Many mothers-to-be find themselves torn between choosing a natural childbirth with minimal medical intervention, and the peace of mind offered by instant access to life-saving technology that only a hospital can provide.

Cynthia Gabriel, a doula who has attended hundreds of births and who advises hospitals on how to facilitate low-intervention childbirths, knows that new moms can have both. In this fully updated edition of her popular and pioneering book Natural Hospital Birth, Gabriel gives moms, as well as partners and even medical personnel, concise and reassuring guidance on how to have as natural a birth as possible in a hospital setting.

Gabriel shows expectant mothers how to avoid unnecessary medical interventions, how to take the initiative and consciously prepare for the kind of birth they want, and how to prepare a birth plan to share with doctors and nurses at the hospital.

Cynthia Gabriel is a doula, a childbirth educator, a medical anthropologist with a Ph.D. from the University of California at Santa Cruz, and a mother of three. She attends births and leads women’s and parents’ support groups in the Ann Arbor, Michigan, area, where she lives with her family. She is the author of the best-selling book Natural Hospital Birth.