April 19, 2000

For some women, pregnancy lasts longer than nine months - it becomes a way of life. For Nancy Price and Betsy Gartrell-Judd, the co-owners of ePregnancy.com, a new free Web site for expectant parents (http://www.ePregnancy.com), this is especially true.

Their goal is to support the four million women* who give birth every year in making informed decisions about conception, pregnancy and birth. Says Gartrell-Judd, "We want to help women to be fully equipped with facts, historical perspective, and the confidence to make conscious choices about their own physical and emotional well-being." The site includes informational articles on a wide variety of subjects, covering infertility and pre-conception concerns, prenatal testing and pregnancy risk factors, labor preparation, postpartum matters and ideas related to getting ready for the new arrival.

The women aren't alone in their mission - they have help from myriad authors and experts. The ePregnancy site features several notable talents, including fertility guru Toni Weschler (author, "Taking Charge of Your Fertility," HarperPerennial); internationally acclaimed author, photojournalist and natural birthing activist, Suzanne Arms; Jennifer Louden, author of "The Woman's Comfort Book" (Harper Collins); as well as Ariel Gore of "Hip Mama" fame. The many voices blend into an eclectic mix of intelligence and passion.

While the content is rich, the site is not all text - there are plenty of diversions for the parents-to-be: from the free birth announcement webcards and the day-by-day pregnancy calendar to the online discussion boards and original interactive tools, games and features.

Even before the two women delivered daughters on the same day in 1996, the principals of ePregnancy had been active in the pregnancy and birth community. Price (in California), currently expecting her third child, has written for national publications about birth and parenting; while Gartrell-Judd (in Ohio) has had a second child and is preparing to become a doula, a trained labor support person.

With a limited budget, but a flair for design and a passion for the content, the two women joined forces in September 1998 to create their own self-financed web development company, Myria Media, Inc. Price and Gartrell-Judd, who both work from home and have never met in person, debuted their first site last November. The award-winning Myria (http://myria.com), an online magazine, covers parenting issues and women's topics, and was created to support, inform and encourage women who are mothers.

Who better to harness the enthusiasm of pregnancy and motherhood than two moms? Says Price of ePregnancy, "The site provides the factual information expectant parents need, but also covers a lot more. We know how exciting and fun pregnancy and birth can be, and that enthusiasm and energy is something we want to share."

Whether it's to explore the joy of pregnancy or the zen of childbirth, when it comes to creating an online resource for pregnancy, birth and beyond, mother really does know best. Visit ePregnancy on the Internet at http://www.ePregnancy.com.

* U.S. statistic for 1996, Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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