To Carry Wonder
By: Emese C. Parker, RN, WHNP-BC, MPH, PMH-C, NCMP
Looking to enhance your pregnancy and motherhood experience? You’ve found it, mama! To Carry Wonder is a fun new type of pregnancy book, a curated blend of story and art with evidence-based insight. It’s a two-in-one keepsake—a nurturing companion and guide for mamas and mamas-to-be. Parker draws from her own personal and clinical experiences with pregnancy, providing practical support via candid memoirs and conversational heart-to-hearts—to inspire wholeness in pregnancy and motherhood.
More Testimonials...
”Part best-friend-telling-it-like-it-is, part expert-practitioner-advising-you, To Carry Wonder is a beautifully crafted pregnancy-through-postpartum guide. Packed with practical and professional advice, tools, and resources, enchanting artwork, and must-have appendices, Emese Parker has created something unique—a relatable, information-packed book that will leave readers feeling understood, educated, and wishing they could meet up with Emese for lunch, or perhaps, a playdate.
Christina G. Hibbert, Psy.DClinical psychologist, maternal mental health expert, #1 best-selling author of This is How We Grow & 8 Keys to Mental Health Through Exercise
”Informative, with up-to-date medical information, yet lighthearted with plenty LOL moments. You will feel like you are in a book club with your best pals while gaining valuable knowledge. . . . I will definitely encourage my patients to read this book, not only for the educational value but to assure them that their symptoms are experienced by many and overcome by most. Wish I had this book when I was expecting!
Lexie Morales, MDObstetrician-Gynecologist
”Parker's is a supportive and encouraging voice to have on your ever-changing pregnancy journey.
Miriam Schultz, MDClinical Associate Professor, Stanford School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health
”To Carry Wonder is a unique blend of earnest memoir and technical week-by-week pregnancy guide. [Parker’s]ambitious compendium is packed with tips and resources and is especially useful for the person navigating pregnancy for the first time. [It] acknowledges the vast spectrum of feelings and experiences women may have as they go through the prenatal stages, and . . . makes accessible some critical topics around body image, sex, and mental health. Parker’s is a supportive and encouraging voice to have along on your ever-changing pregnancy journey.
Miriam Schultz, MDClinical Associate Professor, Stanford School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health
”Informative and poignant. With humor and candor, Emese walks readers through the weeks of pregnancy in an easy-to-read format. This is an invaluable book for those who are pregnant and their partners.
Heidi Collins Fantasia, PhD, RN, WHNP-BC, FNAP, FAANUniversity of Massachusetts, Lowell, School of Nursing
”This is a great resource for mothers and partners . . . [and] could be useful to doulas, student midwives, and antenatal teachers. While aimed at a U.S.-based audience, much of the content could easily be transferred to other countries.
Dianne Garland, FRCM, SRN, RM, ADM, PGCEA, MScMidwifery Today
”A well-written guide . . . filled with colorful illustrations depicting diverse women and babies. I felt like the author was sitting beside me sharing her personal pregnancy and early motherhood journey with grace, humor, and style. I found myself laughing out loud and my eyes filling with tears as she experienced this process. The stories are interspersed between evidenced-based nursing and medical knowledge that all women making this journey need. As an women’s health nurse practitioner with 25+ years of experience providing care to women, I highly recommend both the book and guide.
Allyssa L. Harris, RN, PhD, WHNP-BCDean and Professor, Prairie View A&M University, College of Nursing
”[Parker shares] the experience of pregnancy and postpartum . . . [with] a whimsical and personal tone [and] valuable educational content that is well-researched and up-to-date. She takes complex topics and illustrates them for readers in an approachable way. . . . I was particularly pleased and impressed to see both the breadth and depth of information on mental health topics that are frequent during this vulnerable perinatal time. I would highly recommend this as reading for anyone planning a pregnancy, currently pregnant, or in the early postpartum stage.
Anna Glezer, MDCertified Integrative Psychiatrist Associate Professor of Psychiatry, UC San Francisco Founder of Women's Wellness Psychiatry
”This is a must-have . . . A treasure trove of valuable information, resources, and references that focus on the physical and mental health of women during each stage of pregnancy and the first months after giving birth.
Cheryl Tatano Beck, DNSc, CNM, FAANDistinguished Professor, University of Connecticut, School of Nursing
”I felt like the author was sitting beside me sharing her personal pregnancy and early motherhood journey with grace, humor, and style.
Allyssa L. Harris, RN, PhD, WHNP-BCDean and Professor, Prairie View A&M University, College of Nursing
”To Carry Wonder is very down to earth and speaks to Mama’s everywhere. It is an easy read and can be picked up and started anywhere in the book.
Chris Raines, RN, MSN, APRN-BC, PMH-CPostpartum Support International Board Chair Emeritus, Adjunct Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Department of Psychiatry
Keeping her readers’ unique and varied needs in mind, Emese sheds lights on must-know topics like:
- Mental health and body image
- Intimacy and relationships
- Common motherhood myths and experiences
- Health care rights and providers
- Relaxation and sleep
- Labor or Cesarean birth prep
- Connecting with and feeding your baby
- Support-person tips
- Returning to work or school
- Perfectionism and mom guilt
Mama, here’s a word that can change your world:
Matrescence
What’s Matrescence?
It’s the “mother-becoming” journey that profoundly shifts a woman’s identity.
In fact, the transformations are so dramatic that Dr. Aurelie Athan, a clinical psychologist, compares it to adolescence. It changes how we view ourselves, our roles, relationships and community.
It shapes our beliefs, our careers, and dreams—everything.
Matrescence starts preconception, continues through pregnancy, birth (or adoption or surrogacy) and extends into the motherhood years. It restarts with each child and may even last a lifetime, who knows!
Help me spread the love!
- At Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Goodreads:
Write an online review so others can find my book. Make it short and sweet or give it a star rating. - Ask your local library to carry the book. The online form may be under your library’s “contact us.”
International Justice Mission
This book is a freedom partner, supporting the work of International Justice Mission, a global nonprofit committed to combatting slavery and violence against women and children.
hi!
I’m Emese
Mama + author + motherhood support specialist
I’m thrilled you’re here! Over the past 18 years, I’ve creatively supported thousands of women through major life and hormonal transitions. With special interests in motherhood and maternal mental health, I join women as they navigate pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause and menopause.
What an honor it is to be doing this work! It never gets old. Women are incredible people (right?!) whose strength, wisdom, creativity, insight, and fierceness are like none other. When women flourish, they light up the world and everyone around them benefits.
I am here to support and empower women so they can flourish and not lose themselves in motherhood.
More About Me
Freebies
For the Mother who Feels Insecure About her Body
Written & narrated by Jessica Hover
Pregnancy and Postpartum
Pelvic Floor
Perimenopause
Coming soon.
Mental Health
- Black Mental Health Alliance
- Health in Her Hue
- Jenna Overbaugh, LPC – Therapist, OCD/anxiety Pro
- Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for Women’s Mental Health
- National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA)
- National Maternal Mental Health Hotline:1-833-9-HELP4MOMS (1-833-943-5746)
- Perinatal Psychiatry Programs for Moms
- Postpartum Progress
- Postpartum Support International (PSI)
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Nutrition and Infant Feeding
Infant Feeding
Baby/Toddler
General
Contact Emese
I’m so glad you’re here.
Feel free to contact me about speaking engagements, collaborations or if you just want to say hello. You can use the form below or email me directly at hello@tocarrywonder.com.
