Mind Over Labor

Buy this book for yourself if you are expecting and anyone else you know who is expecting. I bought this book after a very traumatic experience with the delivery of my first child. I read it over and over and practiced the exercises diligently every day for two months. My daughter was born after only a two-hour labor, with no medication whatsoever; and my recovery was so incredibly easy. The book truly speaks to the mind-body connection, and one's ability to overcome fear in a challenging situation such as childbirth. It empowers women to participate in the birth experience and to help determine its course and outcome, rather than to just go along with all of the recommendations and protocols of the medical system. It enabled me to have a life changing experience and my daughter to have the best possible start in life. M. Rocha

I teach natural childbirth classes and I acutally buy this book for all of my students! I don't think you can just read this once or twice and breeze through labor, but if you practice (at least once a day for 3 months before), it WILL have a positive effect on yoru labor/birth. So many women say, "Yeah, I read it and it didn't work for me." You have to wonder how much time they acutally put into it. I also love his views on the place of birth. I think one reason why so many women say this doesn't work is because they are giving birth in places that do not truly support natural birth. If you are the least bit uncomfortable with you birthing environment--your labor will probably be affected in a negative way! I always tell my students, if you could not have an orgasm at your place of birth, then it is probably not the right atmosphere!! You need to be able to let go and surrender to birth--not try to "fit" into some pre-determined model of labor/birth (like at most hospitals). GREAT book and I highly recommend it!

My wife is shortly planning to give birth naturally, and believes strongly in mind-body connection. It seems the "only" father books out there are the humorous kind that ridicule the process. I have been full of anxiety about the birth, but this book helped me see that it is a natural process, and has relieved my own fears. I also believe the less anxious I am, the less stressed my wife will be. I am an amateur actor, and know a bit about relaxation techniques, so I recognize the approach and know how good it can be for one's body. This book also gives the father/partner good ideas for mental imagery techniques to use both before and during the birth.

This book helped me tremendously before the birth of my child. I was scared and would cry at every birthing film that was shown to me. The brain is a powerful thing. If you can relax and use imagery then, your chances of an easier labor are good (barring complications). Caution: Kinda a goofy use of images that HE gives, I used my own....gear it to whatever makes YOU feel comfortable.

I found the relaxation and meditation exercises in this book to be wonderful preparation for childbirth. I read the book and practiced the techniques before having my first child (which I was able to do without drugs) and I plan to buy a copy so that I can read it again before the birth of my second child in several weeks. I will definitely use the techniques again this time whether I have drugs or not. Although not all of the exercises and imagery examples worked for me, some of them did and the book helped me develop some of my own which were quite effective. The book also gave me the confidence that I needed to attempt a drug-free delivery by giving me a way to deal with the pain rather than simply worrying about it.