Having Twins: A Parent's Guide to Pregnancy, Birth and Early Childhood

by Elizabeth Noble, Leo Sorger, Leo Sorger

Book Overview

Considers the needs of prospective multiple-birth parents.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395493382
• ISBN13: 9780395493380
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 1.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 8.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Excellent book for those willing to learn

I nearly didn't buy this book at all after reading all the negative reviews here, but I'm very glad I did. Yes, Elizabeth Noble is opinionated regarding circumcision and the over-medicalization of pregnancy. Yes, her language is strong at times. And yes, I found the section on hypnosis and memories of the in-utero experience to be a bit kooky. But anyone who thinks the other books about multiple pregnancy are somehow "unbiased" just because they are more mainstream or encourage pregnant women to blindly trust their doctors is kidding themselves. Noble presents a valuable, underrepresented viewpoint and is a strong advocate for pregnant women and their multiple babies.

Very Informative

I must say that I'm surprised by the many bad reviews here. I read the book when I thought I might be having twins, and have recently re-read it as part of my doula training, and I found it to be very informative. There is a lot of research out there to back up many of her "opinions" about natural birth, home birth, etc. A good book that lists many of the studies is "The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth", by Henci Goer. You don't need to be a Dr. to be able to understand the research that has been done. I found this book helpful, as I hated the thought that I might be required to have a cesearen simply because I was carrying twins. There are many things we can do to try and assure that we have a healthy pregnancy and baby, but that does not mean that we are required to do so. I think it's interesting that many of the positive reviews come from medical professionals or people in other countries, where birth is not seen as a medical emergency in most situations. I hope that those who are seeking to be an active participant of their child's birth will read this. This book is not for those who want to naively believe that everything an OB says is the only way to have a healthy baby. The vast majority of pregnancies do not require the special training of the OB, and unneccessary medical interferance with the birth process does more harm than good. (Again, their have been studies to support this statement. See the above mentioned book).

Reality in twin pregnancy

FROM: An Obstetrician who loved the book!Reviewer: Robert J. Oliver, MD, PhD, FACOG: Having Twins and more.Houghton Miffin, Publisher ISBN 0-618-18373-0I have just completed a review of the finest book on multiple births that I have seen and I have seen a lot of them in my 43 years of obstetrics practice. Frankly, I am upset that my profession did not write this book for my benefit and that of my many mothers who made it through pregnancy with more than one child at a time. I compliment those mothers for I have used just exactly what Elizabeth Noble wrote about and have never had to do a section for twins and none of my mothers have ever had preterm births in all my practice years. Because of what I did, no; the mothers did what the book emphasizes, become knowledgeable and be responsible for your births.Ms Noble has provided an informed consent book for the mother who must put up with the scare techniques we doctors have been taught so that we can manipulate women into believing they are not capable of safe and secure, full term, unassisted twin or more childbirth. The text is easy to read, there is a good glossary for terms which might confuse, and a most important section or two covers the problems of twin birth, loss of one twin, and psychological issues of loss felt by the surviving twin. I was most happy that she included a reasonable criticism of assisted reproductive technology (the name implies the issue) and the terrible results of male circumcision, condemned by the thoughtful parent.I would love to have seen more information that would help parents understand what prenatal testing really is about and the trauma that the fetus will experience. Unfortunately, most of the statistics about interventions, VBACs, epidural and elective induction and cesarean section have changed. Instead of lower rates of cesareans, epidural and inductions these interventions which cause increased birth trauma have increased dramatically and especially so for twins. Epidurals are used in 75-90% of all births, and VBACs are now banned in most hospitals for no good reason. Everyone who is faced with the birth of multiples would do well to study this book. Robert Oliver, MD, PhD

The best advice for a healthy full-term twin pregnancy!

My midwife advised us to get this book as soon as we found out we were expecting twins. I am a Lactation Consultant and already had it as a reference for clients.I found the information to be extremly truthful and very informative. I too followed their advice on nutrition as also advised by my midwife. It was difficult to consume so many calories and protein but I did it for the health of my babies and myself.While reading this book I found out why I was experiencing all these different things with my body that I never experienced with my other 4 births and pregnancies. I also was very prepared and informed of all the things to expect with multiples.Between my midwife and this book I felt totally confident and positive about my pregnancy and birth. Without it I would have been in the dark and frightened!I ended up delivering vaginally and totally natural at 39 weeks and 4 days. My b/g twins weighed 7lbs 14oz and 7lbs 15 oz. I never had any problems the whole pregnacy (absolutely NO BEDREST) and my babies stayed with me the whole time and went home with me. If I did not have such great resources the outcome may have not turned out so great!

Best technical information on twins

This book, should be required reading for a multiple-birth pregnancy. Noble assumes you're looking for detailed information, and provides it. Unfortunately, having an unexpected multiple-birth pregnancy IS scary, and I don't think a chapter on death is out of place--particularly now that women are having higher-order multiples. I was actually grateful to read about other women who weren't especially thrilled to find out they were having twins. (Of course, many women who were absolutely thrilled were also included in the book.) It's a hard happiness for many women. Finding out other people had difficulty accepting the news helped me a great deal.Noble's view on sea vegetables might seem a little weird, especially for people who've never traveled. Surprise--people are finding out that the "traditional" American diet may not be the healthiest, especially for a pregnant woman. I live in a rural area and wasn't able to get sea vegetables, but if you're sick of milk and cottage cheese, you'll try anything. The calcium requirements for a mother carrying multiples are amazing. She also is a great person to read if you feel pressured into "not eating" during pregnancy for fear of gaining too much weight. The health of the babies is what's paramount, and she does a great job of supporting women. Doctors in America are much more likely to do c-sections for multiples --that's a proven fact, and it's also been proven that might not be neccessary. The more informed you are, the better your choices. Get this book if you only buy one multiple-birth book--it's the most complete.