Ina May G.

I almost finished devouring Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth. I can't believe I didn't read it when I was pregnant with Addie and hoping for a natural delivery. I only read one book, watched one movie (Ricki Lake's The Business of Being Born), read a lot on the internet, and followed the weekly pregnancy guide book...oh and I read a breastfeeding book. That was it. Well, I took a hospital sponsored childbirth class also. Since I've been pregnant with this little gal I've been much more proactive in my knowledge gathering.

Have I told you all that we are seriously considering Charlotte Olivia for baby girl's name? We'd likely call her Charlie. We really like it, and there have been virtually no other names Jason and I have both agreed on. There's always a chance though that the goods were seriously hiding in that first ultrasound and it's actually a boy! ;)

Okay, back to Ina May. She is amazing. Her writing is simple and you can tell she is kind of a nerd about her work (which makes me love her even more, everyone should geek out about things they love). She has educated herself from so many fields and time periods and her resources in this book are astounding. I've never heard anyone speak/write so plainly yet have such rich analysis, story telling ability, presence, and gobs of documented information/statistics to share. I'd love to meet her, and I'd probably have something like celebrity shock if I did! The funniest thing is that although she is a midwife, her nurturing side seems much more matter-of-fact than it does our Southern style of "honey-child" "sugar dumplin' " and such. She just knows women can do this and therefore she nurtures that ability. I want to go to The Farm in TN where she lives on her hippie commune and practices, but the odds of meeting her or that she'd be available seem pretty slim! I know lots of people have been on the Ina May bandwagon way longer than me, so sorry to just be catching on! The feminist in me is just so empowered by her, the things she teaches and believes in, and the women who came before her whom she respects so much. I would recommend reading her books pregnant or not. I'm on to her first book, Spiritual Midwifery, when I finish this one!