This review and giveaway is way overdue, but it is one I have been looking forward to doing for a long time. 

Prenatal Peace & Calming  is a beautiful audio CD created by Jill Wodnick, MA, CD (which means Certified Doula by DONA.org).   I listened to the CD on my recent trip down to the United States Breastfeeding Committee Annual Conference.   Even though I am not expecting-I have two kids and am tapped out-I found listening to Jill’s voice tremendously soothing.    The CD has five sections, 1. Welcome, 2. Physical Relaxation, 3. Walking in the Water, 4. Spiraling and 5. Wholeness & Stillness.     The purpose of the CD is to help you relax, connect with your baby, and increase your confidence in your body’s ability to have an amazing birth experience.   A portion of the proceeds of each sale of the CD will go directly to EarthBirth, a non-profit organization devoted to making childbirth safe and peaceful in war-torn regions.   The CD is designed in an eco-friendly manner with recycled packaging.   

Jill Wodnick is a fantastic communicator and teacher, and although she is no longer in private practice as a labor doula, has years of experience helping expecting mothers have a successful birth experience, and has trained birth and materna health professionals.   Jill is the Expert Doula for Destination Maternity, the largest maternity retail, Pregnancy Magazine, the PBS program ‘Real Savvy Moms‘ and the non profit Parental Wisdom site.  Frequently quoted as an expert in childbirth, pregnancy and parenthood topics, Jill is passionate about the essential topic of maternal-child health.  Jill has taught at Montclair State University, Seton Hall Prep, Seton Hall University, the PA State System of Higher Education’s Undergraduate Women’s Leadership Institute, Kent Place’s Girls Leadership Institute, and the NJ Governor’s School of Public Issues.  She also teaches prenatal yoga classes at the Montclair YMCA Family Center. 

Jill Wodnick, MA, CD (DONA)

What I like about this CD is that Jill has a powerful, yet gentle, deep and calm voice, exactly the kind of voice you want to comfort and reassure you if you are pregnant and anxious about your baby’s birth.   I wish this CD had been available when I was pregnant with my first child; I had the total opposite of an empowered birth.   I was disconnected from my body, annoyed at being huge, had not prepared, and had given my power away by simply assuming that the hospital would know what to do.   (Well, they did, but only from the perspective of a highly medicalized, unrelaxing birth experience!)   If you are expecting, I encourage you to do your homework about birth in the U.S. (especially the abnormally high c-section rate), listen to this CD, and check out some of the information at www.mybestbirth.com and some of the other great birth resources on the web.   The type of birth you have, and more importantly, your confidence and ability to relax into your power as a woman, can have a profound effect on your birth experience, your breastfeeding experience, and your risk for post-partum depression.    The best thing is that listening to CDs, or taking yoga classes or learning about birth and breastfeeding can be fun and completely captivating.   I also like that this CD has a beautiful, mainstream cover so it could appeal to women who are not into the whole earthy-crunchy thing.   It is so important to reach more women who are not plugged into the holistic birth community!

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