Pea in a Pod: Your Complete Guide to Pregnancy, Childbirth & Beyond

Goldberg, a Florida childbirth educator and lactation consultant, presents a no-nonsense, information-packed guide. While the whimsical title, cover art depicting a green-capped baby popping out of a peapod and comical illustrations might suggest a lighthearted approach, Goldberg quickly gets down to business, covering every option available to contemporary parents-to-be. Along with decisions about birth plans, she includes nutrition and exercise guides, and detailed sections on labor and delivery, with helpful checkboxes to follow during each of four labor stages. Along with standard medical information, the author covers such alternative techniques as acupressure, visualization and touch relaxation and offers offbeat snippets such as the Navajo concept of a birth circle. Care of the newborn and breastfeeding chapters are also included, as well as a balanced assessment of co-sleeping and bed sharing. In this comprehensive guide, Goldberg presents a wealth of well-organized information in a confident manner, along with more than 300 photos, illustrations and graphics, a useful glossary, trimester checklists and resource guide. (Dec.)