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Rachels
03-26-2002, 05:28 PM
Hi, everyone. I just wanted to recommend a birthing book to you that I discovered while researching my dissertation on childbirth. I was astonished upon reading hundreds of studies at how frequently and dramatically modern American obstetrical practices directly oppose the published medical literature. Henci Goer's book called *A Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth* is an easy-to-read look at that kind of stuff. Her book *Obstetrical Myths vs Research Realities* looks at the same thing, but in much more technical language.

Having educated myself about both the literature AND the statistics behind the kinds of care being offered these days dramatically shifted my approach to my own pregnancy and birth. These books are good starting places if you want to be informed beyond what the popular culture books will tell you, without having to spend years in the library!

Hope this helps somebody. It very much helped me.

stampmom
04-18-2002, 03:15 PM
Wow, what a cool topic to do your dissertation on! What discipline will your degree be in?

I'll have to check out "A Thinking Woman's Guide..." -- I am currently reading (and very much enjoying) "Birthing From Within." Did you happen to come across that one while working on your diss?

Dawn
Mommy to Adam 6/98
Jeremy(?) expected 7/02

Rachels
04-19-2002, 06:05 AM
Hi, Dawn! I actually finished my doctorate about a year and a half ago, in clinical psychology. I wrote about birth because it seemed to me such a fundamentally transformative event, and it had been really largely left out of the psychological literature. What I found in the MEDICAL literature, most notably that obstetrical practices in this country disregard much of it, led me to completely change my own thinking about prenatal and birthing care. It was invigorating-- I actually loved doing my dissertation, which I think is a rare experience. And yes, I did read "Birthing From Within," and I've hired a doula for my birth who is trained in that model. It's wonderfully empowering. If you like that book, you'd probably also really enjoy Gayle Peterson's books, and the Thinking Woman's Guide would also dovetail really nicely.

Congratulations on your baby!

--Rachel