What was the most helpful conception-related book you've read?

[ezymay]

I read lots before conceiving. We thought we would have to do ivf because of DH's chemo treatment (but didn't need to in the end)

On my bookshelf

Making Babies- Dr Warwick Carter
Making babies (personal ivf stories)- Teresa Miller
Sex at 6pm- Annarosa Berman
Getting pregnant the hard way- Mikeal Svanstrom (from a mans pov)

I liked reading real life stories! And of course my biggest help was BB! That's where I found out about charting and mucus and all sorts of things!!

[willow5]

I found 'Taking Charge of Your Fertility' by Toni Weschler really good. Easy to read and informative

[luna moth]

Planning A Baby - I think it's by Sarah Brewer?
Stay Fertile Longer - forget who that's by, and have passed it on. Great advice about all manner of aspects.

[BellyBelly]

Just conception books, not pregnancy ones

[melbel]

For LTTC'rs "Is my body baby friendly" by Dr. Alan Beers....it's a goldmine of information and new research into fertility issues...gave us the answers we needed to conceive our little miracle.

[kass]

Good thread!

Toni Weschler "Taking Charge of your Fertility" was really good - kind of a bible for charting!

Zita West "Fertility and Assisted Conception" covers all the basics of ac in an easy to read style. It's pretty lengthy, but a lot of that is recalling previous chapters, so it's good to dip into. She promotes a more holistic approach than many fs including acupuncture and meditation. The book has lots of case studies and good general info about procedures, diet and other factors. I think it's a good starting point for ivf

Hugh Melnick "The Pregnancy Prescription" is focused on ac. He breaks fs into two groups: 'success oriented' and 'diagnosis oriented', with 'success' being minimum invasive testing (Bt and semen analysis only) before deciding which method of ac (if any) should be used. I guess it's a 'why bother having a lap if hubby's sperm is no good - straight to ivf!' approach. I found this a little hard to accept as I'm someone who likes to have definitive answers for why things don't work, but aside from this it does have good info about different procedures and lots of us pics which (I think) are pretty interesting

Marilyn Shannon 'Fertility, Cycles and Nutrition' is good for info on how what you eat can affect conception. It's really based on natural conception, but the general principles apply to anyone. It has chapters on endometriosis, pcos, low/hyperthyroid, luteal phase problems and male fertility. Shannon is basically promoting a healthy, balanced diet and includes lots if info about how vitamins and minerals affect us

Jeremy and Lorie Groll "Fertility Foods" is also about how nutrition affects conception. Their argument is that insulin resistance is one of the major factors in infertility and the way to overcome it is through a low-carb, high-protein diet. To be honest I only skimmed this one as that approach doesn't seem very balanced to me, however after flicking through it again this morning I've decided to take another look - I'll let you know how I go

Looking forward to seeing what other people recommend!

[M22]

I loved Jools Oliver- Minus 9 to 1, great read about her ttc journey. I loved reading about how she concieved her girls and it was a pretty honest book too. I could relate to it well.

[BlackRose]

I found 'Taking Charge of Your Fertility' by Toni Weschler really good. Easy to read and informative

Me too.. this book was great

[babymaker]

Natural Fertility by Francesca Nash

[FancyPants]

The most helpful book I've read has been Taking Charge of Your Fertility.

Why:
-Insightful information about how a woman's reproductive system works, what the signs of fertility are, and how to interpret them easily.
-I learned things I didn't know and that many other women didn't know, such as the stages of ovulation and how to tell what is happening when and why it's important.
-Charts to help you keep record.
-How to prevent and achieve pregnancy using these signs.
-Each section had example charts on how those signs can be documented.
-It's not just a charting reference. It's a full fertility reference with a charting option.

Mini rant: Every girl should be given this book for their first period (if they're emotionally able to comprehend such a thing) so they can learn what their body is doing and why. It would be empowering to them to understand their bodies. Too many girls are so grossed out by the thought of talking about such a normal and natural function for no reason. And also, they'd definitely read it because tweens are naturally curious about sex and will go so far as to look up "penis" "vagina" and "breasts" in the dictionary so there's no worry that they'd never open it. This would hardly give them the vapors and would open a dialogue between parent and child. My 42 year old friend asked me about cervical mucous today (came up in TTC conversation) and was shocked that EWCM meant ovulation. And she told me "I know I have a vagina and I've been around a while, but ewwwwww" after she read about the different types of cervical mucous. Women shouldn't be grossed out by their nethers!

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

The Impatient Woman's Guide to Getting Pregnant by Jean M Twenge

An easy read containing lots humour and explains how the body works.
Includes info on cervical mucus, temperatures and different ovulation predictors.
Meta-analyses of various different research papers, including the chances of falling (and staying) pregnant.
An interesting look on gender selection, what works (pre-implantation stuff), what doesn't (Gender Calendars) and what is completely wrong (Shettles).