O/T warts and all

[MightyMitre]

Hi Ladies. Wondered if you could help. DH & I are thinking about starting a family next year and thought I should do a little research ( For 'little' read - gobbling up all the tips I can find for use later! :p )

Anyone know of a down-to-earth, warts-and-all book about pregnancy/ expecting a baby. Ideally it would be good if I could find one that's got some sensible info on continuing to exercise while pregnant, but would be interested to hear about any books that people have found helpful.

[joyrider]

By Vicki Iovine.
It's humorous and down-to-earth.

[gretassister]

I can't help you there, but I had a friend who trained horses while she was pregnant, so I'm pretty sure you can still bicycle. :)

[snapdragen]

If you're worried about riding, a woman in my club rode up to the day she delivered..... :eek:

[drplasma64]

The What to Expect When You are Expecting books will just make you crazy. GG is funny and informative too.

And if you are considering breastfeeding, I've heard that "So THAT'S what they're for" is good.

[mikki]

I highly recommend the Dr. Sears series: The Baby Book, and The Birth Book.

What to Expect.... is pretty good.

The Birth Partner (for daddy).

Good Luck

[Trekhawk]

[QUOTE MightyMitre]Hi Ladies. Wondered if you could help. DH & I are thinking about starting a family next year and thought I should do a little research ( For 'little' read - gobbling up all the tips I can find for use later! :

Im afraid I cant help you with a book name I know I had a few but they are all in storage in Aust so no help there sorry.

With regards to riding/exercise and pregnancy I would say take it day by day and let your body be your guide. I enjoyed swimming and walking thru each pregnancy. I have only taken up riding recently so cant give you any info on that.

My last piece of advice is when you become pregnant people will hand out all sorts of advice and this will continue thru your childs early years. Take what you think is good and ditch the rest. You will get the ones that love to tell birthing horror stories and ones that are very competitive about the strangest things. Every pregnancy and child is different remember that and enjoy the experience. :D

[emily_in_nc]

Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler (hope that is spelled right). Highly recommended whether you're trying to conceive (or not!) or just want to become more educated about your body.

I read all the fertility/pregnancy books since DH and I struggled with infertility for many years (finally got pregnant on our second IVF, but I miscarried; 7 years later we are, amazingly, quite content being childfree), and this was the best book of the lot.

Good luck!

Emily

[mom2twins]

The What to Expect When You are Expecting books will just make you crazy. GG is funny and informative too.

And if you are considering breastfeeding, I've heard that "So THAT'S what they're for" is good.

I 2nd everything Dr.plasma said. I had to throw out my "what to expect" books because they were keeping me up at night worrying about worst case scenarios.

If I remember correctly, I was told by my OB that I could continue all activites that I was doing previously as long as I didn't allow myself to over heat. There are certian heart rate maxes that get thrown around but he said that wasn't accurate because everyone's heart rate is different. I was also allowed to continue weight lifting until I found out I was carrying twins and then I was considered high risk so I wasn't suppose to do heavy lifting. I did walk 3-5 hilly miles every day until I was 6 1/2 months pregnant and started to swell too much because of the heat (it was the middle of the summer).

Also, once you are expecting and preparing for the care of your baby I strongly recommend Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I truly believe that healthy sleeping is as important as healthy eating habits for infants, children and adults too. Having 2 at one time made me really appreciate a good nights sleep for all 3 of us.

Good Luck!!!! Pregnancy and parenthood are the most life-altering and wonderful things I have ever experienced.

[singletrackmind]

I biked up until my 7th month but had to quit because I couldn't get the knees around the belly. It was the trainer after that. I hiked and walked up til the end. That was sometimes a little painful when his head was dropping into place but after a block or two he'd shift and it'd be alright. I was advised to keep the heart rate below 140 and not get overheated and was not restricted from the bike. I stayed slow and on the road (heartrate, overheating, safety) but at least I was turning pedals.
I had What to Expect When You're Expecting. It didn't worry me at all, I was too busy doing all that on my own. I had bleeding at 3 months, a placenta that was just barely over the exit (and moved just enough), gestational diabetes, problems with the baby's heartrate during those pre-contraction things that resulted in a week of bedrest (ARGH!) twice, they almost did a c-section at nearly 8 months and changed their mind last minute, went in for a normal delivery (2 weeks early) and ended up with an emergency c-section when the cord came out first. No big deal. A plus would be not being at or near the end of pregnancy during the worst of the heat. I did do that right! :)
I miss the spontanaity of my old life, the ability to just jump on the bike and go or not miss half of what's going on at get-togethers because I'm trying to keep the boyo safe and well-occupied, or missing get-togethers completely because of the boyo.
That said, I wouldn't trade what I have now for all the freedom the world has to offer. Just know that it's a huge change (not something you really can understand or prepare for) and you make a lot of old-life sacrifices but the rewards to me are so much greater.
Ask me again when he's 16 and just let me know he wrecked the car...by running over my bike :eek:

[KatieBelle]

I agree that the Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy is the best. For dad, The Expectant Father.

Howdy to Mom2Twins! I also have twins. They can be a handful, can't they? :)

[slinkedog]

I never read the Girlfriend's guide, but I know a lot of my friends liked it. I had a book called Your Pregnancy Week by Week by Glade Curtis. I had the What to Expect book with my first child, but like many of the rest of you, it made me crazy. The whole diet thing was just insane, imho.

As for exercising, my doctor was pretty cool with me doing whatever I had been doing previous to getting pg. Just be careful, use your common sense and listen to your body. I went to a triathlon that my husband was doing the bike portion of when I was about 33 weeks along with #4 and I walked about the whole day. Felt fine the whole day so I thought I would be fine. Ended up with nasty, nasty sciatica that kept me basically on my back for a week and a half and continued to recur for the remainder of my pregnancy. Everyone always says your baby is well insulated from knocks and all that, and it's very true. However, it's no fun being pregnant injured. So be careful of you! :)

[Irulan]

riding and pregnancy discussions....

http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=123236

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=102361

For books on parenting styles, I am most definately NOT a Dr. Sears fan. I like the "love and logic" books by Klein and Faye.



irulan

[drplasma64]

I don't think there is one parenting style that is right and others are wrong. Personally, I read many different parenting books and took what made sense from each and synthesized it into something that works for us. I think there are many aspects of Sears' advice that make sense, but many things about the more traditional "keep them on a schedule" approach that make sense too. It's all about what works for your family, and what works for a stay-home mom may not work for a work-away mom.

That being said, I think the things children need are:
love, security, consistency, boundaries, healthy food, enough sleep.

How you get there doesn't really matter. It is seriously amazing to see what a difference diet and sleep make to the behavior of a child. And by healthy food I don't mean you have to crazy with all organic food, but just staying away from sweets and juice and chips and such. One of my friends IRL used to give her daughter lollipops when they were shopping to keep her quiet and happy (she was 2), then she'd be amazed when her daughter would try to stand on the tables in the restaurant at lunch time - hello SUGAR!!!

Anyway, sorry to ramble on...parenting is one my big deals!

[ACG]

I had my kids a while a ago, my oldest is 21 and youngest is 15. I walked 3 miles everday in the a.m., if it was hot, walked the mall. While working, walked on my lunch/breaks/afterwork. Was not a real exercise type person. I had no problems at all during pregancy, birth or recovery. As a matter of fact it was that first pregnancy that made me realize I needed to exercise. I don't remember what books I read. I do remember being bombarded with advice from well meaning moms, grandmoms, aunts and just as many childless friends.

My advice read everything, visit your doctor and do what YOU think is best.

One more thing on baby care books, the baby doesn't read the book....

[susiej]

Terry makes a maternity short:

http://www.teamestrogen.com/products.asp?pID=14019

And it sure looks like it will go into the third trimester!

Your OB will probably be thrilled that you want to keep exercising; mine was. I found it helped with the exhaustion and morning sickness, once the motivation kicked in to get on the bike. My OB may have recommended to keep my heart rate down -- it's a bit of a haze.

In the third trimester I was walking after lunch for 20 minutes. One day I rushed to get to the bathroom, and set off some practice contractions (Braxton-Hicks). Oooo, that got the adrenaline pumping! But slowing down the walking stopped the contractions, and I still got to the bathroom on time. This information was useful when I went into labor at 4 a.m., labor stopped by 11 a.m., and a nice long walk had me in the hospital by 8 p.m.

While we're on the subject of bikes and tykes: we have a back-of-the-bike seat for the little one (shower gift from my sister -- she's so cool). He's too young now (six months), but WILL be riding with us next spring. Should we also consider a trailer? How about the "half-bikes" that attach to the back of a parent's bike when he's older? Or his own bike and a bar that will attach his bike to one of ours?

Good luck!

--SJ

[RebeccaAnn]

I used "Your Pregnancy Week by Week" but left the Over 35 version on the shelf--too much information! I told my ob she would have to keep me posted on the old mom risks I faced, I couldn't stomach reading about all of them for the remainder of my pregnancy. The "What to Expect" series just wasn't my cup of tea.

I continued walking the dog 2 miles each morning until the day before I delivered. I stopped riding the bike at around 5 months due to a combination of factors. My ob was not concerned about the exercise component of riding the bike, but I was commuting and that really worried her. My workplace was right by her office, so she knew what sort of car traffic I was contending with on my commutes. I stopped commuting, then when the days got shorter I lost my daylight riding time and was too cautious to try riding in the dark.

[MightyMitre]

Wow - what a great response! I've been having a browse on the internet at various baby websites, and there's just SOOOOO MUUUUUCCH STUFF!!!! :eek: I think i could probably drive myself nuts if I took it all in, hence the idea of finding maybe one or two key books that I get on with and stick to just them.

Thanks for the book titles - think I might hit my LBS ( local Book shop :p ) and check out a few before I buy.

PS - Check out those maternity shorts! Trust TE to bring you kit for all your needs. :)

[nuthatch]

How exciting!! My sister swam her entire pregnancy and enjoyed it so much - she sure looked good after her delivery!

[drplasma64]

Swimming feels GREAT when you're pregnant, especially in the last trimester. All the weight just is lifted off you. I highly recommend it - even just standing in a pool. But NOT a hot tub, that is dangerous because your body temp rises a lot.

[doc]

I agree with Dr Plasma and many others. I am in fact a pediatrician! A few points:
When something seems wrong and illogical - it probably is.
When something absolutely doesn't work for you - don't do it.
If something feels fine but is not recommended (e.g. heart rate over 140 while exercising) it is probably fine.
Every human body runs a little different. Same with every human mind. Being "sensible" will get you a long long way to being right.
What to expect when you're expecting- factually accurate but it definitely takes an approach that is unnecessarily nerve wracking. Too uptight.
Happy Child Healthy sleep - The newest edition is horrible. Horrible. His ideas are absolutely correct, but his editor should be shot.
How to solve your child's sleep problems by Ferber - good to read in advance. The first few chapters are for kids without problems. Prevention is the key!
The AAP (american academy of pediatrics) has books "your child the first year" and "your child birth to 5 years". Pretty good. Available in Borders etc.

I agree strongly that sleep is critical. Good nutrition (but not overboard with the 'must be organic spirulina'...) and a loving and accepting home is the key. Proper discipline too. By that I mean no hitting the child, being the parent not the child's buddy, sticking to your guns (no means no), showering her/him with unconditional love, modelling proper behavior. The best book there is "how to talk so your child will listen and listen so your child will talk" Again, read it now and then when you need it when he is a few years older. When you have two get "siblings without rivalry". These are the absolute best behavior books I know.
You are on the right track reading stuff in aadvance. Don't wait till there's a problem, be ready for all life throws at you.

Parenthood is the very worst and very best job you'll ever have.
Good Luck :)