Book Review: BIRTHING FROM WITHIN by Pam England

​Pam England’s Birthing from Within has been hailed as “… a landmark in the history of childbirth” (Dr. Michel Odent). Published in 1988, this book is still relevant and influencing couples preparing for childbirth today. Pam England is both a Certified Nurse Midwife and a psychologist, and she calls on each of these backgrounds and experiences in her childbirth preparation education and recommendations.

When my brother-in-law saw this book sitting out at my house, he jokingly said, “Birthing from within? What other way is there to birth?” But, as Pam explains, its often the internal preparation that is overlooked when preparing to give birth, and that can make a huge difference in the way parents experience birth. Throughout the book, Ms. England offers a wide range of activities to help expectant parents prepare for birth—from the inside out.

The book is divided into seven sections:
1. Beginning Your Journey
2. The Art of Birthing
3. Preparing Your Birth Place
4. Being Powerful in Birth
5. Fathers and Birth Companions
6. Birthing Through Pain
7. Gestating Parenthood

In each section, Pam offers activities that expectant parents can do together or individually as they prepare for birth. Here is a sampling of some of the activities:

• Freewriting about your feelings and assumptions about pregnancy, birth, parenthood, etc.
• Creating artwork about your anticipations of or past experiences with birth to uncover and work through your feelings
• Writing down meanings of conventional birth symbols and reframing the symbols’ meaning to fit your own unique circumstances
• Writing down and working through fears or worries
• Practicing breath awareness
• Predicting and preparing for postpartum parenting disputes
• And many more!

Surrounding all of the activities is tons of important information about birth: what to know and expect physiologically and psychologically, historical and ethnographic perspectives, and research and experience say about various birth choices (e.g. helpful comfort measures, home birth considerations, birthing positions, epidural use pros and cons, how to have an empowered cesarean, etc.).

​In all, Birthing from Within is a vastly useful book with information that can appeal to and offer relevant information for families in a variety of circumstances, with varied goals and backgrounds. It certainly appeals most apparently to those preparing for an unmedicated birth, but it calls on all birthers to do the internal work necessary to have the best birth experience possible. I’d definitely recommend it as a resource to call on in preparation for birth. Check it out from my Lending Library!