A handbook for pregnancy that is concise yet comprehensive, current, and cost-effective. It is designed to:
No other childbirth education handbook is so sensitive to all types of learners. We appeal to the left brain with our charts and checklists, along with statistics, research, and recommendations from authorities such as the World Health Organization, ACOG, SOGC, AAP, and CDC. We excite the right brain with our warm illustrations and quotations, birth stories, puzzles, and creative thinking.
Instructors like the way our book lends itself to interactive teaching in the classroom, and provides handouts to look at during class discussions. This handbook is intended to complement instruction and to be used as a review for practice at home, during labor, and in the postpartum period.
We strive to bring to pregnant women, their birth partners, and the childbirth educator the most current, student-friendly handbook available.
Prepared Childbirth – The Family Way is written in an easily-readable format. We divide 120 pages into Pregnancy, Childbirth, Breastfeeding, Postpartum and Family, Birth Reports, and Workbook sections.
Our photo art and quotations explore the wonder and magic of pregnancy, birth, and new parenthood.
In this section we discuss communication skills; comforts and discomforts of pregnancy; terms and anatomy; precautions and concerns; nutrition and exercise; multiples and siblings; relaxation techniques.
Childbirth information includes labor support; length and variations of labor; signs, stages, and phases of labor; and strategies for managing labor pain. Labor is unpredictable, so we discuss choices to be made, medications available, and emergency and cesarean birth. We acknowledge unexpected outcomes and chart the diminishing burden of grief.
The benefits of breastfeeding, along with suggestions to help ensure a successful breastfeeding experience, are highlighted in this section.
The Postpartum and Family Section addresses possible postpartum discomforts and concerns, with suggestions for relief. The benefits, joys, and challenges of life with a new baby are discussed, along with basic baby care.
Birth Reports from women who have experienced positive birth outcomes help pregnant women build confidence in themselves. These are fun to read, informative, and varied.
The Workbook section includes charts and checklists to complete, puzzles to play with, and suggestions for both relaxation and physical exercises. We encourage consideration of diet evaluation, birth options, breastfeeding success, and the time-sharing that parenting requires. The section ends with a Labor and Birth Questionnaire, as a keepsake for couples and information for the educator.
Take a look at some of our pages. Visual learners will appreciate the anatomical illustrations, drawings for exercises, charts, graphs, and even the cartoon. Those who want to learn more will appreciate having our pages of "Recommended Reading and Viewing for Pregnant Women and Their Families." If you like what you see here, contact us for a preview copy.