Choosing Waterbirth: Reclaiming the Sacred Power of Birth [Paperback]

Lakshmi Bertram (Author), Sandra Amrita McLanahan (Introduction), Michel Odent (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2000

A yoga instructor and mother of five shares a revelation: Childbirth doesn't have to be painful, stressful, or degrading. In this age of the epidural epidemic, when birth is treated as surgery or illness, "Choosing Waterbirth" details how to make childbirth a positive experience, both empowering and beautiful. Bertram, who chose the waterbirth method for each of her children, gently explains how this natural, harmonious, healthy, and low-pain birth method allows women to reclaim the dignity and sacredness that is the true essence of the birth experience.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Bertram, a mother of five and a yoga instructor, recounts each of her labor and delivery experiences using the gentle and natural method of water birth. Intended as an illustrated manual from pregnancy to birth to recovery, the book includes sections on prenatal yoga postures, techniques for birthing in water, choosing a home birth, breast feeding, and parenting a new baby. This intensely personal work is imbued with a spiritual perspective relative to both the physical and psychological aspects of motherhood. While the text offers expectant mothers encouragement and reassurance, a list of additional resourcesDassociations, centers where water birthing is available, books, tapes, and web sitesDwould have been useful. As water birth becomes more mainstream, public libraries may wish to include this book in their wellness collections. (Photos not seen.)DDeborah Anne Broocker, Georgia Perimeter Coll., Dunwoody
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"This quietly passionate work pulses with a vital, heart-warming inflection that makes it an essential on parenting, midwifery..." -- NAPRA ReView Nov/Dec 2000

Essential reading for parents to be. --Science and Medical Network, Network No.74, December 2000

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Hampton Roads Pub Co; 1 edition (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1571741526
• ISBN-13: 978-1571741523
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #614,259 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Choosing Waterbirth, October 12, 2002

By 

Cassandra Barnes "Cassandra" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Choosing Waterbirth: Reclaiming the Sacred Power of Birth (Paperback)

Lakshmi Bertram has given birth to five babies, all under water. She shares her experiences in Choosing Waterbirth, a book filled with practical advice and encouragement.

Bertram knew from the beginning that she wanted home births, maintaining that "most births do not actually require doctors or hospitals or fetal monitors or forceps or episiotomies or drugs." She researched birthing methods carefully, learning about water birth shortly before her first child was born. She learned that not only did water make birthing easier and less painful for the mother, it also provided "a kind, loving, and gentle entry into this world" for the baby.

In water birth, the mother immerses her lower body in a tub of water heated to body temperature. The baby is born into the water. The baby continues to receive oxygen from the umbilical cord. It is then brought gently to the surface and handed to the mother. Babies will not try to breathe until the air hits their faces and are in no danger of drowning.

Bertram emphasizes that giving birth is a natural process for women and that, if left to their intuition, they have the ability to deliver healthy babies. Having a baby does not have to the overwhelming and frightening experience that modern methods have led women to believe. She provides lots of encouragement for women who want home births, even if they choose not to have a water birth. Alternatively some hospitals and birthing centers have water birth facilities available. Each woman must do what she feels is best for her and her baby.

For those who do choose waterbirth, Bertram provides a wealth of information on where to find birthing tubs (she purchased her first one at an animal feed store!), midwives and other attendants, and birthing centers. She also details exactly the things to expect about birth in general, and water birth in particular.

A long time yoga practitioner and certified instructor, Bertram includes a section on how expectant mothers may use yoga for relaxation and for strengthening and stretching the muscles that will be used during childbirth. The detailed instructions are accompanied by pictures.

The final section of the book is entitled "Practice," and in it Bertram has included pictures of her "water babies" and notes from her journals on their births. She says she hopes "to give women a different view of what birth can be." Her experiences helped make childbirth "a part of the joy of having children instead of a traumatic ordeal that had to be gone through in order to get children."

Sandra McLanahan, M.D. , in a preface to Choosing Waterbirth says "Lakshmi's book provides inspiration and support for women to learn to turn away from excess interventions, to return to the innate wisdom of the body and its natural resources." Every woman contemplating pregnancy, whether interested in water birth or not, will find a wealth of information and encouragement in Bertram's book.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great for 1st time mom., September 12, 2003

By 

J. Matteis "sweethunnybee" (San Diego, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Choosing Waterbirth: Reclaiming the Sacred Power of Birth (Paperback)

This book supports women who are looking to give birth to and parent their baby au naturale.

Choosing Waterbirth did so much to prepare me psychologically for the road ahead, as a first-time mom planning for a non-medicated waterbirth. I read so many books that attempted to enlighten me as to what to expect from natural birth, and how to prepare for it psychologically, but could never quite 'get it'. Well this one took the cake. The author described the process in such a way that I felt like I was there going through it myself. Because she described first-person her five stories of waterbirths, she was able to take it on a very deep and personal level, which allowed me to imagine that I was her as I was reading her story. I could never get a clear picture of what to expect when reading other natural birth/ water birth books, but this novel format finally gave me the understanding I wanted. In the end, I was able to feel this woman's strength as she pushed through the pain, which gave me courage rather than fear of the pain in my own birth experience. This book also thoroughly covers the 3 stages of birth, described in a way that I could get a good understanding of without having ever gone through the process myself.

There's also an extensive chapter on prenatal yoga, with easy-to-follow pictures to learn the excercises, and guidance on relaxation and breathing techniques. She also tells you how to 'set the mood' for the occasion; how to choose and dress up the environment for maximum comfort.

The books ends with post-partum help: supportive information on breastfeeding, infant massage, and co-sleeping with your baby.

The information was obviously intended more for the birthing mother rather than the midwife/birth assistant. It covers many details and specifics that are important to the mother...attaining a tub (not building your own), finding a waterbirth center, who should & shouldn't consider waterbirth, and several resources to look into to 'make it happen'.

I thought this book complemented Water Birth by Napierala very well.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Okay book, but not really about waterbirth, June 4, 2010

By 

nem (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Choosing Waterbirth: Reclaiming the Sacred Power of Birth (Paperback)

I expected more information about, um, waterbirth---tips and techniques for getting the most out of laboring and birthing in water, positions to try, safety information, etc. Instead, this is a pretty generic childbirth book by an author who used water for her children's births. She does provide her own birth stories, but these offer no practical information for a reader's own waterbirth. I suppose that if you didn't realize the water should be warm, that would be a tip---but who doesn't know that? Bizarre. On the plus side, I liked the yoga routine she suggests. Otherwise, I got nothing out of this book & I'm glad I borrowed it from the library instead of buying it! (On a side note, the more childbirth books I read, the more I realize that they all say the same thing! You really only need one good one; I recommend Ina May's Guide to Childbirth.)