Birth Without Fear: The Judgment-Free Guide to Taking Charge of Your Pregnancy, Birth, and Postpartum Paperback – March 5, 2019

If you plan to give birth whether in medicated or not, this is probably the greatest book you could read to prepare yourself. It is geared toward unmedicated births, which is why I bought it. And it was a HUGE help for me

I truly loved this book. If you need confidence going into birth, you need to read!! And I mean to birth your baby but to also own how you want it to go!

This book provides a detailed description of how you can choose to take charge of your pregnancy, birth, and postpartum periods. It provides examples of mainly the authors journeys but also a few other women as well. The author is thorough, has a bit of humor and is very blunt in some areas but also provides this culture of love an acceptance for any mother and her partner to meet them where they are and provide support to help them achieve their best pregnancy, birth, and/or postpartum period. The author has 6 children and has had a variety of birth experiences, some in her control and others not. She explains the benefits of making birth plans and back-up birth plans. I loved the way the book was written; you can read it in order or skip to the chapter you feel is most relevant to your situation. She provides space and understanding for everyone and really promotes self-care. Her goal is for everyone to achieve birth/pregnancy/and postpartum without fear. She explains that it doesn’t mean you have no fear but that you have the courage to acknowledge your fears, so they no longer have power over you. I found this book extremely helpful in supporting a mother-centered birth and promoting practices we have learned within the ICEA. I highly encourage this read.As she writes in her book: “If you are thinking about getting pregnant or you are pregnant, this book is for you. If you are a new mother, this book is for you. If you are a husband or a partner, this book id for you. If you are a birth care provider, this book is for you. Simply put, if you are a human being, this book id for you.”

It reads more like a really good and heartfelt pep talk from a best friend. While what is said is important and reassuring, it’s not what I was expecting. I was expecting more direct tactics and ways to empower your birth. I liked the example birth plans a lot.

This is my favorite book on childbirth/mothering, and I've read many of them. This book doesn't tell you which way to birth and parent is best, it isn't selling you a method to labor in, it is not written by somebody who thinks she is right and everybody else is wrong. This book is INCLUSIVE. January Harshe's fantastic "you do you boo" attitude is in every single sentence. It's all about deciding for yourself what YOU want, and how to make sure you get the options, support, and respect you deserve. This book gets very real about the difficulties of birthing babies and being a parent. It doesn't skim over how hard and vulnerable the postpartum period is. Even better- it reminds parents that your "postpartum period" is NOT determined by some outside source. It's determined by you. This book reminds parents to take the lead and to do it in a positive way during their time of having children. No scare tactics, no gimmicks. This book is like having a supportive best friend at your side. It is uplifting to read, in a way that many books on these subjects are not. It is 100% positivity and support for you and how you choose to have and parent your children. There's not enough unbiased, genuine support out there for so many parents, especially not in media/text... but this book is changing the game. It's a must read for not just for anybody who is thinking about having children, but for anybody who wants to live out their best life as an advocate for themselves. This is everything I wish I had been told before I became a mother, it's everything new parents should hear.

I just got the Birth Without Fear book in the mail and if you are pregnant or plan to be this is definitely a must have. It might be my 36 week pregnancy hormones but this is literally the first book in my life that has brought me to tears. Happy tears. Hopeful tears. Healing tears. This book has been transformational for me. I have been an avid follower of Birth Without Fear for years and I thought I knew what was going to be in the book, but boy was I wrong. This book contains such important messages for all types of birth, and trust me, you need to read them all. This book is so inspiring and it feels like January is sitting in my living room giving me the best pep talk ever. The power to have the birth experience that I want is within me and this book gives actual tools and examples of how to make that happen. We can't plan for birth, but we can try our best to plan for so many outcomes that however our babies choose to be born, we feel empowered in that experience. Buy the book, you won't regret it.

I wish I'd found this book early in my pregnancy with my now 10 week old daughter, but I still gleaned so much knowledge and affirmation from it. She covers the first trimester through postpartum with so much knowledge, firsthand experience, support, and validation. It is not a "What to Expect When You're Expecting" type of book that says, "Your baby is the size of a grape this week," but a book about remembering and empowering ourselves as the expecting parent and remember this is OUR pregnancy and OUR births and OUR bodies and we have every right to speak up for ourselves. It is a warrior call to birthing parents and our partners. I love that January's husband adds his perspective as the non-birthing partner/parent. This book is invaluable for the journey from pregnancy to postpartum.