GentleBirth

De: Tracy Donegan

Narrado por: Tracy Donegan

Discover your roadmap to a positive birth!

A positive birth comes in many forms - for some it’s an early effective epidural; for another it’s a serene water birth or a calm planned cesarean. What I know for sure is that a positive birth is defined by you - not your best friend, mom, or even your OB or midwife.

The award-winning GentleBirth program combines brain science, birth science, and technology so you can feel inspired, excited, and uplifted every day of your pregnancy - and beyond.

Every woman wants a safe, positive gentle birth - for themselves and for their baby. Midwife, GentleBirth founder, and positive birth expert Tracy Donegan shows you how as she guides you step by step including the following:

• Practical tools to prepare you and your partner for a positive birth - as defined by you!
• Use brain science to reduce pain and fear in labor
• Discover the ultimate stress reduction toolkit of techniques of simple meditation, hypnosis, and sport psychology
• Train your brain for confidence and resilience - long after your baby arrives
• Learn breathing techniques that work

Navigate your options with confidence for a GentleBirth for you and your baby.

©2006, 2018 Tracy Donegan (P)2018 Tracy Donegan

Great life tools

This has helped me turn around my entire idea of birth. I now feel like I can embrace the experience and be grateful regardless of if my plans don't work out. Great tools for not only birth/mothering, but life in general! Also gives a lot of education the entire process of birth/postpartum and different options you may be offered.

Empowering and Educational

I loved all about this book.
I know how powerful training your mind can be, but needed the reminders and techniques of GentleBirth book.
I love how it’s for every type of birth. It feels very inclusive and I feel more prepared to have the best experience no matter what my delivery journey might be.

Amazing Book

I listened to this book because my doula recommended it. I’m so grateful I listened to it! I was preparing for my first unmedicated birth and it was a success. I went into labor naturally and had a 100% I unmedicated birth. I was dilated to 9 cm when I got to the hospital. This is an amazing book when preparing for labor and delivery!

Great audio option for new and new-again parents!

I decided to try the Audible version of this book for my GentleBirth training and am very happy with the book and its content. I appreciate that GentleBirth has stayed up-to-date with the times and has made information easily accessible to parents via their app and this audio-book.
This book is a comprehensive and well-rounded childbirth prep book. As a doula, I find that it is very important for a childbirth prep book/program to touch on how important the mind/body connection is in pregnancy and childbirth. This book does this wonderfully by touching on the key concepts of mindfulness, hypnosis, brain chemistry, sports psychology, power poses etc and how they can really make a big difference in preparing for childbirth and beyond. Any book that takes you through positions for labor only, or healthy birth practices only, misses one of the main components of preparing for birth and the demands of new parenthood.
This book also touches on evidence-based practices and best international practices for childbirth and how one can discuss with their provider their personal preferences. It also enlightens new parents on the idea of personalized care vs "drive-thru" care where you get treated the same as everyone else. These are essential ideas for new parents to be aware of as they embark on their journey choosing a provider. Being aware of standards in care that are not best care standards is an important thing for parents to be aware of. It prepares them for what 90% of care in US hospitals looks like versus what international best care standards should be like.
Some things that can be worked on- 1. This book may have tried to cover it all from mind/body connection to variations in birth to breastfeeding and the postpartum… It ends up being a long book, but that's why I'd recommend the audio version instead of the physical book to my clients. Listening to it on your long car drives from place to place, or while doing the dishes/laundry etc is enough for getting through it. 2. I wish the Audible version had chapter titles accessible- I wanted to go back and review sections but wasn't able to. 3. There are a few concepts that I don't know that I agree with completely, but they are personal takes I have on how to approach birth and are minor things that each person can choose what works best for them. One example of this is that I found that there could have been an explanation of how many of the GentleBirth stories related were of parents in labor going into the hospital pretty early on in labor (being checked in at 2 and 3 cm) when international standards discuss active labor being at 6 centimeters and how being admitted before that could put a parent at higher risk for being placed ‘on the clock’ and can thus lead to a higher risk of a cesarean.
Overall, I will DEFINITELY be adding this book to my list of recommended reads for new parents and will be recommending the Audible version to my clients. I think it's a great summary of the most important concepts that will come their way on their journey through pregnancy, birth and the postpartum. Being exposed to a little bit of everything, including how challenging new parenthood can be, is so very useful.

Inspirational

This was one of the best books I have listened to in a very long time. It was very inspiring and empowering and I recommend that anyone that is thinking about having a baby listen to it and soak in the very valuable information.