Feeling like the information herein is unecessary at times. It is problem obsessed- almost to the piont of hysteria, with all the things that could go wrong. The writing is also over-the-top! Like the advice to husbands to try to urge their pregnant partners to maintain their weight by reminding then to orde their chicken grilled, not breaded, at dinner time? I don't think I'd appreciate that kind of "help" or "reminder" from my partner. Comes off as pretentious to me, touting orders, but offering no help on how to live up to standards it lays out. Barking "no caffeine", but with no suggestions for stopping a daily addiction cold turkey. I don't know. My copy is going back on the thrift store shelf.

I agree- it's all about scare and it's inconsistent. It says that back-lying is one of the worst for labor, but then when it talks about labor in emergency situations tells you to lie on your back! Dumb dumb dumb. The editor obviously wasn't looking for logical consistencies.

Everytime I meet someone who's expecting there first baby I tell them not to read this book, because they'll just worry about the things in the book! I hate this book!! It literally kept me up nights when I was pregnant, I could've been sleeping!!!

When I found out I was pregnant, a friend of mine sent me a copy and swore by it. After skimming over it as I got more pregnant, I realized that if I close the book and just let my body do what it is doing, I'll be fine. I found more comfort in books that focused more on the positive aspects of all the things that were happening to me.

I think the Pregnancy Journal is a much better idea of what to expect without the fear. All pregnancies are different. If laying on your back is good for you, do it!

I always glanced at this book when I was pregnant thinking I should pick it up. I'm glad now that I didn't!

I just thought that it was a waste of money, because you can get all the same info online for free. Erica

My wife was given this book when we learned she was pregnant and she actually found it fascinating and reassuring, loaded with information she knew to take with a grain of salt, checking everything out with her own experience and her doctor's advice. She appreciated it so well she bought What To Expect The First Year and found that even more helpful.

Algernon - well, bully for your wife. I'm glad it helped someone.

I can't stand any of the What to Expect books, all of which we've been given, and which I promptly posted on Paperback Swap.

I do recommend Happiest Baby on the Block - what books did you all find helpful /after/ getting rid of What to Expect?

I agree with Algernon... If you take What to Expect with a grain of salt and discuss your questions with your OB/midwife, it's a great resource. I'm a "soak up all the available information" type of person, so having LOTS of info suits my style. I like the indexing so that you can find information on a particular topic if you need it. I also like hearing that I'm not the only one who has crazy dreams or drools a lot or gets funny red bumps on my abdomen. I'm not worried about these things, but I sure like hearing that I'm not alone.

A lot of people are saying they thought it was out to scare them. No, I think Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care is out to scare you. What to Expect is out to cram your head so full of information you can't expect to remember, let alone use, even half of it. But that's OK by me! I'm happy to go back an re-read the section on what drugs to take for your cold and how to have sex when you're the size of a blimp when I need to. And when my Internet connection is down and i'm feeling sick or sexy, that's handy information to have.

adding my voice to the pro-expecting crowd. because this book felt like it contained everything, i was able to relax every time i was thrown a curve-ball in my pregnancy. many of the other books felt like they were leaving out the bad stuff, or glossing over things, which made me anxious. others also focused on the "what" of pregnancy and not the "why" (like this one). being able to understand the reason behind issues was an incredible source of comfort and also helped me make my own decisions when it came to what advice i would follow.

cross referencing the friendlier books with this book and my ob/gyn set my mind at ease.