Our Book Recommendations for pregnancy, childbirth, and Postpartum
Are you looking for book recommendations to expand your knowledge on pregnancy, birth, and postpartum? Check out our recommended books below.
Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering by Dr Sarah Buckley
Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering answers your important question and gives = you the information you need to create a safe, satisfying, and gentle start to family life. Dr Sarah Buckley, family physician and mother of four, shares the science as well as the wisdom of gentle choices in pregnancy, birth and parenting.
Dr Buckley explains, in easy-to-understand language, the logic, safety and benefits of natural birth and gentle parenting, using the best medical evidence. She also explains the conditions we need to optimize the flow of the “ecstatic hormones” that every woman’s body produces during a natural labour and birth, and that continue to support her during early mothering. You can click here to purchase Sarah Buckley book.
Reclaiming Childbirth as a Rite of Passage by Rachel Reed
It's time for a childbirth revolution.
Childbirth has always been and always will be, a significant rite of passage that transforms a woman into a mother. However, the modern approach to maternity care fails women, families and care providers with outdated practices that centre on the needs of institutions rather than individuals.
In this book, Rachel Reed demonstrates how childbirth can be reclaimed to centre women and support birth physiology. The book weaves history, science and research with the experiences of women and care providers to create a holistic, evidence-based framework for understanding birth. It takes the reader on a journey through childbirth physiology and practices and focuses on what can be done to create change one mother at a time, one birth at a time.
Reclaiming childbirth as a rite of passage acknowledges that self-transformation occurs regardless of how the experience unfolds. It recognises that mothers hold the power and expertise when it comes to birthing their babies. This book encourages women to find their individual pathway through their rite of passage and requires care providers to consider how their actions and interactions influence women's experiences. You can click here to purchase.
Childbirth Without Fear by Grantly Dick
In an age when normal birth can still be overtaken by obstetrics, Grantly Dick-Read's philosophy is still as fresh and relevant as it was when he originally wrote this book. He unpicks the root causes of women's fears and anxiety about pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding with overwhelming heart and empathy. As one of the most influential birthing books of all time, Childbirth Without Fear is essential reading for all parents-to-be, childbirth educators, midwives and obstetricians! You can click here to purchase.
Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin
The original Spiritual Midwifery, published in 1976, introduced an entire generation of young women to the possibility of home birth and breastfeeding. It also breathed new life into the all-but-vanished field of midwifery. This classic book on home birth is now in its fourth edition, with updated information on the safety of natural childbirth, new birthing stories, and the most recent statistics on births managed by The Farm Midwives. Ina May also provides new information about potentially dangerous techniques routinely used in hospitals during and after birth, as well as the latest findings about VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean). Improved instructions for handling breech births are also given. Included are stories of working with Amish women, showing a different culture with a similar appreciation for natural childbirth. You can click here to purchase.
Why Inductions Matter by Rachel Reed
This book is for women who are trying to make decisions about induction; or who have already decided to have an induction. It is also a great resource for those who support women – midwives, doulas and obstetricians.
The book includes a decision-making framework that can be worked through when considering whether induction is the right option for an individual/situation. It also includes a chapter on creating a birth plan for a positive induction experience.
Women’s experiences are included throughout, alongside research and clinical guidelines. You can click here to purchase.
What’s Right For Me? By Dr Sara Wickham
The decisions that we make about pregnancy and childbirth can shape our experiences, health and lives for years to come, as well as those of our children and families. But many of those decisions are complex, confusing and made harder by the fact that we live in a world that is filled with options and opinions that can feel overwhelming.
What's Right for Me? is an invaluable book that helps make these decisions feel less daunting. This updated edition covers everything from ideas about risk and different perspectives on birth, to how to interpret and consider information about tests, interventions and birth choices. Dr Sara Wickham's easy-to-understand explanations, real-life examples and top tips are like having a friendly expert by your side, helping you to understand your choices, your rights and ultimately why your decisions should be about what's right for you and only you. You can click here to purchase.
Birthing Your Placenta by Dr Nadine Edwards and Dr Sara Wickham
Have you ever thought about how the placenta is born? Did you know that there are actually three different approaches to the birth of the placenta within maternity care? Are you aware that research has shown significant advantages to the baby in taking a slower approach, however the placenta is born. Or that there is plenty of evidence to support a more natural approach for healthy women who would prefer that? This book has been written to help women make decisions about the birth of their placenta.
We examine the different options, detail the evidence relating to each and discuss the wider context in which these decisions are made. No matter what kind of birth you are hoping for, this book will help you understand the different options. Dr Nadine Edwards and Dr Sara Wickham are world-renowned and respected researchers and writers who have a long-standing interest in the birth of the placenta and the evidence relating to this. You can click here to purchase.
Group B Strep Explained by Dr Sara Wickham
Group B strep (or GBS) is a common and usually harmless type of bacteria, but it can very occasionally cause serious disease in newborn babies. Many pregnant women are offered screening and prevention for GBS, but there are pros and cons to this, as the main preventative (or prophylactic) measure involves women having antibiotics given to them by intravenous drip in labour. In this updated second edition of her popular book, Dr Sara Wickham discusses the different perspectives on GBS, the screening and prevention options that are available, the wider issues relating to this area, the alternative paths that some people take, the answers to parents' most frequently asked questions and more.
Dr Sara Wickham is a midwife, educator and researcher. She is the author or editor of sixteen books, has edited three midwifery journals and provides in-person and online educational and consultancy services for midwifery and health-related organisations around the world. "Sara has written an excellent and important book. She has pulled all of the evidence (in its many forms) together into a comprehensive woman-centred resource. Sara's writing makes complex information accessible to all. I'd recommend this book to women, and anyone involved in caring for childbearing women. I learned lots." - Dr Rachel Reed, Midwifery Lecturer and Author of MidwifeThinking. "Sara has a remarkable ability to search through extensive amounts of research and to translate it into simple, easy-to-understand language. She has achieved that once again in this beautifully written book. The choices women face as they negotiate their births are challenging but are always made easier by having accurate, easy-to-understand information. This is THE book to go to for everything you need to know about GBS." - Dr Kirsten Small, Obstetrician Gynaecologist. You can click here to purchase.
Ina May's Guide to Childbirth
Drawing upon her thirty-plus years of experience, Ina May Gaskin, the nation's leading midwife, shares the benefits and joys of natural childbirth by showing women how to trust in the ancient wisdom of their bodies for a healthy and fulfilling birthing experience. Based on the female-centered Midwifery Model of Care, Ina May's Guide to Childbirth gives expectant mothers comprehensive information on everything from the all-important mind-body connection to how to give birth without technological intervention. You can click here to purchase.
Ina May's Guide to Breastfeeding
"Everything you need to know to make breastfeeding a joyful, natural, and richly fulfilling experience for both you and your baby"
Drawing on her decades of experience in caring for pregnant women, mothers, and babies, Ina May Gaskin explores the health and psychological benefits of breastfeeding and gives you invaluable practical advice that will help you nurse your baby in the most fulfilling way possible. Inside you'll find answers to virtually every question you have on breastfeeding. You can click here to purchase.
Why Postnatal Recovery Matters by Sophie Messager
During pregnancy, the focus of antenatal preparation is the birth itself, and the importance of the postnatal period is often overlooked. Yet postnatal recovery (or a lack of it) can have consequences for the long-term health and well-being of both mother and baby.
In Why Postnatal Recovery Matters Sophie Messager draws on her experience as a scientist and doula to show that thinking ahead to after the birth can get new families off to the best possible start. You can click here to purchase.
The First Forty Days: The Essential Art of Nourishing the New Mother by Heng Ou
The first 40 days after the birth of a child offer an essential and fleeting period of rest and recovery for the new mother. Based on author Heng Ou's own postpartum experience with zuo yuezi, a set period of "confinement," in which a woman remains at home focusing on healing and bonding with her baby, The First Forty Days revives the lost art of caring for the mother after birth. You can click here to purchase.
