Customer Reviews

Six Practical Lessons for an Easier Childbirth

5 star:		(3)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

There are so many great things about this book! It is concise and to the point. Unlike other birthing books that spend hundreds of pages focusing on all the obscure complications that could occur during childbirth, "Six Practical Lessons" discusses what happens during a more common healthy birth. This makes it easier to understand and more helpful.

My husband and I had the privilege of taking Lamaze classes with Elisabeth Bing, and we found this book to be a great supplement for her classes. She is one of the pioneers of the Lamaze method here in the United States and a co-founder of Lamaze International.

"Six Practical Lessons" explains what exactly happens during labor, demonstrates exercises for you and your partner to prepare for labor, and goes over relaxation and breathing techniques. It also contains helpful illustrations and photographs.

Also, by going over the history of Lamaze it helps explain and understand why this method works so well.

I am pregnant with my second child and doing some refreshing before the big day. So I decided to dip into the original printing of this book which I found tucked away in a box for the past 30+ years. Holy cow! I'm glad I didn't read this the first time around! It's ridiculous! ~Even if you don't feel the urge to push, don't argue "Accept your physician's orders at the time without questioning..."~ HA! Women have been delivering babies using doctors ONLY for about the past 100 years or so and without them for thousands of years! Doctors don't always know best, my first delivery was awful because I trusted the doc more than I trusted my own body. May I suggest Ina Mays Guide to Childbirth? I also suggest a visit with a midwife before the end of your pregnancy, you may find some enlightenment.

I first read this book 31 years ago, when I was pregnant with my first child. My Lamaze instructor had recommended it to us. It was fantastic! It explains the childbirth process so well, and it includes the various breathing techniques for each stage of labor and delivery. I give this to family members who are pregnant, including my daughter who is due in Feb. '06. I cannot say enough about this book!!

This book gave me the tools necessary to cope with and overcome the pain of labor, and deliver naturally without any intervention of any kind. My nurses were very impressed with the way I handled labor, and wanted to read and recommend this book, as well. The book was short, sweet, and very practical. I also enjoyed the personality of the writer coming through--like your own mothering doula, at a fraction of the cost. I highly recommend this book.

I was disappointed with this book. My judgment is influenced by just having read "Preparation for Birth" by Beverly Savage and Diana Simkin, which is EXCELLENT. Six Practical Lessons, in comparison, is poorly organized and not completely up-to-date, it seems. For example, the author refers to "when" you get your episiotomy, as though the procedure is a given, but many natural childbirth advocates today feel that episiotomy is usually not necessary and not preferable to a natural tear. I also found Ms. Bing's Lamaze breathing instructions extremely vague. If I had not already grasped the timing/counting methods from "Preparation for Birth," I don't think I would have understood what the author is trying to explain.
This book is formatted as though the reader is in attendance at one of Ms. Bing's childbirth courses, with the "Six Lessons" being the 6 class sessions. For some reason she includes rather useless and repetitive chit chat to open each class session--understandable if you're attending in person, but annoying in a book. It almost reads like a novel, with no index and a chintzy table of contents.
I did not learn anything new from this book that was not covered in "Preparation for Birth" in much greater detail and more up-to-date research. On the other hand, if you're not going to read anything else or are extremely short on time (i.e. in labor), this book (or any book) is certainly better than nothing.
I'd rather have my $10 back.