Dr Gowri Motha is one the UK's most respected obstetricians, working in holistic practice alongside Dr Yehudi Gordon. Her Gentle Birth Method has been hugely popular with celebrities, including Gwyneth Paltrow. Now she helps mothers in the first year after birth bond with their child and give them the best start in life. A book that takes new parents month by month through the first weeks after birth - with detailed information on the health of mother and baby - and progresses to the end of the first year. Covering everything from colic and sleepless nights to your relationship with your partner, the book is a practical and emotionally reassuring guide to help you bond with your new child. It contains: * the first weeks: the idea of creating a gentle passage into the world for the child and how to ensure good bonding is discussed * the health of your baby and toddler. From early days of breast feeding and helping your baby to sleep to introducing first foods and coping with early childhood ailments * the health of the mother: everything from episiotomy scarring to misaligned pelvises, insomnia and baby blues. Gowri introduces special massage and yoga techniques * the growing child: stage-by-stage development and introducing useful toys and books * family relationships: fathers and siblings, and grandparents

Childbirth guru Dr Gowri Motha, who practises with Dr Yehudi Gordon - author of Birth and Beyond - shows women how her revolutionary method helps women carry the baby to full term, have less intervention in the birth; feel less pain in labour, and feel happy and in control. The Gentle Birth method is a concise pregnancy programme combining diverse therapies such as 'creative healing' massage, a simple diet, self-hypnosis, reflexology and affirmation techniques The method was created by Dr Gowri Motha as an alternative to conventional obstetric practise, when she became alarmed at the increasing number of women needing intervention during their births. It teaches expectant mothers how to train their bodies and minds in order to reduce or prevent complications during pregnancy and labour. This book outlines the Method, with a month-by-month programme explaining how to rebalance the body and tailor it to the optimum condition for the birthing process. It includes guides to treating problems such as: - back pain - nausea - heartburn - fluid retention - stretch marks The programme offers women a formal framework in which to prepare their bodies and so avoid facing a labour that is unnecessarily long, arduous and traumatic, with significantly lower uptakes of pain relief.