Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Foreword xvii
Introduction 1
1 Everything's Changing! 7
2 Inner Preparation for Childbirth and Beyond 17
3 The World in a Raisin 31
4 The Breath: A Friend for Life 43
5 Practicing Embodiment: The Body Scan 57
6 The Dynamic Duo: Pain and Fear 67
7 Mindfulness Practices for Being with Pain 115
8 The Yoga of Childbirth 137
9 Deepening and Expanding Your Practice: Sitting Meditation 153
10 When You're Walking, Just Walk; When You're Birthing, Just Birth 163
11 Mindfulness in Everyday Life 171
12 A Day of Mindfulness Practice 179
13 Befriending: Mindfulness in Relationship 189
14 It's All About Kindness 203
15 Loss, Grief, and Healing Through Mindfulness Practice 219
16 Causes and Conditions: Navigating What Is 225
17 Your Baby, Your Mindfulness Teacher 253
18 Breastfeeding: A Dance of Connection 269
19 Endings and Beginnings: A Last Class 281
20 Life After Birth: A Reunion 291
21 Birthing a Mindfulness Practice 299
Epilogue 317
Appendix A Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting (MBCP) and Integrative Medicine: A Little More Background 321
Appendix B Resources 329
Appendix C Pleasant and Unpleasant Events Calendars 335
Appendix D Mindfulness Practices 341
Notes 343
Credits 349
Index 351
About the Author 361