DISCLAIMER: I have always been a book worm and love to research and learn about new things so naturally, I gravitated towards pregnancy books, however I know that this style of learning isn’t for everyone and obviously nothing can truly 100% prepare you for the unknown of childbirth and raising your baby.
1.
Hypnobirthing: Practical Ways to Make
Your Birth Better by Siobhan Miller
Has to take number one spot as it was my number one support
during labour. I had heard people mention hypnobirthing before but assumed (as
I think a lot of people do) it had something to do with hypnosis or was more
for people who are into tarot and horoscopes and things like that- which I can
be quite sceptical of. Therefore, to be
honest, I did purchase this book with some scepticism, however at the same time
wanted to be open to all modes of childbirth and pain relief so I could make
the best informed decision (as I really didn’t have a clue at all). The way the
book is styled and written meant it was really easy to dip into it after a
long, hard day at work and not feel like it was information overload. And
almost as soon as I started reading, it totally made sense. I had gotten
hypnobirthing entirely wrong. I forget how powerful the mind can be,
particularly when it comes to pain, so it totally makes sense to mentally
prepare (as well as physically) prepare yourself for birth as they both work
hand in hand. I had always been quite frightened of the idea of childbirth pre-pregnancy
(my only knowledge of it coming from dramatized shows and movies which
definitely didn’t help at all) but when it came to actually giving birth (even
knowing Teddy was breech and the potential risks surrounding a VBB) I felt that
what I learnt from this book really helped to relax me, made me feel confident
and capable, and meant I was able to give birth to Teddy without any pain
relief. I made James read it as well and it felt wonderful to know he was on
the same page as me. He even recorded some of the hypnobirthing tracks and
affirmations for me (which are at the back of the book) so I could listen to
them in the weeks leading up to Teddy’s due date.
2.
What to expect when you’re expecting by
Heidi Murkoff
This book has a whole wealth of information and is broken
down into months and trimesters so I felt like I could dip in and out of it as
and when needed. I found it particularly exciting to read in the early months
when not much is happening on the outside (despite a whole load of morning (all
day) sickness) to read all of the wonderful things which are happening on the
inside. I also found it useful for when anything cropped up during pregnancy
that I did not know anything about or was unprepared for- I could use the index
to find the information about most things. For example, I had no idea I was
rhesus negative and what that meant regarding anti d injections, etc, and felt
that I received very little information from the midwife I had at the time
about it. I was really glad to find information in this book about it. It also
had a page of ideas and strategies to help turn the baby if they aren’t in the
ideal position which I used when I discovered Teddy was breech.
3.
Dogs, Bumps and Babies: Preparing your
Dog for Life with your Baby by Aileen Stevenson
I found this book really useful in preparing Toby for
Teddy’s arrival. This was crucial as I knew Toby was going to be very much
still in puppy then adolescent mode whilst Teddy was still small. There are
some excellent suggestions in this book which I think really helped. For
example, playing baby crying sounds- starting off quiet and gradually building
to louder and rewarding Toby for ignoring the sound has meant that from the
very beginning he was not fazed by Teddy’s crying. Also playing baby sounds on
my phone when wearing the sling/ in the baby carrier/ moses basket, etc and
rewarding Toby for ignoring these objects meant that he was not interested in
them at all. Taking Toby on walks with the pram before Teddy was born meant he
got used to it really quickly. Those are just a few insights from the book that
I found really useful, but there were plenty more.
4.
The Modern Midwife’s Guide to Pregnancy,
Birth and Beyond by Marie Louise
Has some really good tips for the third trimester and
preparing for birth (i.e. things like massaging your perineum to avoid tearing-
the sort of stuff that no one really mentions or tells you about but can make a
huge difference!).
5.
The Positive Breastfeeding Book by Amy
Brown
Obviously this book is mainly useful if you do intend to
breastfeed. This was my bible to all things breastfeeding pre-Teddy and during
those first few months. Of course (and I quickly discovered this) you cannot
learn how to breastfeed from a book. I read at least 4 books on
breastfeeding, analysed the pictures, watched videos and I still really, really
struggled the first few weeks. I just could not get it to the point where it
was incredibly stressful and upsetting and Teddy actually lost a lot of weight
in the first week- however, I feel this book is written in such a
supportive way that even when I was finding it really, really, really tough and
was just about to give up, I would read the section with advice on what to do
if things are hard and it would really inspire and encourage me to carry on. I
have now been exclusively breastfeeding Teddy for 8 months. There is also a
list for partners in this book which gives them tons of ideas on how they can
support their breastfeeding partner and make the experience somewhat easier.
This is the best book I read on breastfeeding by far.
So that is my summary of the five books I found most helpful
whilst I was pregnant with Teddy and I hope, if anyone reading this is looking
for recommendations, that they find them useful too 😊
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