Mother of all Pregnancy Books Book

	Introduction	1
Chapter 1	Are You Really Ready to Have a Baby?	7
	A Question of Timing	8
	What it really costs to raise children	11
	Career considerations	14
	The age issue	16
	Other health considerations	23
	Emotional readiness	24
	When you and your partner don't agree	25
	When Mother Nature has other plans	28
Chapter 2	Your Pre-Game Plan	31
	Training for the Big Event	32
	Watch your weight--but not too carefully	32
	Do a nutrient check	40
	Kick your smoking habit	45
	Skip that glass of wine	48
	Just say no to drugs	49
	Get your partner on the program	49
	Kick your coffee habit	51
	Don't douche	52
	Keep your stress level down	52
	Watch out for workplace hazards	53
	What to Expect from Your Preconception Checkup	54
Chapter 3	Sperm, Meet Egg	73
	The Numbers Game	74
	The Science of Conception	75
	A tale of two phases	77
	The sperm connection	81
	What You Can Do to Increase Your Odds of Conceiving Quickly	84
	Know thy cycle	85
	Make love on the right days	95
	Have unbelievably great sex	95
	Don't get too much of a good thing	96
	Create a "sperm-friendly" vaginal environment	97
	Get your partner on board	98
	Can You Choose Your Baby's Sex?	98
Chapter 4	Missed Conceptions	101
	Do You Have a Fertility Problem?	102
	The infertility workup	103
	The Major Causes of Infertility	104
	The Brave New World of Assisted Reproduction	125
	Damned lies and statistics	127
	Reading between the lines	128
	Money talk	129
	How to Stay Sane	132
Chapter 5	Winning at Baby Roulette	135
	A Little Bit Pregnant	136
	Testing, testing	137
	How you may feel about being pregnant	143
	Sharing your news with the world	146
	Sharing your news at work	147
	Finding Dr. Right	150
	Hospital or home birth?	157
	Your First Prenatal Checkup	162
	What your due date really means	164
	Multiple pregnancy	166
	The Incredible Growing Baby	168
Chapter 6	Operation Healthy Baby	175
	The Weighting Game	176
	Nutrient Check: The Sequel!	180
	The deprivation trap	187
	Special diets	188
	Food safety	190
	Exercising During Pregnancy	192
	Sex During Pregnancy	199
	Working During Pregnancy	202
	Other Things You Need to Know to Keep Your Baby Safe	207
Chapter 7	The Worry Zone	221
	The Top Ten First-Trimester Worries	222
	The Top Ten Second-Trimester Worries	237
	The Pregnancy Discrimination Act	246
	The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993	247
	Maternity wear	249
	Baby gear	253
	The Top Ten Third-Trimester Worries	258
Chapter 8	The Complaint Department	269
	What's Normal and What's Not	270
	Pregnancy Complaints from A to Z	270
	Abdominal muscle separation	275
	Acne	276
	Backache	276
	Belly button soreness	277
	Bleeding gums	278
	Bleeding and spotting	279
	Braxton Hicks contractions	279
	Breast tenderness and enlargement	280
	Breathlessness	281
	Carpal tunnel syndrome	282
	Constipation	282
	Cramping	283
	Cravings	283
	Eye changes	284
	Faintness and dizziness	284
	Fatigue	285
	Food aversions	286
	Gassiness and bloating	286
	Headaches	287
	Heartburn	288
	Hemorrhoids	289
	Hip soreness	290
	Insomnia	290
	Itching	292
	Leg cramps	292
	Linea nigra	293
	Mask of pregnancy	293
	Morning sickness	294
	Perineal aching	299
	Public-bone pain	300
	Rashes	300
	Restless legs syndrome (RLS)	302
	Rhinitis	302
	Round ligament pain	303
	Sciatica	303
	Skin changes	304
	Smell, heightened sense of	306
	Stretch marks	306
	Sweating	307
	Swelling and fluid retention	307
	Thirstiness	308
	Urinary incontinence	308
	Urination, increased frequency of	309
	Vaginal secretions, increased	309
	Varicose veins	310
	Weepiness	312
	Yeast infections	312
	The Joys of Being Pregnant	313
Chapter 9	To Test or Not to Test?	317
	What Prenatal Testing Can--and Can't--Tell You	318
	Is Prenatal Genetic Testing the Right Choice for You?	319
	Types of Tests	321
	What to Do If the Test Brings Bad News	328
Chapter 10	Lights, Camera, Action!	331
	Prenatal Classes: Who Needs Them?	332
	Decisions, Decisions	335
	Doulas are a girl's best friend	336
	Writing a birth plan	338
	Episiotomy: The unkindest cut of all	341
	Pain relief during labor	343
	The circumcision decision	348
	Breast or bottle?	351
	Eight Months and Counting	353
	How to Tell if It's the Real Thing	356
	Prelabor symptoms	357
	True versus false labor	359
	When to call your caregiver	364
	When to go to the hospital	365
	What Labor Is Really Like	366
	The three stages of labor	367
	What other pregnancy books won't tell you	373
	What to expect during a cesarean delivery	377
	Vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC)	381
	Going Overdue	382
	Is my baby at risk?	384
	To induce or not to induce?	386
	What to expect during an induction	387
	Meeting Your Baby	389
	How you may feel about meeting your baby	390
Chapter 11	When Pregnancy Isn't Perfect	393
	What Does the Term "High-Risk Pregnancy" Really Mean?	394
	Surviving bedrest	403
	The Unique Challenges of a Multiple Pregnancy	409
	Premature Birth	413
	Possible health problems	414
	Risk factors	416
	Prevention	417
	Welcoming a premature baby or a baby with special needs	418
	When a Baby Dies	421
	What can go wrong	422
	Miscarriage	423
	Ectopic pregnancy	430
	Molar pregnancy	432
	Stillbirth	434
	Intrapartum death	437
	Infant death	437
	Grieving the Loss of Your Baby	443
	Preparing for Another Pregnancy	450
	Physical healing	451
	Emotional readiness	451
Chapter 12	Life After Baby	455
	Your Postpartum Body: What to Expect	456
	Cesarean recovery	467
	Getting Back into Shape: What's Realistic and What's Not	468
	How You May Feel About Becoming a Mother	473
	More than the baby blues?	476
	How Your Relationship with Your Partner May Change	479
	The Postpartum Survival Guide	482
	Appendixes
Appendix A	Glossary	489
Appendix B	Birth Plan	511
Appendix C	Emergency Childbirth Procedures	517
Appendix D	Directory of Organizations	521
Appendix E	Web Site Directory	541
Appendix F	Statistics at a Glance	549
Appendix G	Recommended Reading	559
	Index	563