Dr. Samantha Vaive’s MIND-BODY, BIRTH offers a cheerful reassurance that pregnancy and birth do not have to be terrifying experiences. As she puts it, “Childbirth […] does not have to be brutally painful. It does not have to be something you just get through to get to the good part. Childbirth can be the good part.” She does not expect this to be an easy thing for women to accept or believe, and indeed spends some time discussing the cultural expectations, experiences, and negativity bias that lead us to assume that childbirth must be a stressful ordeal. She includes some thoughtful and interesting discussions about the body’s physical response to stress, as well as the mind’s role in interpreting that response and shaping it.
Her tone is chatty, informal, and pleasant, using inclusive language and talking to her audience as if discussing matters with a friend over tea and cookies. However, she also helpfully provides a neat, textbook-like list of key points and important questions to consider after each chapter. Her experience as a yoga teacher and practitioner informs her views on the mind-body connection and its ability to make the difference between a terrifying ordeal and a strenuous but enjoyable challenge. Her guidance is balanced appropriately between factual information and non-judgmental support, offering objective pros and cons of every choice she discusses but also pointing out that every pregnancy is different. There are valid reasons, for example, to have a Cesarean section, have an epidural, or use a formula instead of breastfeeding. Knowing this can be difficult for a person to manage and juggle in the middle of an urgent situation like birth-giving, she encourages readers to have both a support person (for care and encouragement) and a doula—there to advocate for the birth-giver’s needs and wishes in the face of authority figures (e.g., doctors) who may be putting undue and unwanted pressure on her to make certain choices.
Dr. Vaive finishes the book with an appendix offering useful anatomical and biological information about living in “an estrogen-based body,” including the menstrual cycle, sexual health, lubrication, conception, and abortion. In short, as she argues, “Knowledge is power. When you have knowledge, you have the power to make decisions that are best for your family,” and it is the goal of this book to make sure that pregnant people have the knowledge they need to have the best birthing experience they can.
Dr. Samantha Vaive’s MIND-BODY, BIRTH is a positive, encouraging guide that offers pregnant people a balanced mix of useful information and supportive reassurance.
~Catherine Langrehr for IndieReader