Pregnancy Books

sbaby2019

Are you reading any? Any that you would recommend? 
I read most of What to Expect When You're Expecting but my midwives advised against it. Now I'm ready The Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy (can't recall the author) from their library.
I've also heard good things about Ina May's Guide to Childbirth.
Anyone read it?

JNCPro3130

I read all of those. Actually, I didn't finish the "Ina May" one. It was a little too... crunchy for me. I knew I wanted to deliver in a hospital but wanted to have a med free birth. I read "Natural Hospital Birth". I also have "The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of Answers".

tincupchalice

Thinking Woman's guide to better birth and Natural Hospital Birth and the Bradley book, whichever that one was.

The first one there is a bit out of date but it's DH's bible during labor and delivery and really helped him advocate for me.

Ceridwen77

I read Ina Mays book and Dr Bradley’s with my first. We didn’t do any birthing classes and I found both of these to be great resources during my labor.  

onesmallcoconut

I really liked The Mother of all Pregnancy Books. Mostly because of the way it was written but also it's Canadian and so when it gets into details about certain practices etc it is far more relevant to me than What to Expect. 

roomsu

I read what to expect with my first. It was ok and I liked it at the time. Now I read a lot more on here. I feel like these moms have real experiences and give great advice. For anything medical I always speak to my midwives. 

kat11223344

I had the Mayo Clinic Guide to Pregnancy, and read each month as I went along. It was also a good resource if I had questions pop up.

After baby was born Happiest Baby on the Block was our go-to on sleep. It was SO helpful. He does advocate cry-it-out after 5-6 months, so if that's not your cup of tea maybe try something else, but it worked very well for both our kids. (and neither had to cry it out for more than two nights and they are great sleepers!)

I also recommend Nurture Shock- it has nothing to do with pregnancy, but it talks about child development ages 0-5. If you enjoy reading nonfiction I can't recommend it enough. Fascinating insights on how kids think and develop. 

justsuzie

"Expecting Better" was the only one I read....purely science based  studies and facts.

ivyvines6

@k5678 Nuture Shock was amazing!!!!!

As far as pregnancy books go, I read Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth, and part of What to Expect. I personally fall between both of the two spectrums, although I lean more
crunchy than medical... Neither book were as valuable as discussing birth with other mothers and researching actual birth videos on line.

JNCPro3130

@ivyvines6, I completely agree! I researched birth stories online and watched videos. Much better for getting an idea of birth.

gildah

I read Ina Mays Guide to Giving Birth,which was helpful. I also love talking to women about their births and listening to this podcast called “The Birth Hour”. It’s just women sharing their childbirth stories. It leans pretty crunchy, but there are plenty of positive hospital births with medication and interventions.

doraleigh35

justsuzie said:

"Expecting Better" was the only one I read....purely science based  studies and facts.

Same. This was the only actual pregnancy book I read with my first. I read a lot of parenting, development and baby sleep books during my pregnancy.

eta- typo

brianna_lynne

the best book that i have read as a first time mom is Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy. seriously the funniest and most honest book. i bought 9 of them and this one is the one i should have read first! 

holli0801

I have read all you mentioned.. why don’t they like what to expect? I thought it was helpful, but important to keep in mind everyone’s experience is different. I’m pretty crunchy, but still was a little eh about Ina May’s birth book. The breastfeeding one was great! ... I also read bradley method, and another look I loved that was semi-crunchy, and about hospital based natural births I found the most helpful! I’m not home for the next few days, but happy to find the title when I return.

Ceridwen77

@k5678 I never read Happiest Baby on the Block, but the free “album” of white noise songs with amazon prime was a lifesaver. My DD was so soothed by the “strong hairdryer” track. We just looped it over and over with every nap. 

sbaby2019

holli0801 said:

I have read all you mentioned.. why don’t they like what to expect? I thought it was helpful, but important to keep in mind everyone’s experience is different. I’m pretty crunchy, but still was a little eh about Ina May’s birth book. The breastfeeding one was great! ... I also read bradley method, and another look I loved that was semi-crunchy, and about hospital based natural births I found the most helpful! I’m not home for the next few days, but happy to find the title when I return.

I believe that many people find the book to focus a bit more of what can go wrong and build paranoia in mom's. I thought it was ok but there are some facts in there that are wrong and it almost seems to be more of an opinion. Either way I read it but I am definitely looking for other recommendations too.
I have just downloaded Ina May's Guide to Childbirth from my library and I have a rend hold on the Bradley Method. 

crazyliblady

The one I swear by is Mindful Birthing by Nancy Bardacke.  It has much more on meditation than anything pregnancy related, but it was the only book that didn't try to tell me what I'm supposed to think/feel.  The other one I liked was "Deliver This!" by Marissa Cohen.  I mostly read What to Expect about regancy.

doubleblessings1124

Does anyone have any suggestions for Twin books or books for dad/partner? Hubby isn't much of a reader but if anyone has a great book in mind...could convince him never know