Learning that you may need to deliver by cesarean is likely not what you pictured for your baby’s birth, but after reading Treasured Cesarean’s detailed background information, tips, and checklists, you will feel empowered and ready to go! Author Holly Fehr openly shares her own experience with seven (yes, seven!) cesareans and provides insight and tips that only a mom with her background can provide. This book is truly an everything-you-need-to know-about-cesareans-and-more guide that takes you through preparing your home for a cesarean recovery, creating a cesarean birth plan, what to expect during and after your surgery, and essential information on taking care of your new baby and your body while you heal. With approximately 30% of all births in North America occurring by cesarean—some planned and some as emergency surgery, this book is important for all new mothers to read so they can be prepared for all eventualities, including having a baby that may end up in the NICU for a while. Yet this isn’t a doom-and-gloom book about what might go wrong, but rather a personal and empowering story that will inspire mothers to embrace their baby’s birth story no matter how their little one makes their appearance in the world.

Childbirth is a life-altering experience for any woman, but a Cesarean delivery can be overwhelming, whether it’s unexpected or planned. Despite the fact that roughly one in four babies in the United States is delivered by c-section, very little information about the experience is included in typical pregnancy books and physicians and childbirth educators often gloss over the details. The Essential C-Section Guide is written not only for women to read in preparation for a scheduled c-section and for those considered “high risk” who know that a c-section may become necessary but also for women recovering from an unexpected surgical delivery. This book provides answers to important questions about what the surgery entails, what a woman can expect as she recovers, and what considerations should be made for future pregnancies and deliveries. With frank discussions about the physical and emotional aspects surrounding a c-section, the authors share comforting wisdom about early bonding, pain control, breastfeeding, infant care, healing from surgery, postpartum exercise, partner involvement, and much more, in detail not available anywhere else. Written by authors who have firsthand knowledge of birth by c-section, The Essential C-Section Guide is well-researched and addresses its unique concerns with intelligence and compassion. www.broadwaybooks.com

An incisive yet personal look at the science and history of the most common surgery performed in America—the cesarean section—and an exposé on the disturbing state of maternal medical care When Rachel Somerstein had an unplanned C-section with her first child, the experience was anything but “routine.” A series of errors by her clinicians led to a real-life nightmare: surgery without anesthesia. The ensuing mental and physical complications left her traumatized and searching for answers about how things could have gone so wrong. In the United States, one in three babies is born via C-section, a rate that has grown exponentially over the past fifty years. And while in most cases the procedure is safe, it is not without significant, sometimes life-changing consequences, many of which affect people of color disproportionately. With C-sections all but invisible in popular culture and pregnancy guides, new mothers are often left to navigate these obstacles on their own. Somerstein weaves personal narrative and investigative journalism with medical, social, and cultural history to reveal the operation’s surprising evolution, from its early practice on enslaved women to its excessive promotion by modern medical practitioners. She uncovers the current-day failures of the medical system, showing how pregnant women's agency is regularly disregarded by providers who, motivated by fear of litigation or a hospital’s commitment to efficiency, make far-reaching and deeply personal decisions on behalf of their patients. She also examines what prevailing maternal and medical attitudes toward C-sections tell us about American culture. Invisible Labor lifts the veil on C-sections so that people can make choices about pregnancy and surgical birth with greater knowledge of the risks, benefits, and alternatives, with information on topics including: VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) and repeat c-section Pain and pain management during childbirth How C-sections can affect family planning The valuable role of midwives and doulas in the birth experience The myths behind “natural” childbirth How limitations put on reproductive rights impact pregnant people With deep feeling and authority, Somerstein offers support to others who have had difficult or traumatic birth experiences, as well as hope for new forms of reproductive justice.

Trusted physicians reassure mothers and mothers-to-be: It's okay to say yes. One in four babies born in the United States and Europe comes into the world via Cesarean section. Yet this procedure has been described by critics as an unnecessary and potentially dangerous medical intervention. Consequently, expectant mothers often fear this option, and women who have had C-sections can feel a sense of failure. In Cesarean Section: Understanding and Celebrating Your Baby's Birth, Drs. Michele Moore and Caroline de Costa emphasize the joy of delivering a healthy baby, however that is best achieved. They explain why Cesarean births are sometimes preferable to vaginal delivery for both mother and baby, and they help women understand the issues behind the decision to perform the procedure. From anesthesia, surgery, and recovery through at-home care of mother and child, the authors offer reassurance and practical information for all mothers and mothers-to-be. They also discuss the latest findings on postpartum depression and planning for future births, including the possibility of vaginal birth after a Cesarean section. For every woman who has a planned—or unplanned—Cesarean section, this book provides the information they need to alleviate their fears and come to value this delivery option. "Because up to a quarter of all births are Cesarean births, prenatal preparation should include information about Cesarean sections for every woman. And that is why we have written this guide. . . . We believe strongly that it is time to speak out and say that Cesarean section is a normal birth method and that women who have a Cesarean section should not be made to feel that they have failed. . . . We hope you find the information in this book useful and helpful in thinking about C-section, whether you have already had a Cesarean and want to understand the experience better, you wish to plan for another C-section birth, or you are expecting a baby and want to be informed about all the possibilities ahead, including this other normal way of bringing a baby into the world."—from the Introduction

The bible of cesarean prevention. Wall Street Journal A landmark event, which will change the course of obstetric care by giving parents the informtion they need to make the decisions that are best for their own families. Comprehensive, highly readable, sensitive . . . should be read by everyone who cares about someone. Marian Tompson Director, Alternative Birth Crisis Coalition American Academy of Medicine Required reading for all childbirth professionals and prospective parents. Journal of Gynecological Nursing

Drawing on data from nineteenth- and early twentieth-century obstetric logs to better represent the experience of cesarean surgery for women of all classes and races, as well as interviews with obstetricians who have performed cesareans and women who have given birth by cesarean, Cesarean Section is the definitive history of the use of this surgical procedure and its effects on women's and children's health in the United States.

Book discusses VBAC (vaginal birth after caesarean).

Rising numbers of Cesarean sections and maternal obesity and associated health risks have resulted in increasingly complex Cesarean deliveries and outcomes, requiring today’s surgeon to stay attuned to evolving best practices and master new surgical techniques. This first-of-its-kind reference provides step-by-step, highly illustrated guidance on managing challenging Cesarean sections with a focus on the challenges of abnormal placentation and strategies to manage it. In a concise, readable format, this text is designed to help surgeons anticipate intraoperative and postoperative challenges and optimize outcomes for mother and baby.

Twenty-one vivid, moving essays on caesarean birth “No one talks about C-sections as surgery,” writes SooJin Pate. “They talk about it as if it’s just another way—albeit more convenient way—of giving birth.” The twenty-one essays in My Caesarean add back to the conversation the missing voices of a vast, invisible sisterhood. Robin Schoenthaler reflects: “A C-section for us meant life.” And yet, women who don’t give birth vaginally—by choice or necessity—often feel stigmatized. “My son’s birth was not a test I needed to pass,” writes Sara Bates. “As if growing a human inside another human for nine months then caring for it the rest of its life isn’t enough,” adds Mary Pan, herself a physician. Alongside their personal stories, the writers—decorated novelists, poets, and essayists—address the history of the C-section as well as its risks, social inequities, impact on the body, and psychological aftermath. My Caesarean is a heartfelt meditation, offering much-needed comfort through shared experience. Contributors include: Catherine Newman, Judy Batalion, Nicole Cooley, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Lisa Solod, Misty Urban, Jacinda Townsend, Mary Pan, Robin Schoenthaler, Elizabeth Noll, Jen Fitzgerald, Tyrese Coleman, SooJin Pate, Daniela Montoya-Barthelemy, Cameron Dezen Hammon, LaToya Jordan, Sara Bates, Susan Hoffmann, and Alicia Jo Rabins.