26 of the best natural foods for baby led weaning with nutrition facts, feeding guidelines, and full-color photos. Safety first—Breathe easy with safety guidelines, including info on prohibited foods and smart kitchen habits. Allergy aware—Find out how to navigate, or even prevent, allergies and sensitivities as baby tries foods for the first time. With Simple & Safe Baby-Led Weaning, baby can savor whole foods at the dinner table—with the whole family.

    In Birth Without Fear, January Harshe--founder of the global online community Birth Without Fear--delivers an honest, positive, and passionate message of empowerment surrounding everything that involves having a baby. It's a guide that fills in the considerable cracks in the information available to women and families when they're preparing to welcome a child--covering care provider choices, medical freedom, birth options, breastfeeding, intimacy, postpartum depression, and much more. Birth Without Fear shows moms, dads, partners, and families how to choose the best provider for them, how to trust in themselves and the birth process, and how to seek the necessary help after the baby has arrived. In addition, it will educate them about their rights--and how to use their voice to exercise them--as well as how to cope with the messy postpartum feelings many people aren't willing to talk about. Unlike other pregnancy books, Birth Without Fear will also help partners understand what mothers are going through, as well as discuss the challenges that they, too, will face--and how they can navigate them. Shattering long-held myths and beliefs surrounding pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum experience, Birth Without Fear is an accessible, reassuring, and ultimately inspiring guide to taking charge of pregnancy, childbirth, and beyond.

     It all began when IBM manager Cate Colburn-Smith sat down in the company's employee lactation room, shed a few silent tears, and wrote the following on a paper towel: I'm a new mom and today is my first day back at work. Is anyone else using this room? Right away women responded, and the paper towel was eventually replaced by a series of notebooks, in which women offered one another advice and support on juggling work and a newborn. Based on the original notebooks, The Milk Memos is a heartwarming, encouraging (and often hilarious!) guide to working motherhood. It's one of the most existential moments any woman will face: sitting in a small room tucked away in the bowels of your company, pumping breast milk for a child so close to your heart-yet, at that moment, so far away. The Milk Memos records the voices of mothers who, while struggling with the difficulties of blending their two lives, prove that women don't have to choose between work and family. Their thoughts on how it can be done will inspire women everywhere. This invaluable book weaves the actual Milk Memos journal entries with information-packed sections on such topics of great concern to working moms as: - finding a private place to pump breast milk at work and establishing a routine that you can maintain despite your busy workday; - establishing the right daycare solution; - getting a decent night's sleep with a new baby so that you can shine (or at least glimmer!) during business hours; and - negotiating flextime, part-time, or a job share with an employer. The ultimate gift for any new mom who will soon return to work, The Milk Memos is destined to become a classic on the parenting shelf.

    While some kids might be afraid to even go near the bathroom, others may know when to go...but still never seem to make it there in time. This helpful guide takes the stress out of this challenging rite of passage, giving parents much-needed advice to help them identify what approach will work for their child's temperament. The book distinguishes between common childhood personality types, providing easy techniques tailor-fit for all kinds of kids, whether they're stubborn or willful, clinging to diapers, afraid to move on, or just late-bloomers. The book shows how to:determine a child's readiness to begin potty training - gradually move children past their existing comfort zone, without causing undue pressure - handle accidents and temporary setbacksThis straight-talking guide enables readers to help every child make this important life transition free of worry and in the way that's right for him or her.

    Spock”-like reference that is both reassuring and realistic—now updated to reflect the many advances in neonatology.Preemies, Second Edition is the only parents’ reference resource of its kind—delivering up-to-the-minute information on medical care in a warm, caring, and engaging voice. Authors Dana Wechsler Linden and Emma Trenti Paroli are parents who have “been there.” Together with neonatologist Mia Wechsler Doron, they answer the dozens of questions that parents will have at every stage—from high-risk pregnancy through preemie hospitalization, to homecoming and the preschool years—imparting a vast, detailed store of knowledge in clear language that all readers can understand. Preemies, Second Edition covers topics related to premature birth, including: What are your risk factors for having a premature baby? Can you do something to delay early labor? What do doctors know about you baby’s outlook during her first minutes and days of life? How will your preemie’s progress be monitored? How do you cope with a long hospitalization? Are there special preparations for you baby’s homecoming? What kind of stimulation during the first year gives your baby the best chance? Will your preemie grow up healthy? Normal?

    Your preschooler refuses to get dressed. Your fifth-grader sulks on the bench instead of playing on the field. Do children conspire to make their parents’ lives endlessly challenging? No—it’s just their developing brain calling the shots!In this pioneering, practical book, Daniel J. Siegel, neuropsychiatrist and author of the bestselling Mindsight, and parenting expert Tina Payne Bryson demystify the meltdowns and aggravation, explaining the new science of how a child’s brain is wired and how it matures. The “upstairs brain,” which makes decisions and balances emotions, is under construction until the mid-twenties. And especially in young children, the right brain and its emotions tend to rule over the logic of the left brain. No wonder kids can seem—and feel—so out of control. By applying these discoveries to everyday parenting, you can turn any outburst, argument, or fear into a chance to integrate your child’s brain and foster vital growth. Raise calmer, happier children using twelve key strategies, including • Name It to Tame It: Corral raging right-brain behavior through left-brain storytelling, appealing to the left brain’s affinity for words and reasoning to calm emotional storms and bodily tension.• Engage, Don’t Enrage: Keep your child thinking and listening, instead of purely reacting.• Move It or Lose It: Use physical activities to shift your child’s emotional state.• Let the Clouds of Emotion Roll By: Guide your children when they are stuck on a negative emotion, and help them understand that feelings come and go.• SIFT: Help children pay attention to the Sensations, Images, Feelings, and Thoughts within them so that they can make better decisions and be more flexible.• Connect Through Conflict: Use discord to encourage empathy and greater social success. Complete with clear explanations, age-appropriate strategies for dealing with day-to-day struggles, and illustrations that will help you explain these concepts to your child, The Whole-Brain Child shows you how to cultivate healthy emotional and intellectual development so that your children can lead balanced, meaningful, and connected lives.

    Instead, Mayim got her PhD in neuroscience from UCLA, married her college sweetheart, and had two kids. Mayim then did what many new moms do—she read a lot of books, talked with other parents, and she soon started questioning a lot of the conventional wisdom she heard about the “right” way to raise a child. That’s when she turned to attachment parenting, a philosophy and lifestyle popularized by well-known physicians like Dr. William Sears and Dr. Jay Gordon. To Mayim, attachment parenting’s natural, child-led approach not only felt right emotionally, it made sense intellectually and instinctually. She found that when she followed her intuition and relaxed into her role as a mother instead of following some rigid parenting script, both she and her children thrived. Drawing on both her experience as a mother and her scientific background, Mayim presents the major tenets of attachment parenting, including: CO-SLEEPING How to avoid “sleep training” and get a great night’s sleep for the whole family. BREASTFEEDING Learn how to listen to your baby’s cues rather than sticking to a rigid schedule—and why people on airplanes love a nursing mother. BABY WEARING How to “wear” your baby in a sling or a wrap to develop a closer bond with your child—it’s possible even for mamas with bad backs (and with big babies)! GENTLE DISCIPLINE How to get your child to behave without yelling, threats, or time-outs—it really can be done. Mayim describes the beauty, simplicity, and purposefulness of attachment parenting, and how it has become the guiding principle for her family. Much more than a simple how-to parenting guide, Beyond the Sling shows us that the core principles underlying attachment parenting are universal and can be appreciated no matter how you decide to raise your child.

    

    . . on childhood. As the pace of life accelerates to hyperspeed–with too much stuff, too many choices, and too little time–children feel the pressure. They can become anxious, have trouble with friends and school, or even be diagnosed with behavioral problems. Now, in defense of the extraordinary power of less, internationally renowned family consultant Kim John Payne helps parents reclaim for their children the space and freedom that all kids need, allowing their children’s attention to focus and their individuality to flourish.Based on Payne’s twenty year’s experience successfully counseling busy families, Simplicity Parenting teaches parents how to worry and hover less–and how to enjoy more. For those who want to slow their children’s lives down but don’t know where to start, Payne offers both inspiration and a blueprint for change.• Streamline your home environment. The average child has more than 150 toys. Here are tips for reducing the amount of toys, books, and clutter–as well as the lights, sounds, and general sensory overload that crowd the space young imaginations need in order to grow.• Establish rhythms and rituals. Predictability (routines) and transparency (knowing the day’s plan) are soothing pressure valves for children. Here are ways to ease daily tensions, create battle-free mealtimes and bedtimes, and tell if your child is overwhelmed.• Schedule a break in the schedule. Too many activities may limit children’s ability to motivate and direct themselves. Learn how to establish intervals of calm in your child’s daily torrent of constant doing–and familiarize yourself with the pros and cons of organized sports and other “enrichment” activities.• Scale back on media and parental involvement. Back out of hyperparenting by managing your children’s “screen time” to limit the endless and sometimes scary deluge of information and stimulation. Parental hovering is really about anxiety; by doing less and trusting more, parents can create a sanctuary that nurtures children’s identity, well-being, and resiliency as they grow–slowly–into themselves. A manifesto for protecting the grace of childhood, Simplicity Parenting is an eloquent guide to bringing new rhythms to bear on the lifelong art of parenting.