Customer Reviews

An Easier Childbirth: A Mother's Guide to Birthing Normally

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by Andrea Eastman

I remember feeling like such a failure after the birth of my first daughter because I was unable to lie still and relax while I was in pain during contractions. All of the videos and pictures in books in my Bradley Method classes showed the laboring women lying there peacefully on their sides. Well, not me!

Later on, I realized that the Bradley Method failed me -- I did not fail. As I was doing my own research to prepare for the birth of my second daughter, I came across a book called An Easier Childbirth by Gayle Peterson. What a revelation! Peterson discusses the fact that we all deal with pain in different ways -- auditory, kinesthetic, visual -- and gives exercises to help women determine and then use their own coping styles.

How do you deal with pain? I remember one time I was walking in a darkened room and kicked the end of a rocker with the top of my foot. Right away, I grabbed my foot, started hopping up and down, cursing under my breath while grinding my teeth. After a bit, I realized that it was a good time to practice my relaxation skills, and so I flopped on the floor, let out a deep breath, and relaxed.

But my first instinct was to use movement & sound to deal with my pain!

Peterson writes in her book, "When we can identify our primary channel for receiving information, we can enhance our natural coping style for dealing with pain in labor. Some women suppress their natural style because they have been taught relaxation and breathing techniques that do not take into account their unique way of processing the labor experience."

Women have many different ways of dealing with pain during labor. When left to uninhibited expression, a large percentage will moan or make some use of sound during labor. These women use an AUDITORY means of expression for dealing with their pain. Other women may squeeze a pillow or a friend's hand or even want to move around as a way of meeting the contractions. These women are KINESTHETIC in their coping style. They need to express their pain physically. Still others prefer to use internal or external visual images for traveling through contractions. These women primarily use a VISUAL means of coping with pain.

During my second child's birth I used active birth techniques to use gravity to my benefit and have less pain. During the tough contractions, I found myself kneeling forward on my hands and knees (with my knees spread far apart to open up my pelvis), rocking slowly, almost like I was rocking the baby. Sometimes I would moan, other times I would visualize a rose (or lotus flower) opening petal by petal. Between the contractions, I would flop on the floor, breathe deeply, and relax. When the next contraction would start building, I would get back on my hands and knees and start rocking again.

Think about how you deal with pain. Keep a list. Read Peterson's book. And prepare for your birth by practicing your primary coping style, along with the others. Listen to your body, and follow your body's cue. Your body will guide you if you let it.

Wonderful addition to the expectant mom's library. Contains exercises you can do to mentally prepare for pregnancy, birthing and mothering. Empowers women to believe (to know and to trust) that they can birth babies normally, that birth is beautiful and something to be proud of.

In addition to physical preparation and excercises to preparefor childbirth, this book addresses the emotional and mental aspectsthat can either contribute to or impede the positive experience of giving birth. Much of the book is focused on exploring and resolving fear, grief, and expectations that may interfere with a healthy birthing scenario.

Janet Balaskas writes, "If you have many painful feelings to work through, you may fear that doing so in pregnancy may harm your baby. Since these feelings exist inside you anyway, it will be an advantage to release them and clear the way for enjoyable motherhood...When you give birth you will find it easier to let go if you are not attempting to control or suppress your feelings." (Natural Pregnancy)

The chapter which deals with our own memories of being born is a bit overstated, IMO, but does not diminish the exceptional quality of this resource. Every expectant mother (with any birthing history) could benefit from this exploratory workbook.

This book came in a lot of childbirth books from an ebay seller. As a childbirth educator, I read as much as I can on childbirth preparation but I had not heard of this particular book. It was a very pleasant surprise.

Most chidlbirth books explain positions and comfort measures for the expectant family to master. Those things are important, but as I tell my students, "You can't fake faith in your body." The author of this book is all about helping you develop faith in your body. Working through the exercises helps identify your fears and concerns so you can begin working to overcome them.

This book encourages reflective journaling, but the questions can be worked through as a discussion if that is more your style. The reader is asked to begin asking questions about herself to learn what she needs for and wants from giving birth. In my experience, this is the most often missed part of childbirth preparation. Because of this, it is not a "quick read" to learn a few comfort measures for labor. But taking the time and working through will help you labor more comfortably.

This book will help you understand what your roles are in the birthing process. A must read!
Salli Gonzalez, Licensed Midwife
San Antonio, TX

I think this is great for both parents to be not just mothers to be. There is a great perspective taken from many angles in a very non-judgmental way starting with your very own birth. For those who learn about themselves by writing, this is definitely the book for you. It's also laid out in a clear way, posing many questions to help guide you through your own thought process.

This CD, Body-Centered Hypnosis for an Easier Pregnancy and Childbirth is an extension and companion to the book, An Easier Childbirth. For a complete preparation program, use the CD and workbook together.

Body-centered hypnosis has proven to be a powerful tool for increasing the likelihood of normal delivery and developing the bond between mother and unborn child. It addresses the mother's fears and concerns aimed at decreasing anxiety and increasing confidence and sense of well-being.

Track 1: How body centered hypnosis works and how to use this CD. (3 minutes)

Track 2: Relaxation with suggestions for enhancing your enjoyment of pregnancy, bonding with your baby and preparing for childbirth-to be used throughout pregnancy. (26 minutes)

Track 3: The birth visualization is to be used in the last two weeks of pregnancy to prepare for the experience of childbirth - continues the relaxation and includes birth visualization with suggestions woven in to help you adapt and adjust to labor. (31 minutes)


Reviews from amazon:

5.0 out of 5 stars:
by a customer
"My wife used this recording and I was able to listen and help her through the pain of contractions by using the imagery of the ocean waves making it safely to shore. It helped me, as well as her, to focus on getting through the contractions and resting, in between. I highly recommend this recording to all pregnant women and their partners."

by a customer: 5 stars
"I had read an article about using hypnosis as a technique for getting through labor. After a 24 hour labor with 3 hours of pushing with my first I was desperate to try anything (breathing through it is a joke!) I fell asleep every night with this recording. Everything she said came back to me during labor...get her An Easier Childbirth book. She has the text in there and you can either make your own recording or have a friend recording it. Regardless, the book is invaluable too. I just found out today that I am pregnant with #3 and the first thing I did was reorder the recording and book because I gave the originals to a friend when I thought that I was done having children."

To be honest, I barely looked at this book. I found so many other books more useful when I was pregnant. I'm not sure why I didn't get into it-maybe the info was too basic or not written in a compelling way. I'd check out other options before getting this book.