Nurture: A Modern Guide to Pregnancy, Birth, Early Motherhood—and Trusting Yourself and Your Body (Pregnancy Books, Mom to Be Gifts, Newborn Books, Birthing Books)
“What a gift to new and expecting moms. You have no idea the mountain and rollercoaster you’re about to embark on, but Nurture somehow gives you a peek in and gives you essential information to help ground you.” –Catherine McCord, founder of Weelicious and One Potato
A comprehensive and judgement-free pregnancy companion: Nurture is the only all-in-one pregnancy and birthing book for modern mothers-to-be and their partners who want a more integrative approach. Author Erica Chidi Cohen h
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Anonymous
3 Jan 2020The science/medicine in here is questionable – too much woo.,
Overall, the book seems like itâs designed for people who would like to hire a âholisticâ doula who would provide them with alternative medicine ideas that are sometimes based in science and sometimes based in woo, but who (for whatever reason) would rather get that info in book form instead of hiring an actual person to tell them. If youâre pretty crunchy, yet donât want to hire an actual doula, then you will probably like this book; Iâm not crunchy and I donât want a doula (at least not if the advice they give is anything like what is in this book), so I didnât.
Some concerns I had with this book, which I think others might share, were:
1. The author talks about the benefits of pseudoscience – the most egregious example being homeopathy. Yes, the kind invented by a quack in the 1700s, where they take a plant that would cause your symptoms and dilute it a million times in sugar water (beyond where it has any actual effect) in order to supposedly reduce your symptoms, because… magic? Sorry, but no, I am not okay with that. It really throws all the other medical and scientific information in this book into question for me. (I thought implantation bleeding was a myth, for example?) She also recommended stuff like reiki, Ayurveda, and traditional Chinese medicine – none of which inspires confidence in her scientific and medical knowledge.
2. The author does include a month-by-month section with info on what is happening biologically. However, she states that at the beginning of month 1, your fertilized egg has implanted, and at the end of month 1, its heart is beating. As I understand it, the fertilized egg implants around week 2 (assuming you ovulate on cycle day 14, which not everyone does) and the heartbeat wouldnât begin until week 6 – but no other chronological information is included to explain how she chose the months or how it relates to how doctors date pregnancy. So, to figure out where you are in this bookâs months, you have to do some mental math where I guess âmonth 1â is weeks 2-5, âmonth 2â is weeks 6-9… etc.? I just wasnât up for that, and itâs hard to enjoy the book when I canât be sure itâs accurate to where I actually am right now. Like, if you hired this woman as a doula and told her your due date, then she would be calling you to tell you what month she thinks it is, so it wouldnât be an issue. But in book form, itâs tough to navigate with zero direction.
3. There was a whole section at the beginning where youâre supposed to basically write down a list of the good and bad parts of your life, to help you process and move beyond trauma or something? I imagine some people find that cathartic, but to me it seemed like a way of dredging up stuff I donât want to think about (and Iâve had a very happy, safe, sheltered life with no trauma to relive, so I canât imagine how unwelcome that must be to people who have survived real trauma). Iâd be completely fine with doing an exercise like that in therapy, with a professional who can guide me through it and make sure itâs done in a healthy way, but I donât want to go through it alone on my couch.
4. Thereâs one section where she says we should really know our anatomy, and gives pretty detailed explanations – which is fine, except there are no diagrams included. Iâm a layperson with no medical training, so telling me that a muscle is attached to my sacrum does not help me to visualize it at all, either in my own body or in the abstract. I just feel like if youâre going to try and teach readers anatomy in a way that will stick, you should include diagrams to help us connect and integrate the new information with what we already know, or at the very least, define medical terminology that isnât part of the vernacular.
My other concerns were much more personal and picky (I hate breathing exercises, the recipes didnât appeal to me, the self-care suggestions did not seem enjoyable, etc.), but overall, itâs just not a good fit for me. If you want something heavily science-based, read Expecting Better by Emily Oster.
Anonymous
3 Jan 2020No other pregnancy book has made me feel so understood and empowered,
This reads like a modern book for pregnant women, and I like that about it. She touches on the reality most of us new moms face with totally changing our lives to become mothers. For instance, there is a little section written for freelancers, such as myself, and how to prepare for changes ahead with our unique business situations. I love that it’s brought to attention that many of us do not get maternity leave and need to get creative with ways to work with the first few months of motherhood.
This article below is what turned me on to Erica’s book and message. It’s powerful to read even if you don’t decide to get this bookâthough I canât recommend it enough!