Not only is it widely considered the best and safest way to deliver a child, natural childbirth empowers women by reinforcing their belief in themselves and their abilities. In Adventures in Natural Childbirth, editor Janet Schwegel taps into this growing movement with a fascinating collection of personal, engaging, and revealing stories from thirty-nine women on their journey through pregnancy, labor, and natural childbirth. These women's tales capture the full range of emotions and physical sensations natural childbirth can evoke—from calm to fear, from elation to pain, and everything in between—and give readers a true sense of the joys and the hardships involved. Divided into sections by caregiver (midwife, doula, physician, or unattended) and complete with essays from practitioners on their roles in natural birth and how they help women achieve their goals, Adventures in Natural Childbirth is essential reading for any woman who is considering—or is simply curious about—giving birth naturally.

    Focusing on pregnancy and the postpartum, "Mother Food" explores lactogenic foods and herbs and how they enhance milk production, prevent postpartum depression, increase energy, promote gentle weightloss and detox, improve the mother's and baby's immune systems, and also how they affect a baby's IQ, colic, allergy, and even her like or dislike of the taste of her mother's milk. Expert opinions are reviewed and traditional systems of medicine are succinctly explained. Written in an easy-to-read style and replete with remedies and recipes, "Mother Food" is both practical and informative. Recommended by lactation consultants and approved by the La Leche League International Book Evaluation Committee, "Mother Food" has become a favorite of mothers who want to learn what they can do to optimize both the quantity and quality of their milk, while contributing to their own and their baby's best health.

    This completely revised edition of the beloved international classic is now entirely in color, with historic, never-before-seen photos in every chapter and an entirely new text.

    In The Big Book of Birth renowned childbirth educator and Realbirth Center founder Erica Lyon offers an antidote to that fear with a comprehensive and up- to-date guide to childbirth. Drawing from more than a decade of teaching expecting parents what really to expect, Lyon fills the void that currently exists in childbirth literature, offering clear, current, objective advice on everything from choosing your doctor or midwife, to the realities of assisted and cesarean births, to the many different pain-coping options you can use during delivery and proven techniques that can help you relax and often speed along your labor. The Big Book of Birth guides women through the four stages of labor, dispelling misconceptions and providing a wealth of objective information in a warm, welcoming, and well- organized format. A long-overdue resource, The Big Book of Birth gives expectant mothers the knowledge they need to approach childbirth with confidence and joy.

    Based on her research of the nutrient-rich diets of healthy and fertile populations around the world, she lays out exactly what you should and shouldn't eat when trying to conceive, during pregnancy, and while breast-feeding. In the first half of the book she explains the ways industrialized foods can prevent pregnancy, how a low-fat diet can increase your likelihood of infertility by 85 percent, what to do if breast-feeding doesn't work for you, why babies can't digest cereal, and gives step-by-step instructions on how and when to introduce your baby's first foods. In the second half of the book she equips you with more than 50 recipes for incorporating traditional fertility-boosting foods into your diet. Beautiful Babies provides you with everything you need to know about having a healthy pregnancy and nourishing your growing baby.

    Most doctors are trained to think of a “good” birth only in terms of its medical success. But Dr. Anne Lyerly knows firsthand that there are many other important elements that often get overlooked. Her three-year study of a diverse group of over one hundred expectant moms asked what matters most to women during childbirth. The results, presented to the public for the first time in A Good Birth, show what really matters goes beyond the clinical outcome or even the usual questions of hospital versus birthing center, and reveal universal needs of women, like the importance of feeling connected, safe, and respected.Bringing a new perspective to childbirth, the book’s wisdom is drawn from in-depth interviews with women with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences, and whose birth stories range from quick and simple to complicated and frightening. Describing what went well, what didn’t, and what they’d do differently next time, these mothers give voice to the complete experience of childbirth, helping both women and their healthcare providers develop strategies to address the emotional needs of the mother, going beyond the standard birth plans and conversations. Transcending the “medical” versus “natural” childbirth debate, A Good Birth paves the entryway to motherhood, turning our attention to the deeper and more important question of what truly makes for the best birth possible.

    In the third revised edition author Karen Kerkhoff Gromada, IBCLC, offers invaluable information with an emphasis on breastfeeding and attachment-style parenting. Many concerns that parents of multiples may have are also addressed, including: What are the risks of a multiple pregnancy? What can a mother do to avoid complications? How can a mother continue meeting her babies' needs if one or more experiences an illness or needs to be hospitalized? What can a mother do to comfort two or more fussy babies? How can a mother, father, and older siblings adjust to the physical and emotional demands of caring for multiple babies? What ar the challenges of caring for toddler multiples? Gromada has worked with thousands of multilples as a La Leche League Leader for more than 30 years and is a registered nurse and lactation consultant.

    Spock meets Judge Judy--finally a parenting book that separates fact from fiction. What if you could bottle the wisdom of all those parents who've come before you...and combine them with the sold medical advice from an award-winning pediatrician? Baby 411 is the answer.

    Many new mothers are scared away from nursing because of difficulty getting started and lack of information about what to do when things don’t go as planned. In this fully revised and updated edition of The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of Answers, two of today’s foremost lactation experts help new mothers overcome their fears, doubts, and practical concerns about one of the most special ways a mother can bond with her baby.In this comprehensive guide, Dr. Jack Newman, a leading authority on infant care, and Teresa Pitman, a La Leche League leader for more than twenty years, give you the facts about breastfeeding and provide solutions for the common problems that arise. Filled with the same practical advice that made the first edition a must-have for nursing moms, the new edition features updates on:• Achieving a good latch• What to do if your baby refuses the breast• Avoiding sore nipples• Ensuring your baby gets enough milk• Feeding a colicky baby• Breastfeeding premature and special-needs babies

    In addition to basic advice on finding and working with a doula, the authors show how a doula reduces the need for cesarean section, shortens the length of labor, decreases the pain medication required, and enhances bonding and breast feeding. The authors, world-renowned authorities on childbirth with combined experience of over 100 years working with laboring women, have made their book indispensable to every woman who wants the healthiest, safest, and most joyful possible birth experience.

    What's a doula? In short, it's a trained professional who provides physical, emotional, and informational support to a mother before, during, and just after birth. Studies have shown that when doulas attend births, labors are shorter with fewer complications, babies are healthier, and breastfeeding is easier.The Mindful Mom-To-Be offers concrete, prescriptive health information, including natural solutions for aches and pains, colds, or trouble sleeping, but Lori Bregman's primary goal is to help expectant moms find what works best for them.With themes like "Living in Joy," "Destress and Decompress," and "Mothering Yourself" to accompany each month of pregnancy, Bregman encourages soon-to-be mothers to take time to explore their inner thoughts and fears, and examine their expectations of motherhood before their child arrives. Her spiritual exercises are positive, fun, and easy to put into practice.

    Marshall and Phyllis Klaus take parents and all those who care for new families into this freshly charted world, one they have been exploring for decades. The results of their fascinating research are illuminated by over 120 exquisite photographs, all of babies less than two weeks old. Your Amazing Newborn begins before birth with images of fetuses actually comforting themselves in the womb. We then see newborns less than one hour old crawling unassisted to the breast, recognizing the voices of their parents, and shutting our unwanted sights and sounds. Parents will learn how to discover an infant's clear preferences for certain shapes, smells, tastes, and tones of voice. They will be delighted by the ways babies seem to be able to ensure their own survival, and they will be amazed that within days after birth, newborns can engage in an intimate and reciprocal choreography, and nestle into a parent's embrace as though they had practiced for years. Your Amazing Newborn is a must for parents-to-be, grandparents, siblings, and caregivers; through its stunning photographs we see the first reach, the first mutual gaze-and most wonderful of all-the first spark of recognition that ignites a lifetime bond.

    Applying the wisdom of yoga throughout the stages of pregnancy and labor, author Dorothy Guerra presents an eight-step pathway for connecting with your mind, body, and spirit from start to finish.This easy-to-use guide will help you prepare for a positive and joyful childbirth. Learn how to manage pain, eliminate anxiety, and encourage labor progression with breathing and meditation techniques, affirmations, and yoga poses. Couples choose an intention that becomes a focal point for embracing a calm state of mind throughout the physical and emotional challenges of labor. You'll also find guidance in drafting a birth plan, labor-support techniques for birth partners, helpful illustrations, information on medical intervention, and a go-to chapter with detailed advice on all stages of labor to use when the big day arrives.Praise: A beautiful mind-body-spirit approach to birth!--Penny Simkin, PT, author of The Birth Partner

    Written by two leading experts who have been there themselves and officially recommended by La Leche League International, The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk incorporates the latest research and discoveries about causes of low milk supply, the way your body makes milk, and how babies contribute to your milk production. Best of all, you'll find valuable suggestions for both time-honored and innovative ways to make more milk.Learn the facts about:Determining if baby is really getting enough milkSupplementing without decreasing your supplyMaximizing the amount of milk you can makeIdentifying the causes of your low supplyIncreasing your supply with the most effective methods, including pumping, herbs, medications, foods, and alternative therapiesMaking more milk when you return to work, exclusively pump, have a premie or multiples, relactate, or induce lactation

    Nina Planck, one of the great food activists, changed the way we view old-fashioned foods like butter with her groundbreaking Real Food. T hen she got pregnant. Never one to accept conventional wisdom blindly, Nina found the usual advice about pregnancy and baby food riddled with myths and misunderstandings. In Real Food for Mother and Baby, Nina explains why many modern ideas about pregnancy and infant nutrition are wrongheaded and why traditional foods are best. While Nina can be controversial—her op-ed in the New York Times on vegan diets for infants was one of the paper’s most e-mailed articles— she’s no contrarian. Readers applaud her candor; they also trust her research and welcome her advice. Nina’s basic premise hasn’t changed—whole foods are best—but some of the details are surprising. Pregnant women need meat and salt, not iron supplements. Nursing will be easier if you act like the mammal you are. Delaying the introduction of certain solid foods doesn’t prevent allergies. Cereals are not the best foods for tiny eaters; meat and egg yolks are better. From conception to two years, the body’s overwhelming needs are for quality fat and protein, not for carrots and low-fat dairy. Even as she casts a skeptical eye on the conventional wisdom, Nina is reassuring. She shows you how to keep your baby healthy on good, simple food. Real Food for Mother and Baby will be the new classic on eating for two.