Healthy, Informed Pregnancy Education
There is so much information around pregnancy and birth, it can be hard to filter through to find the good content. I wanted to make a list of my favorite books and podcasts that have helped me to find my footing in the world of becoming a mother, and Brian in the world of becoming a father! We are here to cheer you on and support you in your pregnancy education!
But first, a 29 week bumpdate!
Books for Pregnancy Education
Ina May is the godmother of natural childbirth in the modern world. I skipped most of the birth stories until after I had consumed the primary educational pieces of the book which outline hundreds of birthing outcomes and work to reduce fear around birth.
I have reflected back on stories and data from this book many times throughout my pregnancy and keep it on my nightstand to remind me every night of the many woman who have had blissful natural births before me.
Expecting Better
Those of you who know me know that I LOVE data, research, and well thought through information. Nuanced answers are harder to draw firm lines with, but they give us a lot more reality in how we choose to live our pregnancy, birth, child rearing, and life in general.
Emily Oster is a researcher and economist by trade and wrote some exceptional books that you can listen to and enjoy!
Hypnobirthing
This is another book that I skipped sections in the beginning. In Hypnobirthing it was because those sections felt biased against hospitals. After skipping the first segment, I was mesmerized by the book. It isn’t about deep meditation or about being hypnotized, it is about letting go of the fear of birth and encompassing yourself in the understanding that your body can do it!
The Birth Partner
This is a book that is used for doulas to study up on their birth coaching. Brian is reading it and often teaches ME great information about birthing! Highly, highly recommended for birth partners!
Birthing from Within
Birthing from Within guides parents through thought experiments, artistic expression, internal exploration and more to process the psychological expression of birthing!
The Essential Homebirth Guide
This unbiased, thoughtful, informative book is amazing. I’ve been so surprised that it took me this long to find! It is FULL of great information.
Podcasts
Brian and Seyka’s Video Pregnancy Podcast
We filmed / are filming these regularly so you get to learn with us as we go and hear how ideas change through pregnancy! This is a highlight of our pregnancy education! If you start watching now you can stay present with us throughout our process and likely into parenthood.
Check out our most recent episode here: Week 32
Birthful
This podcast is a great way to get a thoughtful view of many pregnancy and birthing topics. Hosted by Adriana Lozada, a doula. With nearly 300 episodes you can really sink in and enjoy.
Pregnancy Podcast
Tons of awesome evidenced based information in this podcast. Binge worthy!
Birth Classes and Training
The Positive Birth Co
Finding great pregnancy education is key! We started by taking hospital classes, but those really are designed to teach you how to have a hospital birth! I wanted to learn more about the biology and psychology of birth so I would start to be prepared for it in my own body. My pregnancy guardian angel (get yourself one of those), a good friend named Steph, recommended The Positive Birth Co.
I have really enjoyed this program because it’s beautifully and clearly laid out, it comes from the perspective that I want to learn from, and it was designed to be taught 100% online. Many of the other classes are designed to be in person and have had to make a huge transition to being taught online. The Positive Birth Co has already worked through many of the hiccups!
Here is a screenshot of my dashboard – the user interface is wonderful!
I am all about being informed with strong data, being able to sort through mostly unbiased information, and make decisions based on my own family’s values. This platform is great for finding lots of powerful information!
Thank you for joining and reading along with me! I hope we are able to contribute joy to your healthy, empowered pregnancy!
Here are some other blogs that might be fun:
Seyka’s Powerful Unmedicated Home Water Birth of her First Child
Seyka’s Pregnancy Must-Have Checklist
Pregnancy Supplements (Great for Vegans and everyone else, too)
Splendid Spoon Healthy Easy Meals
Some recipes for when you feel like cooking:
Vegan, Keto, Gluten-Free Autumn Lasagna
Seyka’s Famous Vegan BLT (with Tempeh Bacon!)
Note if you use the links above to purchase your items, they are affiliate links and we get a small fraction of your purchase which helps keep the blog alive :)
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