Water, Birth and Sexuality

Author: Michel Odent
Publisher: CLAIRVIEW BOOKS
ISBN: 1912992256
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 164

Book Description
‘After the historic student revolt in France a period of audacious creativity resulted. The watchword was: “It is forbidden to forbid”. We took advantage of this transient cultural folly to do what would have been impossible ten years before or ten years after, introducing in the maternity unit of a state hospital an inflatable outdoor pool as a way to replace drugs during birth.’ – from the Introduction In this groundbreaking book, Dr Odent takes as his starting point the world-famous work on childbirth at Pithiviers, where he first noticed the strong attraction to water that many women have during labour. As well as discovering the practical advantages of water during the birthing process, he began to consider the meaning and importance of water as a symbol. Water, Birth and Sexuality examines the living power of water and its erotic connotations. Odent evaluates what water meant in different cultures throughout history, through myths and legends, and what it means for us today: from an advertiser’s tool to a metaphor for aspects of the psyche. He also studies humanity’s special relationship to dolphins, and the related ‘aquatic ape’ theory. A practical section on the use of water during birth and in various therapies, particularly sex therapy, is included. This edition of this classic work features a new Introduction.

Water and Sexuality

Author: Michel Odent
Publisher: Penguin Books
ISBN: 9780140191943
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 134

Book Description
LOVE/SEX/MARRIAGE

Integrative Sexual Health

Author: Barbara Bartlik
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190225882
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 585

Book Description
Integrative Sexual Health explores beyond the standard topics in men's and women's health, drawing on a diverse research literature to provide an overview of sexual biology and sexual dysfunction, diverse lifespan, lifestyle and environmental impacts on sexual function, integrative medicine solutions to sexual problems, and traditional eastern and western treatment approaches to healing sexual difficulties. This comprehensive guide written by experts in the field provides clinical vignettes, detailed treatment strategies for mitigating the side effects of both medications and sexual dysfunction associated with medical illness and poor lifestyle habits, and extensive further reading resources. Integrative treatment modalities not typically consulted in mainstream medicine, such as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, aromatherapy, and botanical medicine, are presented with the best evidence, in a clinically relevant manner. Part of the Weil Integrative Medicine Library, this volume is a must read for the specialist and non-specialist alike who wish to address sexual problems using an integrative medicine approach, and acquire tools to maintain lifetime optimal health and vitality that supports healthy sexuality. Integrative medicine is defined as healing-oriented medicine that takes account of the whole person (body, mind, and spirit) as well as all aspects of lifestyle; it emphasizes the therapeutic relationship and makes use of appropriate therapies, both conventional and alternative. Series editor Andrew Weil, MD, is Professor and Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. Dr. Weil's program was the first such academic program in the U.S., and its stated goal is "to combine the best ideas and practices of conventional and alternative medicine into cost effective treatments without embracing alternative practices uncritically."

Sexual Fluidity

Author: Lisa M. Diamond
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674026247
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 352

Book Description
Is love “blind” when it comes to gender? For women, it just might be. This unsettling and original book offers a radical new understanding of the context-dependent nature of female sexuality. Lisa M. Diamond argues that for some women, love and desire are not rigidly heterosexual or homosexual but fluid, changing as women move through the stages of life, various social groups, and, most important, different love relationships.This perspective clashes with traditional views of sexual orientation as a stable and fixed trait. But that view is based on research conducted almost entirely on men. Diamond is the first to study a large group of women over time. She has tracked one hundred women for more than ten years as they have emerged from adolescence into adulthood. She summarizes their experiences and reviews research ranging from the psychology of love to the biology of sex differences. Sexual Fluidity offers moving first-person accounts of women falling in and out of love with men or women at different times in their lives. For some, gender becomes irrelevant: “I fall in love with the person, not the gender,” say some respondents.Sexual Fluidity offers a new understanding of women’s sexuality—and of the central importance of love.

Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health

Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309132975
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 287

Book Description
It's obvious why only men develop prostate cancer and why only women get ovarian cancer. But it is not obvious why women are more likely to recover language ability after a stroke than men or why women are more apt to develop autoimmune diseases such as lupus. Sex differences in health throughout the lifespan have been documented. Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health begins to snap the pieces of the puzzle into place so that this knowledge can be used to improve health for both sexes. From behavior and cognition to metabolism and response to chemicals and infectious organisms, this book explores the health impact of sex (being male or female, according to reproductive organs and chromosomes) and gender (one's sense of self as male or female in society). Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health discusses basic biochemical differences in the cells of males and females and health variability between the sexes from conception throughout life. The book identifies key research needs and opportunities and addresses barriers to research. Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health will be important to health policy makers, basic, applied, and clinical researchers, educators, providers, and journalists-while being very accessible to interested lay readers.

Gentle Birth Choices

Author: Barbara Harper
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1594778639
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 586

Book Description
Birth as every woman would like it to be • Recommended by Lamaze International as one of the top ten books for pregnant women and their families • Includes a 45-minute DVD of six live gentle births • More than 32,000 copies sold of the original edition New parents are faced with a myriad of choices about pregnancy, labor, and birth. In Gentle Birth Choices Barbara Harper, renowned childbirth advocate, nurse, former midwife, and mother of three, helps to clarify these choices and shows how to plan a meaningful, family-centered birth experience. She dispels medical myths and reimagines birth without fear, pain, or violence. Harper explains the numerous gentle birth choices available, including giving birth in an independent birth center, at home, or in a hospital birthing room; finding a primary caregiver who shares your philosophy of birth; and deciding how to best use current technologies. She also provides practical advice for couples wishing to explore the option of using a doula or water during labor and birth to avoid the unwanted effects of drugs and epidurals. The Gentle Birth Choices DVD blends interviews with midwives and physicians and six actual births that illustrate the options of water birth, home birth, and vaginal birth after a prior Cesarean section. The DVD clearly reveals the strength of women during childbirth and the healthy and happy outcome of women exercising gentle birth choices. It is a powerful instructional tool, not only for expectant parents, but also for midwives, hospitals, birth centers, and doctors.

Routledge International Handbook of Women's Sexual and Reproductive Health

Author: Jane M. Ussher
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351035606
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 622

Book Description
The Routledge International Handbook of Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health is the authoritative reference work on important, leading-edge developments in the domains of women’s sexual and reproductive health. The handbook adopts a life-cycle approach to examine key milestones and events in women’s sexual and reproductive health. Contributors drawn from a range of disciplines, including psychology, medicine, nursing and midwifery, sociology, public health, women’s studies, and indigenous studies, explore issues through three main lenses: the biopsychosocial model feminist perspectives international, multidisciplinary perspectives that acknowledge the intersection of identities in women’s lives. The handbook presents an authoritative review of the field, with a focus on state-of-the-art work, encouraging future research and policy development in women’s sexual and reproductive health. Finally, the handbook will inform health care providers about the latest research and clinical developments, including women’s experiences of both normal and abnormal sexual and reproductive functions. Drawing upon international expertise from leading academics and clinicians in the field, this is essential reading for scholars and students interested in women’s reproductive health.

Orgasmic Birth

Author: Elizabeth Davis
Publisher: Rodale Books
ISBN: 1605290971
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 290

Book Description
Based on the hit documentary that inspired a vibrant online community, this innovative approach to birthing shows women how to maximize childbirth's emotional and physical rewards. With more than 4 million babies born in the United States each year, too many women experience birth as nothing more than a routine or painful event. In her much-praised film Orgasmic Birth, acclaimed filmmaker Debra Pascali-Bonaro showed that in fact childbirth is a natural process to be enjoyed and cherished. Now she joins forces with renowned author and activist Elizabeth Davis to offer an enlightening program to help women attain the most empowering and satisfying birth experience possible. While an orgasmic birth can, for some, induce feelings of intense, ecstatic pleasure, it is ultimately about taking control of one's own body and making the most informed decisions to have a safe, memorable, and joyful birth day. Whether women choose to give birth at home, in a hospital, or in a birthing center, Orgasmic Birth provides all the necessary tools and guidance to design the birth plan that's best for them. Featuring inspiring stories from mothers and their partners and filled with practical advice and solutions, this one-of-a-kind resource is the next frontier of natural, intimate childbirth.

Exploring the Dimensions of Human Sexuality

Author: Jerrold S. Greenberg
Publisher: Jones & Bartlett Publishers
ISBN: 1449650112
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 1134

Book Description
Exploring the Dimensions of Human Sexuality, Fourth Edition addresses all aspects of sexuality—biological, spiritual, psychological, and sociocultural—and presents the information both factually and impartially.Throughout the text, students will find an emphasis on health and well-being based on the assumption that we are all sexual beings and that sexuality should be viewed in its totality. Students are encouraged to explore the varied dimensions of human sexuality and see how each affects their own personal sexuality, sexual health, and sexual responsibility. Important Notice: The digital edition of this book is missing some of the images or content found in the physical edition.

Conscious Conception

Author: Jeannine Parvati Baker
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 9780938190837
Category : California
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
In an age when modern reproductive technology is moving at a rapid and alarming rate, Conscious Conception is an alternative exploration into understanding personal fertility, as well as a comprehensive guide to discovering newfound meaning in our sexuality. Combining knowledge of myth and culture, authors Jeannine Parvati Baker and Frederick Baker offer a step-by-step manual of fertility awareness, depth psychology, and psychic birth control and interweave the five elements—Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Ether—as tools for discovery in the face of reproductive challenges. Including numerous contributions from experts in the field, the book investigates a broad range of topics, from the causes of infertility to the spiritualization of sexuality. Conscious Conception urges us to see all of the possibilities in life’s plan of continuation and to seek a clearer communion with our own reproductive experience. Over 20,000 copies sold.