Before Birth

Paul presents an in-depth examination of how personalities are formed by biological, social, and emotional factors.

Professional channel, author, and mother of two, gives pregnant women the tools they need to bond with their baby as much as possible before he or she physically gets here.

The delivery of high quality and equitable care for both mothers and newborns is complex and requires efforts across many sectors. The United States spends more on childbirth than any other country in the world, yet outcomes are worse than other high-resource countries, and even worse for Black and Native American women. There are a variety of factors that influence childbirth, including social determinants such as income, educational levels, access to care, financing, transportation, structural racism and geographic variability in birth settings. It is important to reevaluate the United States' approach to maternal and newborn care through the lens of these factors across multiple disciplines. Birth Settings in America: Outcomes, Quality, Access, and Choice reviews and evaluates maternal and newborn care in the United States, the epidemiology of social and clinical risks in pregnancy and childbirth, birth settings research, and access to and choice of birth settings.

As a graduate of medical school and practicing pediatrician, Dr. Julie Currin was intimately aware of the amazing stages of fetal growth and development occurring during each of her three pregnancies. It wasn't until her own sister's pregnancy, however, that Currin realized how little reliable and accessible information was available to expectant parents who haven't had the benefit of complex embryology and anatomy classes. So, with her sister and her sister's rapidly growing unborn child in mind, Currin set out to translate the complex stages of growth she learned about during medical school courses into a compilation of fun, interesting, and scientifically sound information that expectant parents can understand. Now she's making Before Birth available to everyone. Organized according to the forty-week model of pregnancy, Currin uses clear language and colorful illustrations to convey the complex mystery of fetal development to audiences unfamiliar with or daunted by medical terminology. While other books focus on the changes to the mother's body, Before Birth focuses specifically on the rapid growth of the tiny being inside the mother- allowing parents to ask informed questions at prenatal visits and marvel at their child's magnificence before they ever meet.

This book has been called the "most tastefully done and informative book on human life." Especially written for parents struggling to explain reproduction to their children, this book strongly focuses on the sanctity of human life. Ages 10-12.

A collection of color photographs, ultrasound scans, and histology illustrations of normal embryonic and fetal development in utero. The descriptions accompanying the photographs describe the labeled structures, and serve as a link between the illustrations and as a memory aid for those familiar with embryology. All of the illustrations are from human specimens, many of which were prepared over 40 years ago when the surgical removal of undamaged fetuses and intact pregnant uteruses was less rare. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

The author believes the period of our lives that has the greatest impact on disease and personality formation is our gestation and birth. Recent studies provide evidence that fetal imprinting, an evolutionary strategy to prepare children to cope with life, establishes a permanent set-point in a child's physiology. Mothers highly anxious during pregnancy may give birth to babies prone to mental illness and disease in later life. Low oxygen at birth, drugs taken during pregnancy, and a lack of parental affection in the first years of life may have similar adverse affects. The author puts a case for a reorientation of our approaches to pregnancy and the use of drugs, and above all, to the modes of psychotherapy we implement to treat everything from phobias and compulsions to anxiety and depression.--From book jacket.

This book breaks new ground on the evolution and present technologies and practices of lifestyle sex selection, builds on and critiques feminist and STS theories of reproduction to develop the new concept of biopopulationism, and engages with the messy politics of sex selection in the United States.

This highly readable book is a concise and fascinating account of the nine months from conception to birth. It deals with prenatal development and learning, and discusses the effects of nutrition, maternal characteristics and experiences, drugs (including the "pill," aspirin, marijuana, and LSD), and diseases. Finally, it summarizes the most recent scientific advances that increase a baby's chances of being born normal.

The main aim of this practical Handbookis to strengthen counselling and communication skills of skilled attendants (SAs) and other health providers, helping them to effectively discuss with women, families and communities the key issues surrounding pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, postnatal and post-abortion care. Counselling for Maternal and Newborn Health Careis divided into three main sections. Part 1 is an introduction which describes the aims and objectives and the general layout of the Handbook. Part 2 describes the counselling process and outlines the six key steps to effective counselling. It explores the counselling context and factors that influence this context including the socio-economic, gender, and cultural environment. A series of guiding principles is introduced and specific counselling skills are outlined. Part 3 focuses on different maternal and newborn health topics, including general care in the home during pregnancy; birth and emergency planning; danger signs in pregnancy; post-abortion care; support during labor; postnatal care of the mother and newborn; family planning counselling; breastfeeding; women with HIV/AIDS; death and bereavement; women and violence; linking with the community. Each Session contains specific aims and objectives, clearly outlining the skills that will be developed and corresponding learning outcomes. Practical activities have been designed to encourage reflection, provoke discussions, build skills and ensure the local relevance of information. There is a review at the end of each session to ensure the SAs have understood the key points before they progress to subsequent sessions.