The Big Book of Birth

I have never written a review about anything, but this book is so awesome! Being pregnant with my first child and as a registered nurse I felt I had a lot of understanding of pregnancy and labor and delivery. Also, I prepared myself for becoming a mom by reading a book on pregnancy and taking a child birth class through my local hospital. However, my labor and delivery did not go as planned and I felt soooo disappointed at how things went.When I got pregnant the second time I knew I wanted things to go differently. I realized I needed to be much more informed. I realized that nine months of pregnancy pretty much boils down to the labor and delivery, and that that was where I needed to focus and prepare myself. With baby number one I was not prepared for the unexpected, and that is why I decided to read this book before having baby number two. If only I had known I had different options other than what my provider gave me, I could have made a couple simple choices about my care that would have made things so much better that first time around.In this book Erica unveils the pain of child birth (she also talks about several other fears many mothers have) in a way that made me no longer fear, but rather gave me an understanding of child birth pain. Her detailed description of the entire process of labor and delivery empowered me, giving me the strength to believe that I could have that all natural childbirth I'd been dreaming of. She lets you know all the possible variables that can be encountered during the labor and delivery and what your choices are. The birth of my second child was that all natural childbirth I'd been dreaming of... I made the choices in my care, I used the tools she taught me to deal with the pain of labor and it was awesome. Thanks to Erica Lyon I was empowered to follow through with my goal of experiencing the full spectrum of the birth of a child.Now, I don't want you to think that she is critical of medication use during labor and delivery, trying to make moms feel bad. Erica simply gives you the information unbiased and lets you make your choices and do what you feel is best for you and your baby.

Not patronizing, not guilt-inducing, not jargon-y, not trying to sell you on a particular philosophy of child birth (or half a dozen other books for new parents, for that matter). This book got to the point and stuck to it. It is written in clear, concise language with the perfect balance of factual knowledge, practical tips, explanations of the medical concepts, and advice. And when we finally had the baby, it held up perfectly. I've wholeheartedly recommended it to a couple of colleagues who got pregnant since then.Instead of trying to tell you what you should or shouldn't do, it gives you a run down of the options, pro and con, and lets you draw your own conclusions about things like when and whether to consider a midwife or doula, where to have the baby, options for pain relief, inducement, C-section/VBAC, etc.My wife and I checked out every book in the library, including this one. When we'd read our fill and returned the books, this was the only one we went back to. Even though we'd read it (each of us) we both agreed it was worth ordering our own copy, and I used it for reference all the time.

DON'T GET THIS BOOK!!! THE AUTHOR HAS NO MEDICAL TRAINING AND GIVES DANGEROUS ADVICE!The first page of the book mentions being an OB for two decades. I mistakenly thought that was the intro, written by the author. As I read the book, I became increasingly shocked and flabbergasted by her clear scientific illiteracy and medical misunderstandings. I was honestly scared that someone with specialized medical training and 2 decades of experience could have such a flawed and bizarre understanding of how the body works. I became terrified that there were deep flaws in our medical school curricula. She advocates for acupuncture and chiropractics and REFLEXOLOGY (???!!!!) which no self-respecting clinician puts any stock in, since they do not work at all except as placebos. She tells pregnant women that they should take valerian root for anxiety or a homeopathic product called "Rescue Remedy". Most egregious of all, this paragraph reveals how deep her lack of scientific expertise is:"Sometimes it feels good in labor to just stroke the legs, starting at the hip. Now here is where it gets wild. In the 1960s a doctor verified that these meridians do actually have a physiological reality - that there are tiny ducts within our body, running along these "energy meridians", filled with RNA and DNA that connect to our brains and wash it with these chemicals."Are you KIDDING ME?? "Meridians" "filled with RNA and DNA" that connect to from the hip to the brain?? Now I am no medical doctor, but I do have a PhD in biomedical science and THIS IS THE MOST RIDICULOUS THING I HAVE EVER HEARD!None of this made sense to me, unless this woman did not have any medical training at all. I did some googling and couldn't find any indication she had an MD, just references to her as a "childbirth educator". Finally I found her webpage and learned that:"After going through a two year certification to teach with the Childbirth Education Association of Metropolitan New York, Erica was hired at Long Island College Hospital where she taught for seven years, the New York Foundling Hospital where she taught for four years working with pregnant teens ages 12-18, and at the Elizabeth Seton Childbearing Center, through St Vincent’s Hospital, where she taught and managed the center’s education programs."I WAS SO RELIEVED! Maybe physician training is not failing after all. BUT...what about the readers of this book? Are they in safe hands?Here's the thing: reflexology and acupuncture are ineffective and suggesting them is as preposterous as suggesting phrenology or using a Ouija board, BUT they are harmless. And the author's anecdotes about birth and what women go through and what works for them for mitigating pain and advice on when to go to the hospital - those things were very useful and, as far as I can tell, valid. BUT TELLING PREGNANT WOMEN TO USE VALERIAN ROOT OR ANY OTHER UNTESTED SUBSTANCE IS IRRESPONSIBLE. Just because something is "natural" doesn't mean it's safe (a fallacy REAL doctors are not prone to because they understand chemistry), and there have been studies done with valerian root that suggest there are adverse effects that could affect a developing fetus.I'm only 37% of the way through the book so I don't know what other kind of crazy or dangerous nonsense she is going to spout. But my advice to readers is to take what you can from her anecdotes and childbirth experiences, things like how getting in the shower or humming a tune might help you cope with labor pain, BUT IGNORE ANY MEDICAL ADVICE and please, please ask an actual doctor before taking any drugs or supplements. Another option would be just buying a different book, written by an actual MD, so you know you can trust ALL the advice in it.

This book was recommended by my doulas and I found the most helpful out of all the books I bought when I was pregnant.

This is a great book. It really helps you prepare for birth. I'm glad I bought it. It covers everything you need to know about birth itself. If you like to be informed this is for you.

Great resource for information on birthing. Clear, and easy to read.