Some tips for your birth
1. Do your own research (some reliable online sources and books listed below).
2. Ask questions to healthcare professionals! You will notice the answers may differ from place to place and person to person.
3. Attend a local Positive birth and Homebirth support groups (even if you are not planning a homebirth). This will be a place to hear positive, real-life birth stories and prepare for your own birth.
4. Get support from a doula. She will guide you through pregnancy, birth and post-birth.
5. Attend a hypnobirthing, pregnancy yoga or mindfulness course. Mental preparation for birth is even more important than physical.
6. Attend a breastfeeding workshop, talk to breastfeeding mothers. Breastfeeding is not easy, but preparation is the key.
Information about birth, making decisions about your care and interventions
Preparing for birth in practical terms and gaining background knowledge in general
The Positive Birth Book by Milli Hill
Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin
The Father’s Homebirth Book by Leah Hazard
Birth Reborn by Michel Odent
Childbirth without Fear by Grantly Dick-Read
Active Birth by Janet Balaskas
Birthing from within by
The Politics of Birth by Sheila Kitzinger
Birth in Focus by Becky Reed
The Oxytocin Factor by Kerstin Uvnas Moberg
Why Home Birth Matters by Natalie Meddings
Why Human Rights in Childbirth Matter by Rebecca Schiller
Why Hypnobirthing Matters by Katrina Berry
Breastfeeding and support in birth and afterwards
The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding – La Leche League
Why Doulas Matter by Maddie McMahon
Why Breastfeeding Matters by Charlotte Young
The Fourth Trimester by Kimberly Ann Johnson
www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk
Parenting
The Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff
Why Your Baby’s Sleep Matters by Sarah Ockwell Smith
Being There: Why prioritizing motherhood for the first three years matters by Erika Komisar