The Unexpected
Navigating Pregnancy During and After Complications
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- $15.99
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
From the New York Times bestselling author of Expecting Better, a guide to navigating a second pregnancy when the first did not go as planned—with Dr. Nathan Fox, maternal fetal medicine specialist
In Expecting Better, Emily Oster revolutionized the pregnancy landscape with her data-driven approach. In the years since, she kept hearing questions from readers on how to approach a second pregnancy when the first has not gone as planned.
While The Unexpected is a book that Oster hopes no one needs, the reality is that 50 percent of pregnancies include complications, a fact we don’t talk about. Preeclampsia, miscarriage, hyperemesis gravidarum, preterm birth, postpartum depression: these are lonely experiences, and that isolation makes treatment harder to access—and crucial research and policy change less likely to happen.
The Unexpected lays out the data on recurrence and treatments shown to lower or mitigate risk for these conditions in subsequent pregnancies. It also provides readers road maps to facilitate productive conversations with their providers, with insights from lauded maternal fetal medicine specialist Dr. Nathan Fox.
By bridging the knowledge gap and making space for difficult conversations, The Unexpected promises to make the hardest parts of pregnancy a little bit less so.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Oster (The Family Firm), an economics professor at Brown University, teams up with obstetrician Fox to provide a thorough primer on preeclampsia, fetal growth restriction, miscarriage, and other pregnancy difficulties. In each chapter, Oster details recurrence rates and care options for a condition, and then Fox describes how he treats patients experiencing it. For instance, Oster explains that gestational diabetes, which can occur when "the hormones of the placenta affect processing of blood sugar," has a roughly 48% chance of recurring in future pregnancies and is typically treated through diet and exercise. Fox then assures readers that for most people, gestational diabetes is a "nuisance... but not a dangerous one" and can usually be kept in check by eating fewer carbohydrates and increased protein. The authors demonstrate a keen awareness of how the pregnancy following a previous complication can cause psychological distress, as when Fox reports that pregnancies after a stillbirth often revive feelings of grief. To cope, he recommends patients "assemble a strong support system," which might include a psychologist, support group, or loved ones. Oster's cogent presentation of scientific data manages to be informative but not dry. It's a valuable resource for parents who have experienced pregnancy complications.
