Some readers may be put off at first by Northrup's obviously unconventional ways of thinking. Her medical approach is decidedly feminist, blaming our "addictive" and patriarchal society for many of the health problems plaguing women. She clearly illustrates her ideas, however, by drawing upon two decades of experience from her medical practice and citing dozens of her patients' remarkable personal stories. Northrup also delineates the best way to go about tuning in to one's body and mind in order to start the healing process, a self-induced therapy of sorts. She also includes in the book a copy of the eye-opening health inventory she gives her clients. It includes unusual questions such as "Are you bored with your life?" and "Do you have enough friends or neighbors?"

This book will be of special benefit to women who are pregnant or entering menopause. Northrup is an unequivocal believer in natural births and her dialogue on the birthing process will remove the fears of even the most petrified mother-to-be. She criticizes episiotomies (she should know; she's given birth without one) and supports midwifery. She also warns against the harmfulness of cesarean births and includes illustrations of acupressure points that help turn around a breech baby.

For women in perimenopause or menopause, Northrup will help turn this life phase into one of peace and personal growth instead of one of suffering. She was one of the first doctors to use natural progesterone to treat menopausal symptoms, and this revised edition includes a clear primer on the latest in hormone replacement therapy and how to determine if it's right for you. Northrup also expounds upon the benefits of acupuncture and herbalism--as well as emotional self-analysis--for alleviating hot flashes and mood swings. --Erica Jorgensen

Product Description
A groundbreaking book on women's physical and emotional well-being, Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom has become a classic, with more than 270,000 copies in print in the four years since its initial publication. Now it has been completely revised, offering the most up-to-date information available on women's health issues.

Christiane Northrup's vision of mind-body wellness has received an extraordinary response from women all over the world. Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom powerfully demonstrates that when women change the basic conditions of their lives that lead to health problems, they heal faster, more completely, and with far fewer medical interventions.

Now Dr. Northrup brings us vital new information about the best techniques of Western medicine and the best alternative therapies, showing how to incorporate both into a complementary whole. She guides readers through the entire range of women's health problems, and offers strikingly new, positive perspectives on normal processes, such as menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause. This edition includes:

• An all-new nutrition chapter emphasizing individual dietary needs and body chemistry

• New information on improving fertility after age 35—and how to cut the risk of C-section by 50 percent

• A completely updated program for menopause, including how to decide whether natural hormone replacement is right for you

• Holistic ways to prepare and heal faster if surgery is necessary

• Plus dozens of new natural treatments and a wealth of hard-to-find health care resources

Filled with dramatic case histories from the famed Women to Women health care center, Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom is contemporary medicine at its best, combining new technologies with natural remedies and the miraculous healing powers within the body itself.

I appreciate the hard scientific information: how our bodies work, how various procedures and substances affect them, the latest developments in health care. I also appreciated reading that things that I have long considered normal, like pregnancy, are indeed natural processes and not diseases or disabilities. But I didn't appreciate hearing that most medical problems are rooted in dysfunctional emotional states. While I think that there are some conditions that are amenable to a psychotherapeutic approach, I KNOW that the hideous cramps I suffered all through my young girlhood, from age 11 to about 27, were a lot more than merely a function of my ambivalence toward my burgeoning womanhood. And while this isn't my problem, the idea that an enlightened female doctor would tell an infertile woman that her infertility is caused by her own psychological state vis a vis parenthood is absolutely horrifying. As is the idea that grapefruit-sized ovarian cysts can be reduced by changing the way we regard ourselves in a patriarchal society. And the idea that most of our plumbing problems are rooted in our victimhood reverses all the gains in strength and self-confidence we've made in the past 30 years. And the less said about her friend the "medical intuitive," the better!

I recommend this book only to women who are grounded, strong in their sense of self as non-victims, and well-versed enough in medical knowledge to winnow through the junk and glean the good medical information. For the rest, I think it could be quite damaging.


Excellent resource for healing & curing body/mind/emotion e.   May 23, 1999
 101 out of 112 found this review helpful

This is a compassionate, extremely well-written book that gets to the core of the physical and emotional issues related to every aspect of women's health. The idea here is NOT to instill self-blame for getting ill, but rather the issue is to instill self-love through understanding of our bodies and illnesses. Best of all, it's about health, not just illness.

This is a very empowering, healing book for women that includes the hardcore clincal data & references, the stories of actual women, and the nutritional, emotional, and spiritual aspects of healing. It accomplishes all of this in clear, easy to read laymen's terms. It helps to debunk a number of misconceptions that affect our approach to health.

This book is by and for women. This book treats women with respect and acknowledgement for what we instinctively know about our bodies and our health. Every woman should own a copy of this superb health reference source.

Dr. Northrup's appearances on PBS specials, Oprah, and others along with her leadership at the Women to Women health care center, and her past presidency of the American Holistic Medical Association, to name just a few, provide all the credibility anyone could ask for. Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom, as the name implies, is about and for WOMEN. It succeeds on every level.


Double Edged Sword   March 16, 2004
 92 out of 97 found this review helpful

This is the first major book to look at women's health systematically from a holistic perspective. My sister, an ND, gave this to me many years ago. I have referred to it many times since I first read it and my friends always want to borrow it. It's a great reference.

If you are looking purely for an objective scientific book on women's health then don't bother with this. There is a lot of scientific info but there's a lot of "non-science" as well. Read the lowest reviews first which fairly summarise the weaknesses of this text. I agree that this book comes across as flaky in places however it is a breakthrough work in terms of systematically exploring the integration of mind and body and the effect of this balance on health.

While I applaud the effort to make people realise how their mental state can impact their health, the other side of that sword is that women feel they are to blame for having the "wrong state of mind" which leads to poor health.

For instance in one story a woman became infertile because, in the author's opinion, she didn't feel her husband was the right person to have children with. If you're pragmatic you can hear this story, consider if it applies to you and discard it if it doesn't fit. But some women could develop a guilt complex over something that is upsetting on its own without the added blame.

Ultimately, the problem with this kind of thinking is that it leads to a vicious worry cycle: you worry that you might not have the right state of mind for good health... and then you worry that your worrying risks your health further! But to ignore this altogether also poses risk. Stress does cause disease and an integrated approach to health cannot exist without considering a person's state of mind.

Because this book provides significant medical information, the reader could be lead into taking all the author's opinions as fact. Take the opinions as just that and you will find the book enjoyable. It is informative and thought provoking.


A Profound and Empowering Book   November 22, 1999
 69 out of 76 found this review helpful

I am a person who reads a lot, and I learn a great deal about myself by sifting through the wisdom of writers. There have been many books over the years that have touched me deeply and positively impacted my life; of all of them, this book is probably the most personally important book I have ever read. Dr. Northrup has a lot of facts about various conditions and ailments, but her book goes FAR beyond that. Her message is that we all have the ability to be completely whole, healthy people, in every aspect of our lives, and that each of us has the power to change our own lives for the better. She talks about how emotional issues of every type can affect our physical health, and illustrates over and over again how problems in our body are actually our souls' way of teaching us how to heal and grow. The stories she tells about her own and her patients' healings are amazing; her message of hope is the most real and specific I have ever read.


A must reading for every woman; a wholistic guide to living   December 4, 1999
 68 out of 77 found this review helpful

After seeing Christiane Northrup on PBS I immediately ordered my first copy from Amazon. This book is not to be read in one or two sittings. It should be read one chapter at a time, to digest every morsel of her expertise and knowledge. Keep this one close by, so you can pick it up on those bleak days. This book is remarkably low priced to make it affordable for everyone. It's the best gift you can give to any woman in your life. My three daughters will be getting each one at Christmas along with a weekend retreat at a lovely place that I found in Maine by the ocean. This will be my gift to them, so that they can take some time out of their very busy lives and get centered on the importance of taking care of spirit, body and soul. You can't be for others if you don't take care of yourself. You can't give what you don't have, if you push yourself beyond your limitations you get very negative, burnt out, depressed and overwhelmed. It's not easy to stay focused and centered but it is a must, if we are all going to survive in this sometimes very noisy world. Christiane Northrup, I salute you for taking the time in your busy life and giving of yourself in seeing this book published. Other books that have help me become more centered: Care of the Soul-Guide to every day by Thomas Moore and Anatomy of the Spirit by Caroline Myss.