The Best Birth: Your Guide to the Safest, Healthiest, Most Satisfying Labor and Delivery

My husband and I had planned to take the McMoyler classes in San Francisco. However that became impossible because I was in and out of the hospital during my third trimester with very high blood pressure. This book walked us through what happens during labor and delivery and even gave helpful advice about what to do and say when things aren't going as planned. Some of the content seems repetitive, but it's all very clear and covers things from all sides. I began my pregnancy hoping to have a drug free birth, but when my blood pressure got so high they considered inducing labor a month early, I had to accept the possibility that I may need to have a c-section. In the end I went to term and go in to labor on my own, but I had an epidural, pitocin and internal monitoring. This book helped me not to regret that. I was overjoyed to see my healthy little girl and still look back at the birth (with all it's complications) as a wonderful experience.

I went into labor unexpectedly five weeks before my due date. Having read this book I felt very well informed about what to expect during labor and delivery. The information in this book allowed to me make informed decisions about pain relief during labor and mechanical interventions during delivery. I used this book in combination with a more traditional lamaze class. Following the delivery of our healthy baby girl (she was just a little anxious to come into the world), I truly did feel like we had had "the best birth".

As a midwife who practices in a hospital, but who also believes that women deserve a greater range of birthing choices than most typically have in America today, I find McMoyler's book to be a reality-based approach to hospital births. A woman SHOULD trust her doctor or midwife and labor nurses because she SHOULD have exercised her right to choose the person and place that best aligns with her philosophy of birthing. Not all doctors or midwives or hospitals are like, but if she has done her research fully (checked the stats and gotten satisfactory answers to tough questions), she will pick the appropriate person and place for her. Whether she desires an unmedicated birth or is certain she would like an epidural, McMoyler's explanations for position changes to move labor along and vocalization for coping with pain are proven through experience. Her emphasis on partner education and commitment to be the best labor support are also important (and set up the importance of partner support postpartum as well (I don't think she is negating doulas)). No woman should feel guilty about the way she births: every birth is unique and unpredictable and the best births are a dialogue between the woman and her attendants where every one has the goal of "healthy mom, healthy baby". Flexibility is a very important attribute of parenting, even in labor. Ultimately, this book is empowering: knowing some of the hard facts of childbirth and birthing in hospitals will allow women to make the best informed choices.

I'm a Nurse Practitioner with many years of experience working in Emergency Rooms. I use both alternative healing methods and traditional medical approaches to healthcare because both "systems" have something to offer. I encourage healthcare "consumers" to carefully research the options and make choices that will support them. This book uses frank, clear, insightful language, and is packed with information that is terrific for helping parents navigate the traditional healthcare system. A great contribution to making informed choices in the childbirth experience.

My husband and I both loved this book - and we definitely took away some concrete tools to get through the process of labor and delivery. I particularly enjoyed reading the birth stories from different couples in the book, to hear about how they prepared, how their experiences evolved, and how their plans changed. I totally "get" mcmoyler's viewpoint that you have to be prepared for all outcomes. I highly recommend this book!