Book Review: Nurture
If you’ve been in the online birth world in the last few years, you’ve probably seen Nurture recommended over and over. I decided to check it out myself and was not disappointed. My first impressions: the comprehensiveness of this book was immediately apparent, which makes it a great choice for anyone who’s not super into reading up on everything, or who only has a little time to prepare. Though I do think there is a benefit to getting it at the beginning of a pregnancy and following along because of the structure.
Cohen starts with pregnancy, dedicating a chapter to each trimester, and within each of those chapters breaking it down month by month. Each month she describes what you might be feeling, what your baby is doing, and things you can do to facilitate healthy growth and parenting preparation. She outlines the tenets of mindfulness, journaling, movement, natural remedies, and nourishment in the beginning and then applies them to each month in turn. So already in the first third, this book is full of helpful information (journal prompts, exercises, recipes) relating to the physicality of pregnancy as well as the emotions and psychology of the reader as a pregnant person.
Part three is about preparing for birth and is as much about mindset shifts as it is hands-on coping techniques and information on interventions and complications (similar approach to the Birth Partner but this book is written for the birthing person). At one point, Cohen writes “the most positive births are experienced by [people] with strong convictions rooted in the utmost flexibility. Know yourself, know your limits, and be open and curious about what’s to come. Release yourself from your own expectations of your birth experience.” I have seen this at play many times and agree that going into birth confident in yourself and your team, as well as staying an active participant even as things might go off script goes a long way to building positive associations with the birth. Cohen also covers practical measures like birth preferences, how to interview and build your birth team, labor signs and stages, and comfort measures, which all contribute to more positive birth stories.
The final third transitions into postpartum, focusing first on the physical and emotional healing (with similar advice in the form of journaling prompts and recipes for sitz baths and hot beverages). Then into nourishing and nurturing a baby now that they’re here. This focuses heavily on feeding (breastfeeding, pumping, formula, how to tell if and when they’re getting enough, you’re making enough, etc.) before covering appearance concerns (there’s a surprising amount of blemishes and colorings babies can have and you can rest assured most are perfectly harmless and temporary!), clothing, diapers, soothing, sleeping, bathing, and other infant care basics. It’s really as thorough as it sounds.
There’s also extensive back matter including links to resources and baby products (this book was published in 2017 so beware of link rot), plus sample birth plans and some other takeaways. As far as childbirth and parenting books go, this is one of the widest ranging titles out there, and if anyone is going to buy just a single book, this is a good option. I still believe in reading a few throughout pregnancy to collect and compare and make personal decisions, but owning this and using it as a periodic reference is a good way to get the most out of it.