But I Don't Feel Too Old to Be a Mommy!: The Complete Sourcebook for Starting (and Re-Starting) Motherhood Beyond 35 and After 40 (Paperback)

by Doreen Nagle (Author) "Nearing the end of our discussion for this book, I asked the highly regarded fertility specialist, Dr. Eldon Schriock, my standard final interview question: Was..." (more)
Key Phrases: contracting mother, many older mothers, choosing motherhood, Reality Bites, United States, Choosing Motherhood Through Surrogacy (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
The traditional childbearing ages for women have been 20-29. Today, however, the trend to later childrearing is significant, with the numbers of mothers over the age of 35 having grown 75 percent in the last decade, while the numbers in the traditional ages continue to decline. From celebrities to the woman next door, later childrearing is no flash-in-the-pan fad "and isn't going to subside; future trends only show women will continue to delay motherhood," according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

But I Don't Feel Too Old to Be a Mommy! is the first and only book to fully address the concerns of the ever-growing but greatly ignored audience of literate, educated women who have delayed motherhood. In this comprehensive work, women who are considering parenting in their 30s, 40s and later-whether for the first time or starting over-will find all the information they need to make informed choices.

Author Doreen Nagle, herself a first-time mom over 40, details the risks, rewards, rumors and resources-from making the decision to start a family, to every imaginable way to get there, to the realities of motherhood beyond 35 and 40. Issues covered include infertility, pregnancy, surrogacy, adoptions, the pros and cons of later motherhood, single parenting, and financial and career considerations. Complete with quotes from medical experts, later-in-life moms and their kids, this one-stop book will calm the doubts and fears of women considering motherhood after 35 and beyond 40 by providing supportive yet realistic information.

About the Author
Doreen Nagel writes a weekly column called "Parenting in a Nutshell." Her work, which includes writing on lifestyle and health topics, has appeared nationally (Family Circle, Gannet newspapers) as well as in radio syndication. Originally from New York, she lives in California with her psychotherapist-husband, Jules, and their son, Skyler.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 275 pages
• Publisher: HCI (February 7, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558748288
• ISBN-13: 978-1558748286
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #363,592 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars encouraging and insightful resource for moms-to-be, May 24, 2003

By	Carol C. "ccjello" (Kansas City, MO USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This encouraging, uplifting book is is written by a woman who became a mother to a gorgeous Russian-born boy later in her own life (a photo of the two of them is on the back cover; he is a cutie). The book is better-suited to someone who is thinking about becoming a mother rather than for someone who is pregnant or has otherwise decided to become a mother. It is a supplement to, but not a substitute for, a good pregnancy guide -- it doesn't have pictures of what your belly will look like at any given time or what to do about morning sickness & such. The author emphasizes the positive aspects of older motherhood -- the wealth of experience we have, how healthy we are, how patient & self-confident we are, the advantages we can give to our children, how having children keeps us young. She provides a list of 32 questions to thing about before you decide to embark on motherhood -- they're all thought-provoking & well worth spending time on. She includes quotes from a number of older mothers (and stepmothers) discussing the experiences. She discusses ways of becoming a mother (the old standard, infertility treatments, adoption, surrogacy, even step-parenting). One thing I particularly like about the book is the author's focus on maternal health & fitness -- for the child's sake. Twenty-something-moms may take their own youth & health for granted in a way that we forty-something-moms can't really afford to do. Overall, a good resource, particularly for those contemplating later-in-life motherhood.

33 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Book is misnamed -- should be "The High-Tech Fertility Book", August 28, 2003

By	Vesna Kovach "duonexus" (Madison, Wis. USA) - See all my reviews

If you're looking for what the title of this book promises, look at Sheila Kitzinger's "Birth Over Thirty-Five" instead, a sensitive and far-ranging exploration of many, many issues of interest to the mature woman who is pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant.

Nagle's book is NOT, by any means, a "complete sourcebook for starting (and restarting) motherhood beyond 35 and after 40." It would be better billed as a sourcebook for information about a wide range of super-high-tech methods for getting pregnant. That is the topic of the bulk of the book. Emphasis is definitely on the high-tech. The existence of natural, holistic approaches is given cursory mention only.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Everything you need to know in one book, August 5, 2004

By	D. Movahedpour "doeadear" (CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is not about humor, or girlfriend-to-girlfriend banter. It states all the facts before, during, and after the decision to tackle motherhood beyond the conventional age. There are resources and facts about fertility options, adoption (the author and her husband adopted a child from Russia) and all the other challenges to be faced. It is very honest about the pros and cons of late-life motherhood, the risks and the rewards, and it is good to have all this information in one volume, rather than having to hunt for the information elsewhere.