Best Book to Read to Prepare for a Baby

My Short List of Must-Read Books on Pregnancy, Parenting, and Childbirth

Before pregnancy, I had no interest in reading well-nigh pregnancy or thinking about what was happening. Now it seems I have a PhD in parenting.

Parenting is kind of funny. You accept no idea how much you don't know until yous're thrust in the thick of information technology, and suddenly, it'southward like … "Why didn't anyone tell me?"

And as well:"holy shit, I take so much to learn."

I never realized how much thinking and analysis there is on kids, growth, and evolution until I had my ain child. The challenge, still, is that your "personal PhD" project is not-stop, always-changing, and your time to study exterior of your easily-on practicum is quite express.

What's true is this: you definitely cannot read all of the books.

And it's really important to notice if (1) the book makes you feel more than at-home while reading, (ii) the book makes you feel thoughtful or curiously excited, or (three) if it makes you feel slightly nutty and similar you're most to go insane. If a book makes you gasp with panic that yous're doing something wildly wrong, or fear for your parenting life, put the book down and heading out to the role instead. The but correct volume is the volume that helps.

My book recommendations come solely from books that made me feel calmer, more sane, or more curious nearly my new life with kids.

How I organized the post-obit recommendations

As such, I've organized my book recommendations into like categories: books that might be interesting to you lot every bit a non-parent and non-yet-family person (or fifty-fifty equally someone who doesn't know yet if you want to have kids); books on pregnancy, science, and birthing for when yous take an insatiable demand to read everything you lot tin find almost the subject, and books on infants, newborns, and early on parenting that aren't too scary and I've enjoyed reading and I like to have around to reference with my newborn.

Also, I've grouped them into "definitely read" and bonus lists to read if you lot have more time to report this discipline.

If you lot can read a book while you lot're meaning, don't read Goodnight Moon. You'll read that plenty afterwards.

A. Books to Read Before You lot Accept a Kid:

If you're in the same gunkhole or you lot're thinking about your own future, this is my favorite book on parenting and staying sane and then far:

• Bringing Upward Bebe , by Pamela Druckerman. The wisdom of French parenting. Alex and I read this several years ago when we were but talking about having children.

Bonus: If yous want additional books to think about, toss in ane of these not-traditional narrative stories:

• A Life'southward Work , by Rachel Cusk. "The experience of motherhood is an feel in contradiction. Information technology is commonplace and it is impossible to imagine. It is prosaic and it is mysterious."
• Making Babies: Stumbling Into Motherhood , by Anne Enright.

B. Books to Fix You for Pregnancy and Nascency:

I adopt facts and information. When in doubt, tell me more than — don't sugar coat it, don't avoid topics, don't tell me what to exercise blindly. Tell me exactly what'southward going to happen, where it's going to happen, what the risks are, and guide me towards a decision — only don't decide for me.

There are iv books I used in my "reference library." However, they're like 600 and 900 pages each. My recommendation for non getting overwhelmed is this: read only the part that you're currently in, and don't read ahead as well far. In What to Expect, for case, a 900-folio book, I read only the affiliate for each calendar month of my pregnancy during the month I was in. It was like a reference bible for what was happening in my trunk and where, without getting mired in the future.

• Expecting Meliorate , by Emily Oster — A data scientist takes on all of those confusing myths (and taboo topics) of what's actually expert & bad during pregnancy.
• What to Expect When You're Expecting, by Heidi Murkoff. A classic, 800 pages deep, a dictionary. Read only the affiliate you're currently experiencing or terrify yourself out of pregnancy.
• Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom , by Christiane Northrup. 960 pages thick, I read the chapters on pregnancy & birthing (about eighty pages or so). This and Ina May'due south book helped u.s.a. decide to work with a Doula in my nascency experience.
• Ina May'south Guide to Childbirth , by Ina May Gaskin. A cute, non-Western approach to bringing children into the world. Did you lot know that 30% of women can experience orgasms while birthing? Yeah, read this one if that surprises you lot.

Newborns are beautiful, but they're also kind of alien like, they don't come with instructions, and figuring out how to parent tin can be terrifying.

C. Books on Parenting and Newborns:

Here's the thing: no book is always really going to tell you how to parent, or make becoming responsible for a newborn any easier. Newborns are cute, but they're too kind of alien like, they don't come with instructions, and figuring out how to parent tin be terrifying.

To make matters worse, there is then much data out at that place. What I can add is this: every baby, and every family, is different. At that place is no universal 1 "right" way, and you're going to kill yourself with googling if you lot try to research everything or practice all of the things in your one family.

Instead, I picked a few resources and people whose opinions I trusted and respected, and that included my pediatrician, the wisdom of scientific discipline, and the somewhat laissez-faire approach I enjoyed in books on French parenting. These (hopefully) will influence my parenting styles, although I'll blend it with my own version of "trial and error" and "eh, I guess that works?" as nosotros figure it out as we go.

• The Science of Mom , by Alice Callahan. Evidence-based approaches to challenging questions, and when we can lean on scientific discipline, and what we all the same don't know much about. This focuses on the first few hours of a newborn'south life, the first few weeks, and challenges similar newborn sleep and newborn eating.
• Bébé Twenty-four hours By Mean solar day , by Pamela Druckerman. She brings the wisdom of French Parenting into seize with teeth-sized nuggets to remember throughout pregnancy and your baby'south early years. My favorite: retrieve that you and your partner are as important in this family, likewise.
• The New Basics: A-to-Z Baby & Child Intendance for the Modern Parent , past Michel Cohen. A French Pediatrician's view on keeping it simple, and information technology'due south alphabetized! So yous tin look upward "ear infection" if that's your problem! They tend to have what I call a more than "easily off" arroyo, so when he says to pay attending to something, I know to pay attention.
• Parent Hacks: 134 Genius Shortcuts for Life With Kids, by Asha Dornfest. Astonishing, amazing ways to use your everyday household items to deal with the insanity of raising children. (Who knew a laundry bucket could do so much, like exist a baby's bathtub?)

Bonus: If y'all desire more (which I did, I started nerding out on books), endeavor these every bit well:

• What To Expect The Starting time Twelvemonth , by Heidi Murkoff. A expert guide and reference to have on hand for when yous freak out and ask "wait, is THIS normal?"
• The Happiest Baby On The Cake , by Harvey Karp. All most what the baby'south "fourth trimester" is and what they demand the start few months of life. My mantra from this was "you can't spoil a newborn," which helped me cuddle and feed my little guy a ton in the start while I got used to information technology all.

D. Going Back to Work, Motherhood, and Careers:

Option one of the following books to read in order to regain your sanity. Information technology's similar having a wise older sister in your pocket when you feel like you're scrambling and there's no way yous'll be able to put yourself back together. (You tin.)

• I Know How She Does Information technology . From the clarification: "Everyone has an opinion, anecdote, or horror story well-nigh women and work. Now the acclaimed author of What the Nigh Successful People Do Earlier Breakfast shows how real working women with families are actually making the most of their fourth dimension."
• Work. Pump. Repeat. A step-by-step practical guide for how to manage pumping and your babies early months with all of your career ambitions.
• Here's The Programme: Your Applied, Tactical Guide to Advancing Your Career During Pregnancy And Parenthood . Again, a career woman lays it all out and explains how to make pregnancy, parenting, and work — well, piece of work.

E. And Some Simply For Fun:

Because yous must, must proceed to have fun while parenting. When y'all get-go to have yourself to seriously, and wind into the sobs of despair and wonder if yous're any good at this — you'll need to accept a step back and laugh. And cry. And laugh. Because we all, collectively, don't know what we're doing, and it's going to exist okay.

• Dwelling house Game: An Accidental Guide to Fatherhood , by Michael Lewis. From the description: "When Michael Lewis became a father, he decided to keep a written record of what actually happened immediately after the birth of each of his three children. This book is that record."
• Operating Instructions , past Anne Lamott. Her business relationship of raising her child and what it takes.
• The Shit No I Tells Y'all, by Dawn Dais. There'due south a lot of stuff that no one talks about, and one time yous're in it, you think you might be crazy. Until you lot meet another parent, and hear their accounts, and you grin knowingly and say — oh yes. This. We're IN It.

Short on Time? Start With These:

If y'all tin can merely have three of the books that I listed above, I'd say: Bringing Up Bebe, Expecting Better, and The New Basics got me through a lot of the questions and fears I had about parenting (and reminded me that one coffee wasn't going to make or break my child), and rapidly fabricated me feel similar maybe, just peradventure, I could practice this.

What About You? What Books Do You lot Highly Recommend? Leave a Note and ❤ in the Comments Below!

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Source: https://medium.com/startup-pregnant/my-short-list-of-must-read-books-on-pregnancy-parenting-and-childbirth-62fc25e8b0c3

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