Magical Beginnings, Enchanted Lives: A Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth

A really great read and listen. A nice book to help build a connection with your unborn baby

I listened to this book during the middle of my pregnancy. It was full of wonderful suggestions for connecting to my unborn child and for calming my worries about pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. I highly recommend it.

I found the audiobook to be slightly long and on the very detailed end. A lot of items will not pertain to a lot of people particularly later on in the book but I suppose this is needed to cover all grounds. I really found it insightful at the beginning but it didn't keep my interest about half way through.

I also wish Deepak Chopra himself has narrated it. The narrator has a very boring voice.

Still recommend though.

I had to stop listening about 1.5 hours in. If I could get my credit back, I would ask for it. There is no way I could bear listening to the full 7 hours. The audio was just a painfully long and boring way of repeating the same idea that it is important to stay positive and relaxed during pregnancy. Ironically, the audio was keeping me from being positive and relaxed. The audio kept repeating "mind and body" "mind and body" over again, trying to sound deep and mystical, but it began to sound cliche and annoying over time. I listened to the full audio of YOU: Having a Baby prior to this audio and found it to be much more beneficial and interesting, and jam-packed with a variety of useful information.

There was just nothing in this. It was dull, non offensive but so dull.

Narrator was fine

First, I loved the narrator's voice for this book. It was soothing and melodic without making me feel sleepy, as if I could slip into a meditative state just by listening. I found the information to be very actionable, with lots of step-by-step instructions for using herbs, making compresses, and dealing with emotional highs and lows.

In terms of content, I did not feel that it was too "out there" or "new age-y." As a thinking woman, I appreciated the concepts associated with Ayurveda, and that they didn't go so far as to rule out or chastise modern/Western medicine. The chapter on diet is especially helpful. I also liked that they did not make C-sections or drugs during birth a crime, like some other natural birthing books do. I found the constant nods to self-care, relaxation, and bonding to be the highlight of this book.

I will probably pick up a print version of this book, as there are lists and break-out boxes in the book that I'll want to refer back to throughout my pregnancy. I think the audio version is best for some of the guided visualization and meditation portions of the book though. I'm not giving it the full 5 because at the end of every chapter they rattle through a list that is built on throughout the book from beginning to end, and it kind of irritated me after a while.

Not a bad listen but did they have to repeat certain things so many times? Aside from that, the book was knowledgeable and I definitely learned a great deal from it.

This book was pretty good and a little slow. I learned about different massage oils and herbs to use during pregnancy and the importance of relaxing and staying positive. It was a little mystical for my taste. But of course that is to be expected from the author :) I am more aware of my thoughts as I realize they affect my unborn child.