Includes index.

Introduction -- About this book -- What's new in this edition -- Conventions used in this book -- What you're not to read -- Foolish assumptions -- How this book is organized -- Part I. The game plan -- Part II. Pregnancy : a drama in three acts -- Part III. The big event : labor, delivery, and recovery -- Part IV. Dealing with special issues -- Part V. The part of tens -- Icons used in this book -- Where to go from here -- pt. 1. The game plan -- 1. From here to maternity -- Getting ready to get pregnant : the preconceptional visit -- Taking a look at your history --Evaluating your current health -- Answering commonly asked questions -- Getting to your ideal body weight -- Reviewing your medications -- Considering nutritional supplements -- Recognizing the importance of vaccinations and immunity -- Quitting birth control -- Introducing sperm to egg : timing is everything -- Pinpointing ovulation -- Taking an effective (and fun) approach -- 2. I think I'm pregnant! -- Recognizing the signs of pregnancy -- Determining whether you're pregnant -- Getting an answer at home -- Going to your practitioner for answers -- Selecting the right practitioner for you -- Considering your options -- Asking questions before you choose -- Calculating your due date -- 3. Preparing for life during pregnancy -- Planning prenatal visits -- Preparing for physical and emotional changes -- Coping with mood swings -- Living through leg cramps -- Noticing vaginal discharge -- Putting up with backaches -- Handling stress -- Understanding the effects of medications, alcohol, and drugs on your baby -- Taking medications -- Smoking -- Drinking alcohol -- Using recreational/illicit drugs -- Looking at lifestyle changes -- Pampering yourself with beauty treatments -- Relaxing in hot tubs, whirlpools, saunas, or steam rooms -- Traveling -- Getting dental care -- Having sex -- Working during pregnancy : a different type of labor -- Considering occupational hazards -- Understanding pregnancy and the law -- 4. Diet and exercise for the expectant mother -- Looking at healthy weight gain -- Determining how much is enough -- Avoiding weight obsession -- Understanding your baby's weight gain -- Taking stock of what you're taking in -- Using the USDA Food Guide Pyramid -- Supplementing your diet -- Determining which foods are safe -- Eyeing potentially harmful foods -- Debunking popular food myths -- Considering special dietary needs -- Eating right, vegetarian-style -- Combating constipation -- Dealing with diabetes -- Working out for two -- Adapting to your body's changes -- Exercising without overdoing it -- Comparing forms of exercise.

pt. II. Pregnancy : a drama in three acts -- 5. The first trimester -- A new life takes shape -- Adapting to how your body changes -- Breast changes -- Fatigue -- Any-time-of-day sickness -- Bloating -- Frequent urination -- Headaches -- Constipation -- Cramps -- Going to your first prenatal appointment -- Understanding the consultation -- Considering the physical exam -- Eyeing the standard tests -- Recognizing causes for concern -- Bleeding -- Miscarriage -- Ectopic pregnancy -- For dads : reacting to the news -- 6. The second trimester -- Discovering how your baby is developing -- Understanding your changing body -- Forgetfulness and clumsiness -- Gas -- Hair and nail growth -- Heartburn -- Lower abdominal/groin pain -- Nasal congestion -- Nose bleeds and bleeding gums -- Skin changes -- Checking in : prenatal visits -- Recognizing causes for concern -- Bleeding -- Fetal abnormality -- Incompetent cervix -- Knowing when to seek help -- For dads : watching mom grow -- 7. The third trimester -- Your baby gets ready for birth -- Movin' and shakin' : fetal movements -- Flexing the breathing muscles -- Hiccupping in utero -- Keeping up with your changing body -- Accidents and falls -- Braxton-Hicks contractions -- Carpal tunnel syndrome -- Fatigue -- Hemorrhoids -- Insomnia -- Feeling the baby "drop" -- Pregnancy rashes and itches -- Preparing for breastfeeding -- Sciatica -- Shortness of breath -- Stretch marks -- Swelling -- Urinary stress incontinence -- Varicose veins -- Preparing for labor -- Making a birth plan -- Going back to school : classes to take -- Asking for a C-Section on demand -- Determining who's coming to the hospital -- Timing labor -- Using perineal massage -- Hitting the home stretch : prenatal visits in the third trimester -- Recognizing causes for concern -- Bleeding -- Breech presentation -- Decreased amniotic fluid volume -- Decreased fetal movement -- Fetal growth problems -- Leaking amniotic fluid -- Preeclampsia -- Preterm labor -- When the baby is late -- Getting ready to head to the hospital -- Packing your suitcase -- Choosing--and using--a car seat -- For dads--getting down to the wire -- 8. Understanding prenatal testing -- Considering tests for prenatal diagnosis in the first trimester -- Chorionic villus sampling -- Early amniocentesis -- Testing in the second trimester -- Second-trimester blood tests -- "Looking" at sound waves : ultrasound -- Testing with amniocentesis -- Other prenatal tests and procedures -- Looking at third-trimester tests -- Taking Group B strep cultures -- Gauging lung maturity -- Assessing your baby's current health -- 9. Checking your pregnancy week-by-week -- Weeks 0-4 -- Weeks 5-8 -- Weeks 9-12 -- Weeks 13-16 -- Weeks 17-20 -- Weeks 21-24 -- Weeks 25-28 -- Weeks 29-32 -- Weeks 33-36 -- Weeks 37-40 -- Weeks 40-42.

pt. III. The big event : labor, delivery, and recovery -- 10. Honey, I think I'm in labor! -- Knowing When labor is real--and when it isn't -- Noticing changes before labor begins -- Discerning false labor from true labor -- Deciding when to call your practitioner -- Checking for labor with an internal exam -- Getting admitted to the hospital -- Settling into your hospital room -- Checking out the accommodations -- Monitoring your baby -- Fetal heart monitoring -- Other tests of fetal health -- Nudging things along : labor induction -- Elective induction -- Medically indicated induction -- Inducing labor -- Augmenting labor -- Getting the big picture : stages and characteristics of labor -- The first stage -- The second stage -- The third stage -- Handling labor pain -- Systemic medications -- Regional anesthetics -- General anesthesia -- Considering alternative birthing methods -- Delivering without anesthesia -- Giving birth at home -- Immersing yourself in a water birth -- 11. Special delivery : bringing your baby into the world -- Having a vaginal delivery -- Pushing the baby out -- Getting an episiotomy -- Handling prolonged second-stage labor -- The big moment : delivering your baby -- Delivering the placenta -- Repairing your perineum -- Assisting nature : operative vaginal delivery -- Having a cesarean delivery -- Understanding anesthesia -- Looking at reasons for cesarean delivery -- Recovering from a cesarean delivery -- Congratulations! You did it! -- Shaking after delivery -- Understanding postpartum bleeding -- Hearing your baby's first cry -- Checking your baby's condition -- Cutting the cord -- 12. Hello, world! Your newborn -- Looking at your bundle of joy -- Varnished in vernix -- The shape of the head -- Black-and-blue marks -- Blotches, patches, and more -- Baby hair -- Extremities -- Eyes and ears -- Genitalia and breasts -- Umbilical cord -- Newborn size -- Seeing how your baby breathes -- Knowing what to expect in the hospital -- Preparing baby for life outside the womb -- Understanding baby's developing digestive system -- Considering circumcision -- Spending time in the neonatal intensive care unit -- Checking in : baby's first doctor visit -- Considering heart rate and circulatory changes -- Looking at weight changes -- For dads : home at last--with the new family -- 13. Taking care of yourself after delivery -- Recuperating from delivery -- Looking and feeling like a new mom -- Understanding postpartum bleeding -- Dealing with perineal pain -- Surviving swelling -- Coping with your bladder -- Battling the hemorrhoid blues -- Understanding postpartum bowel function -- Continuing to recover at home -- Recovering from a cesarean delivery -- Going to the recovery room -- Taking it one step at a time -- Understanding post-cesarean pain -- Dealing with post-op pain -- Getting ready to go home -- Continuing to recover at home -- Going through more postpartum changes -- Sweating like a ... new mom -- Dealing with breast engorgement -- Understanding hair loss -- Chasing away the baby blues -- Recognizing postpartum depression -- Checking your progress : The first postpartum doctor visit -- Returning to "normal" life -- Getting fit all over again -- Losing the weight -- Pondering your postpartum diet -- Taking your vitamins -- Doing Kegel exercises -- Having sex again -- Choosing contraception -- 14. Feeding your baby -- Deciding between breast and bottle -- Sizing up the advantages of breast-feeding -- Checking out the benefits of bottle-feeding -- Latching onto breast-feeding -- Looking at the mechanics of lactation -- Checking out breast-feeding positions -- Getting the baby to latch on -- Orchestrating feedings -- Maintaining your diet -- Looking at birth control options -- Determining which medications are safe -- Handling common problems -- Breast-feeding twins -- Bottle-feeding for beginners -- Stopping milk production -- Choosing the best bottles and nipples -- Feeding your baby from a bottle -- Dealing with baby's developing digestive system.

pt. IV. Dealing with special concerns -- 15. Pregnancies with special considerations -- Figuring out how age matters -- Over-30 something moms -- Not-so-young dads -- Very young moms --Having twins or more -- Looking at types of multiples -- Determining whether multiples are identical or fraternal -- Down syndrome screening in pregnancies with twins or more -- Genetic testing in pregnancies with twins or more -- Keeping track of which baby is which -- Living day-to-day during a multiple pregnancy -- Going through labor and delivery -- Covering special issues for moms with multiples -- Monitoring for preterm labor in twins -- Getting pregnant again -- Realizing how each pregnancy differs -- Giving birth after a prior cesarean delivery -- If you're a nontraditional family -- Preparing your child (or children) for a new arrival -- Explaining pregnancy -- Making baby-sitting arrangements for your delivery -- Coming home -- 16. When things get complicated -- Dealing with preterm labor -- Checking for signs of preterm labor -- Stopping preterm labor -- Preventing preterm labor -- Delivering the baby early -- Handling preeclampsia -- Understanding placental conditions -- Placenta previa -- Placental abruption -- Recognizing problems with the amniotic fluid and sac -- Too much amniotic fluid -- Too little amniotic fluid -- Rupture of the amniotic sac -- Describing problems with fetal growth -- Smaller-than-average babies -- Larger-than-average babies -- Looking at blood incompatibilities -- The Rh factor -- Other blood mismatches -- Dealing with breech presentation -- Pondering post-date pregnancy -- 17. Pregnancy in sickness and in health -- Getting an infection while pregnant -- Bladder and kidney infections -- Chickenpox -- Colds and flu -- Seasonal allergies and hay fever -- Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections -- German measles (Rubella) -- Hepatitis -- Herpes infections -- Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) -- Listeria -- Lyme disease -- Parvovirus infection (Fifth disease) -- Stomach viruses (gastroenteritis) -- Toxoplasmosis -- Vaginal infections -- Handling prepregnancy conditions -- Asthma -- Chronic hypertension -- Deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolus -- Diabetes -- Fibroids -- Immunological problems -- Inflammatory bowel disease -- Seizure disorders (epilepsy) -- Thyroid problems -- 18. Coping with the unexpected -- Surviving recurrent miscarriages -- Coping with late-pregnancy loss -- Dealing with fetal abnormalities -- Finding help -- Beginning to heal.

pt. V. The part of tens -- 19. Ten things nobody tells you -- Pregnancy lasts longer than nine months -- Other people can drive you crazy -- You feel exhausted in the first trimester -- Round ligament pain really hurts -- Your belly becomes a hand magnet -- Hemorrhoids are a royal pain in the butt -- Sometimes women poop while pushing -- The weight stays on after the baby comes out -- Hospital pads are relics from your mother's era -- Breast engorgement really sucks and breast-feeding can be a production -- 20. Ten (or so) healthy snacks for pregnant women -- Chunky dried fig, coconut, and almond granola -- Guilt-free oatmeal cookies -- Peanut butter, chocolate, and banana quesadillas -- Double salmon dip -- Herbed cottage cheese dip with whole-grain bread -- Roasted tomatoes and mozzarella bites -- Chickpea parsley dip with pita chips and celery and carrot sticks -- Peanut butter and dried fruit bars -- Pregnancy for dummies fruit smoothie -- 21. Ten key things you can see on ultrasound -- Measurement of crown-rump length -- The face -- The spine -- The heart -- The hands -- The foot -- The fetal profile -- Three-dimensional image -- It's a boy! -- It's a girl! -- Index.

Offers all of the latest information expecting parents want to know, including expanded coverage on the health and well-being of both mother and child throughout pregnancy. Features new and updated coverage of prenatal genetic screening and diagnosis, amniocentesis, new high-tech ultrasounds, and the revised FDA/USDA food pyramid. It also discusses the recent celebrity trend of "on-demand" cesarean sections, multiple births, what to expect in labor and delivery, postpartum care, choosing bottle or breastfeeding, preparing a home (and siblings) for a new baby, caring for preemies, and the mother's mental as well as physical health.