Pregnancy Books I Read
I didn't really start reading any books until I was into my second trimester. At first I just really didn't feel the need to, I had this inner knowing that no matter what, everything was going to be ok (this didn't mean I was worry-free by the way..! Read more about my first trimester here) I didn't feel the need to go and absorb a lot of information, I actually felt the opposite.
I wanted to sit with it, and I had this gut feeling that everything was going to be ok. Now a part of this could have also been linked to the fragile first trimester fears and not wanting to get too ahead of myself, but no matter what I was going through (and there were some tough days) I just knew it was going to be ok, that I was ok, and baby was doing ok too. Maybe a glimpse into mother's instincts..!
As I started feeling better (you can hear more about my second trimester update in this video) I wanted to start getting prepared for birth, but also for the fourth trimester and beyond. One thing I kept hearing from most of my mum friends, was that they wish they had done more reading and preparation for the newborn days, reading up on subjects such as newborn development, breastfeeding, baby sleep, recovery etc... because once they were in the thick of it, sleepy and with not much time on their hands, it was harder to take the time to do any research and learning.
Now I truly believe that as mothers we all have a very strong intuition, and we should always do what feels and is best for us and our baby, sometimes this means drowning out the noice coming from other people, or other sources.
But I also truly believe that knowledge is power and learning about our choices, about our different options, being educated on certain subjects is powerful and whether or not we want to take any of it on board, knowing we have options is important. This goes to prepping for birth, but also during pregnancy and then beyond in the newborn days and I guess for the rest of our lives...
I wanted to share a list of books I've been enjoying - this by no means is an exhaustive list of everything you SHOULD read, but I'm a bookworm and once I get started, I can't stop! I also love research and educating myself from books so this might look overwhelming for some..! A couple of those I had pre-baby, like "Taking Charge of Your Fertility", "Zen Mamas" (I got this on preorder, love Theresa Palmer & Sara Wright Olsen!) and then my go-to book "The 4 Agreements" which I refer to on a very regular basis, it's not at all about pregnancy, but I believe it's so very relevant in creating the right mindset for the rest of my life.
Here's the full list with links (some of which are affiliate links) and more details on why and what I loved about them...
I bought this book months before I got pregnant, it was on pre-order and after following Theresa's pregnancy journeys via their Zen Mamas Youtube channel, and loving every second of it, I knew I'd love this book.
It goes over everything from conception, to pregnancy loss, to stages of pregnancy, postpartum etc... It's written by the two of them, intertwined with their personal stories which makes this book that much more beautiful.
Having followed Alicia Silverstone for years, and really loving her take on life and nutrition, I knew I would enjoy her book all about pregnancy and motherhood. It was a really good read going in depths in some of the nutrition aspects of pregnancy. She's also a plant-based vegan mama, into all things natural which obviously resonated with me deeply ;)
This also has a bunch of delicious recipes, and again covers conception, how to best prepare your body to house a little human, as well as all stages of pregnancy, and early motherhood/postpartum period and how to care for yourself and your baby, with lots of amazing tips!
This isn't a pregnancy book per se, but it is an important one that I believe all women should read/own. If you are thinking about conceiving in the future, if you want to know more about how your body works, if you want to learn more about contraception, fertility, hormones etc... It's a must-read!
I'm including it here because I know a few of you wanted me to share a little bit more about our conception journey, and this book was definitely the foundation of my understanding and connecting with my body in a way that helped when the time came to stop trying to not get pregnant haha (I'm not sure I'll go into too many details about our conception journey, as it's a personal journey and I wouldn't want anyone to attach their hopes and expectations to how OUR story went, because it can be so different with everyone, and involves so many different components)
This was the book that kept being recommended to me. My friend told me to start with this one before moving on to any other like Ina May's book, and she was right! This was THE book that really helped us understand birth. It broke everything down and made it simple, it went over all of our options, all of the body's processes and it gave us both so much confidence, and truly made me believe that I was made to do this!
It's written so beautifully with a lot of humour, Michael and I both loved it, and I'd highly recommend it if your pregnant - especially if you have never done this before!
This had been on my list of must-read books for a while after Ellen Fisher recommended it a few years back. I just finished reading it and have really loved it. I believe there is also a movie called "Orgasmic Birth" by one of the author's which is also a must-watch (we watched it last night actually! and I recommend it, we also watched The Business Of Being born a few weekends ago and I also definitely recommend it)
It has truly opened up the idea and concept for me that birth can and often is an enjoyable, satisfying experience. While some of it is about the possibility of birth being actually orgasmic (in a literal sense or wider sense too), at the core it's really all about taking control of your own body to make the best-informed decisions to have a beautiful, safe, joyful birth. The personal stories are powerful and again were all part of this work I have been doing for the past few months, of working on some of my beliefs around birth and has truly made me understand how powerful women are and how the birth narrative really needs to change!
Now, this is not about pregnancy, but it's one of my "postpartum" prep books which I've heard lots of good things about. I've only just started it and love it already, it's by a different author to The Positive Birth Book, but is very much in line with the style of writing. To the point, clear, full of facts and with a good dose of humour.
The one thing that all my mum friends have said over and over again, is that they all wished they had done more reading and preparation for what comes after the pregnancy and after birth. Often we all tend to focus on the birth - as we should - but go into parenthood with very little knowledge about what to expect in those first few weeks/months/ years.
And all of my girlfriends said they wished they had read more about breastfeeding, baby sleep, infant development etc... So this is one of the books that are on my list to feel prepared. Learning a lot about boobs and the magic of breastfeeding! (I've actually shared a shortlist of other postpartum books I'd like to look into on the community forum - I've created a 'postpartum' section to chat all things 4th trimester, for support and tips, so come join!)
There is a reason why Ina May is the queen of all midwives and pretty much anyone who has been pregnant before has told me to read this book ha! She is truly incredible, and this book really touched me.
She has empowered me to TRULY believe that I am made to do this, my body knows what it's doing, and that birth is a natural process not a medical intervention (of course it can become one in case of emergencies, there's no denying that, but there is something to be said about empowering women to trust their bodies to birth their baby, because we're made to do this)
Michael and I both read it and talked about it every night while we did and we both found it to be so helpful and has really changed the way we perceive birth. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has had any fear attached to birth, and for them to involve their partner too. This was really powerful, I might read it again in the last few weeks :)
Again this is not a book about birth, pregnancy or even babies in the slightest. But it has to do with mindset and has been one of my go-to books I re-read over and over again and refer to regularly. I truly believe after having done a lot of reading research that birth has a LOT to do with our minds, that mind-body connection is very very real and birth is the proof that it is.
I just thought I'd add it in the list because I do refer to it, and I think if anything, preparing for birth means clearing a lot of our shit we hold onto..! (easier said than done ;)
That's it for my top pregnancy books thus far, as I mentioned above, you can join in the conversation about postpartum books on the community forum. Would love to hear your thoughts, and what books you've loved and read in preparation for pregnancy, birth and beyond?
