Surviving And Thriving Through The Early Weeks of Parenting, 2nd Ed.
So why a second edition of this book first published in 2018? The first book was inspired by frustration witnessing inadequate postpartum support for my son and his wife with the birth of our first grand-child. Since then, we are now grandparents to four beautiful children under the age of 7, two having been born during COVID-19. As a Midwife over 45 years, we are witnessing a rise in preventable postpartum complications for moms and newborns like never seen over my entire career. Nearly every professional society and now mainstream media discuss how the U.S. is failing to provide comprehensive and timely support for new families. When COVID-19 became a global pandemic, we knew already stressed families would receive even less care, forcing families to navigate new ways for needed support in the postpartum period.
As a new parent if you have experienced the phrase, “Nobody told me about that!” we have the answers!
We are grateful to the returning and new moms that participated in a focus session confirming content for an updated second edition. Each conveyed significant differences in what they expected in their prenatal, labor, birth and postpartum care while also having struggled to receive adequate reassurance about safety needs for self and baby. All expressed that COVID impacted their personal, family and work life. It is the voices of these moms that motivated us to return to past chapter experts to write a new edition, and they ALL returned. We also added three new chapters including information on pelvic floor health, return to physical activity, and navigating costs associated with pregnancy and parenting. We’ve been there, observed it, and know education for families is woefully behind.
