Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering: A Doctor's Guide to Natural Childbirth and Gentle Early Parenting Choices

I really love this book. It is written for people who are already spiritually minded and wish to move outside of the mainstream medical conglomerate. I feel like a lot of the reviews saying the author is condescending are from people who are still programmed through this medical establishment and the book triggers a lot of defensiveness within them over their choices. The book is written from the heart and doesn’t beat around the bush or sugar coat things. Lots of valuable information and truly inpowers you to take back your body autonomy and sovereignty in regards to your birth journey. At the same time, the author does not shame the choices the mother makes, only offers varying information rather than fear mongering a woman into a certain pattern or birth story. This book is not going to praise ultrasounds or unnecessary technological interventions so if that is the route you are set on taking just bypass this book and find one that is more closely aligning to your wants and needs.

I will always and forever recommend this book. I’m a doula and this has been su ch a great resource to pull out. Even in my own life this has helped me feel empowered to make the decisions I want as a mother.

This is a good book to read before your first child (or any child,) especially if you are concerned about the current hospital situation in the United States. It sheds light on many procedures that are done simply because they are standard practice, not necessarily because they are important. If you're trying to decide what's best for you & your baby, this is a great book to read. As with all books, read with an open mind—take what works for you and leave the rest. I appreciated the insights from a medical doctor & mother, on ultrasounds, home birth, medical procedures, and more.

Dr. Sarah Buckley provides a comprehensive research based look at hospital birth vs home birth. I wish I had this information years ago as I would definitely have made better choices during pregnancy and birth. She is able to explain clearly some of the more clinical information without losing the reader and the more personal stories of her own births were a lovely addition. She’s a little more “woo woo” than most I think, but her personal birth stories are shared in good faith. Some women are still very fearful of their spiritual force and will not relate but for those women who know there is more to this life than what our physical senses tell us and are aware of their own intuition, this is the book for you. If you are looking to educate yourself on the often unnecessary interventions in a hospital setting, who better than an MD to explain it? Sarah’s approach to breastfeeding, co sleeping and mother- infant bonding are very helpful as well. I would recommend this to my midwifery clients.

Love this book. The information was great, resources were helpful, and I think every parent and parent to be should read this book. Definitely going to recommend this book to all new mamas.

This is the most research based birth nerd book I’ve ever read. It is required reading for my midwifery class and the depth of information is not lost on the average person. It’s essentially a research paper with some of the authors own experiences added in. It presents evidence to support “undisturbed birth”, and shows how current modern obstetrical care does not typically support this model. It is meant to present evidence and make you think. Highly recommend!

This was a required reading for a doula certification I’m pursuing. It’s an okay read with good studies/information listed throughout. However, the author’s general bias was too strong for my liking. I’m personally looking into a rounded (balance of understanding in both holistic and theocratic) approach to birth, where this book pushes for all natural (no medicine, intervention, etc) birth with a small pinch of exceptions. She does still have good information and seeing her perspective was interesting. Over all, I’d only recommend certain chapters rather than the whole book if you’re looking into a similar approach like me.

The reviews I read as most relevant for this amazing book were ridiculous and laughable! This is a medical doctor who’s married to a medical doctor who gave her personal opinion and frankly the most in depth scientific research and data regarding the chemical processes of birth I have ever read. In the first chapter she writes “I am not advocating one type of birth over another, but women need the information necessary to make informed decisions and choices and doctors, nurses and midwives need to take time to listen and explain “ so as far as I can tell the women who feel that she’s biased are obviously feeling bad about their decisions or maybe bothered by the fact that they were likely bullied into surgery (like I was) based on threatening medical jargon used to intimidate and coerce. This book should be required reading for everyone before birth and hopefully it continues to inspire and educate

Knowledgeable author, personal experiences as well as extensive research listed, very interesting read.

Recommend for every expecting mom.

This book was recommended to me by a co-worker and I am so glad I followed her advice and ordered it. It is extremely well written, researched and presented. Sarah Buckley clearly wants every expectant mother to be as well-informed as possible in order to make the best decisions regarding birth and delivery. As she says repeatedly, "Your Body. Your Baby. Your Choice." If you want to steer away from the people and sources that threaten to bombard you with narrow-minded views that relinquish your feminine power of choice and individuality, then you need this book! If you appreciate the idea of a "natural" birth, but want to be sure you have done your research and informed yourself of all the risks, pros and cons you should be reading this. If you want to feel empowered as a woman who is preternaturally and instinctually made to give birth this book will give you the "hell yeah!" declaration you might be missing. This truly is a terrific guide for a gentle birth and a compassionate mothering experience: for both you, and your baby.

I loved loved loved this book. I loved it so much I read it twice and then practically copied the whole thing into my notes. Sarah Buckley is an inspiration. Perfect book for any expecting parents, provides some really helpful food for thought on the impact and importance of birth. Although she is a doctor herself, she is UC-friendly and did lotus births with her babies. Superb!

I really enjoyed this book, it gave me confidence during my recent labour. It's a nice read for expectant mothers.