Pregnancy is a bit like the parties you used to go to when you were 15: exhilaratingly new and exciting, full of unknown adventures – a rite of passage experience where you’re not entirely sure what to wear or who the best person to speak to is, with potentially a lot of vomiting and falling asleep at ill-timed moments. And, looking back, an adventure that you’re not sure you always actually enjoyed, despite everyone else saying it was amazing at the time.
I know when I was first pregnant I devoured every pregnancy tome I possibly could – but couldn’t seem to find enough books that offered information and relatable facts without judgment. Or offered the whole truth and made me feel like they understood what I was going through.
It can be a scary time, it can be a magical time. It can be a mixture of the two, plus a whole heaped side order of other delights such as anxiety, depression, weird aches and pains and strange alien-like protrusions from your belly. What is going on? It helps to have reliable advice to manage the gamut of emotions during this time. To be fully prepared and empowered for the journey that lies ahead. So many mums I have chatted to and interviewed have said to me “I wish I had known, why don’t people tell you…?”. While everyone’s experience is different and it’s impossible to predict exactly how you will sail the seas of pregnancy and early motherhood, it’s powerful to be informed and prepared.
Every pregnancy and birth experience is as unique as flakes of snow: and as pretty bloomin awesome. That’s why I was proud and delighted to be asked to write Pregnancy: the Naked Truth.
It walks you through each stage of pregnancy, considering not only what’s happening to you physically but emotionally and mentally too. What’s happening with your relationship, what are the implications for your career? What the hell is a birth “plan”? And does hypnobirthing actually work if you don’t consider yourself a kaftan-wearing hippy? Will a caesarean hurt? Why do I hate my partner’s aftershave suddenly? Will I poo while giving birth…?!?
All of these questions, and much more, are answered in this book. It’s like a doula/birth partner/best friend/career advisor all rolled into one.
You can buy a copy of my book Pregnancy: the Naked Truth here