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Summary: This is the way
Review: My wife and I have fallen in love with the whole philosophy of birth presented here and are practicing the techniques. Pain managment, mental and physical prperations as well as what to expect.This book works well with the Birthworks classes as well and I could see it helping with any class you may take.
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Summary: The best book to read to prepare for & assist in childbirth.
Review: I read Pam's book when I was pregnant with my second child. I was able to use her suggestions and information to have a much quicker, less painful birth. The experience was so empowering for me that I became a trained doula. Now I have bought and loaned out many, many copies. If you or anyone you know is having a baby, this book could make a wonderful difference in their experience.
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Summary: Read it, work through it and discover who you are!
Review: After 22 year of teaching "childbirth education" I have been blown away by this book. It's true to your soul, helps you discover how and why you feel the way you do about being pregnant and giving birth, and then allows you to choose what is best for YOU, not the medical establishment, not your friends, not your relatives. If you learn to love and accept who you are and make appropriate choices, you'll be a much better parent (or educator!). I'm recommending it to my pregnant friends, then offering them classes if they feel they need the "formal" side of birthing. I hope to go to one of the author's seminars and continue my education!
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Summary: A different perspective on childbirth
Review: I bought this book as I am hoping to have a natural, drug-free birth. So many of the books I read about natural childbirth really seem to "bash" the medical establishment, and end up creating negative or defensive attitudes, or scaring couples into thinking they are going to have to fight the medical staff for everything they want. This book takes a gentler approach. The authors DO make the point that the medical community has made childbirth more of a convenience for the doctor than the mother, but the book encourages couples, and suggests ways to make the birthing process their own in the midst of all this. It also teaches about the "soul" of pregnancy and birth, which many other books do not go into, by having the parents express their expectations through drawings, journal writing and other creative methods. This book reminds the reader that birth is not just about the baby, it's about the family. I recommend this book to any expectant mother, no matter what type of birth she intends to have. "Birthing from Within" helps you get in touch with yourself and your expectations, fears, and hopes to allow you to make the birth of your child a very personal and soulful experience.
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Summary: A "must read" for holistic families & childbirth educators!
Review: Birthing from Within is an important book. . I have worked with families, preparing for and during birth, for many years. I am excited by this book! This book is in touch with the authentic nature of birth. It offers a creative approach to assisting families with holistic birth preparation. I have recommended this book to a number of families; all have been excited and moved by the book! The authors offer powerful tools to draw on in preparing for birth...."birth is work, birth usually involves some pain, and you can do it"! Information about birth as a right-brained process is important and rarely discussed in childbirth preparation books. Current information about the benefits of doula supported birth is important and nicely summarized. Not only do I highly recommend this book to all who have an interest in birth, but I also suggest childbirth educators look for work shops being offered to assist women "Birth from within". A true gem! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
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Summary: this is a fabulously balanced and informative book about pre
Review: As a doula, a nurse, and a midwifery student, this book is now my most highly recommended book about pregnancy and childbirth. Every pregnant woman and couple should read it. The authors do a fantastic job of encompasing the many facets of childbearing. This book is much more than the typical "how to" of pregnancy and birth. Pam England opens up and goes beyond the traditional physiological and psychological explanations about pregnancy and birth. She teaches expectant parents how to explore thier own feelings about pregnancy and birth through art. She offers specific exercises on how to tap into the instinctual knowledge that we all have about how to birth, where our power is, and how to enjoy the process. This book is pleasant to read with a lot of illustrations by the author and students in her classes. It is very well organized. In no other book on the subject have I felt so much trust for the authors. They approach this subject without flared emotions, or a political agenda. They present the facts, which support a non-interventive, and trusting approach to birth as the safest and healthiest option. Please read it.
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Summary: Comprehensive and thoughtful
Review: I have been a CNM for twenty years and read every childbirth book ever published. In all that time I never found a book that reflected my philosophy and encouraged women, although Kitzinger came close. Finally, after all this time, Pam England has done it. If for no other reason than the chapter, Stand and Deliver, every birthing woman should read this book. England is realistic-no promises of virtually painless birth if you follow her directions-and positive about the formidable powers of birthing women. Read, enjoy the feelings that this affirmation of powers envokes, and birth wisely.
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Summary: Without a doubt, the BEST book on how to give birth!
Review: After reading this book in one sitting, I'm convinced that England and Horowitz will replace the outdated, male-created birth methods of Lamazze and Bradley. Written by a midwife and her husband, a psychologist, these two take you into a powerful new way giving birth. Through art therapy, creative visualization and a focus on Zen, these two give birthing back to women. Their method is not only inspiring, but empowering. I highly recommend this book to not only pregnant women, their partners, but also to OB/GYNs, midwives and doulas who want to connect in a deeer, more satisfying way with their pregnant patients. A thousand hurrahs to England and Horowitz for finally allowing women and their partners to experience childbirth preparation as an exciting, fascinating, thrilling and soul-searching experience.
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Summary: A Spiritual and Educational Work of Art!
Review: "Birthing From Within" has something for everyone: practical advice for first-time pregnancies, things you ought to know (that you won't be told at the obstetrician's office), nutrition guidelines, and post-birth information on becoming a family. The information on pain-techniques and birthing techniques is something I haven't run across in the many books I've read on childbirth. There are worksheets and reminder cards and wonderful ideas for creating birth art (even if you don't think you're artistically inclined)! This book is creative enough not to be lumped in with the generic mainstream birthing books which basically ignore the spiritual side of birthing. It manages to balance the practical advice with the information that makes you cry, ponder, and look forward to the powerful experience of childbirth. This is a GREAT read!
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Summary: An insightful guide to creating your unique, positive birth
Review: Even though I am hoping for an unmedicated birth in a hospital, I thought this book would be "too alternative" for me. However, I am so thankful that I read this at the suggestion of my doula - who happens to be a Birthing from Within instructor. There are definitely some passages that don't mesh with my personal preferences and birth philosophy, but I was able to overlook those and find some truly wonderful morsels of wisdom that touched me. After all, every birth and every woman is different, so you don't have to follow the book to the letter or believe in every opinion presented. For me, the most helpful aspect of this book was the assumption that the birth would take place in a hospital. What have become routine procedures for birth in most hospitals scare me very much, so I have chosen a doctor and birth attendants who support my decision for a natural, intervention-free birth. However, most books I have read that share my viewpoint are extremely anti-hospital and only serve to increase my anxiety level. (I did consider home birth - my first choice - but ultimately decided against it for various reasons.) Although "Birthing from Within" contains some horrible stories of hospital births, I appreciated that the book's focus is on making a hospital birth a rewarding experience, NOT trying to avoid a hospital birth. It provided me with techniques for working through my fears of the hospital and ways I can cope if events don't go exactly as I hope. The section for fathers is perhaps my favorite part of the book because it is so well-written and contains some wonderful advice. I also was thrilled to read the chapter on "baby-proofing your marriage." Before reading "Birthing from Within", I had yet to come across a birth book that positively addressed the impact of a baby on marriage, if it addressed the issue at all. Not that this book looks at the issue from behind rose-tinted glasses! But it prompts discussion before the baby's arrival, so couples are prepared. Overall, this book has not only positively encouraged me to work on my personal beliefs and fears about birth, but has also provided my husband and me with some valuable discussion points so we can both approach the impending birth of our first child with confidence. I encourage all mothers-to-be to read this book with an open mind. Some suggestions may work for you, others may not; use what speaks to you to create the birth experience that fits YOU.
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