30 Weeks 1 Day: A Memoir of Strength, Survival & Mental Health

by Diana Nicholls

Thirty weeks and one day. I lived every single day of that pregnancy in the moment, day by day, hour by hour. They were the weeks that put me through one of the biggest tests in my life.




For as long as she could remember, Diana would choose one song - any song - to play on repeat while she ran. In this meditative rhythm, nothing could stop her, not even the pain of a chronic condition.

Diana would later draw on this strength to get through one of the biggest marathons of her life. A time when - supported by her husband and a team of obstetricians, surgeons, neonatal intensive care unit nurses and a psychiatrist - she'd learn the true weight of the phrase 'day by day' as she watches her babies fight to survive.

30 Weeks 1 Day is the inspiring story of a mother realising just how strong she can be, even when she thinks she has nothing left to give.

180 pages, Paperback

Published April 30, 2021

Reviews

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: I received a complimentary copy and was asked to provide an honest review.

As a mom who experienced preterm birth (though the circumstances were different than the author's), I have read a number of accounts from others in our situation. In the years immediately following my own I was drawn to others stories, because the traditional pregnancy and birth stories didn't have much for me.
While I'm not sure the personal narrative of this is as strong as say or , Nicholls's book offers something else. She has included sections from medical professionals who treated her and her babies. Her husband even has his own chapter to offer his thoughts directly. In my opinion (nearly 8 years out from my own experience) these sections strengthen the book.

[Traci · Rating 4 out of 5]

I too had my last baby at 30 weeks. Reading this brought back lots of memories of that time.
I loved how raw and real the author and her husband were. Which I think sometimes people don’t think about all that goes on during pregnancy for women. Lots of work, emotions, hormones and just life!
Glad the author found the silver lining at the end and that her girls are happy and healthy!
I was given a complimentary copy of the book for my honest review.

[Kathleen DuVall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pleased to receive a complementary review copy of 30 Weeks 1 Day and asked to do a review. It is an honor to be able to read someone's work and this book was a pleasure to read. In my review, I’ll give some thoughts that had once I had completed the book, some thoughts that I had during my read, some of which resolved and some did not and an explanation of my rating scale so you can match it to yours.

First of all, this was a heartwarming and at times, heartbreaking story. Every pregnancy has risks but for most, they are not realized. In the case of these two darling babies, it seemed that everything that could go wrong did but through the love and determination of their mother, they made it to “30 Weeks 1 Day” and beyond.

There were struggles that were met and through it all, their mother found the fortitude to do what needed to be done. She was very frank about some of the challenges that she personally had but with the help of professionals and a belief that it would make her a better mum, she worked on them. Through the use of diary entries, pictures and inserts from her professional care team, she was able to bring the story to life.

As I was reading, there were some challenges with how the story was told. I do understand that it was told from the mother’s point of view but I kept thinking “what was her husband doing when all this was going on?”. He does finally have a voice in chapter 25 but the book might have been more cohesive if he was given inserts like the professionals had so that his story was told at the same time as hers. There were several chapters at the end that talked about the high points during the year-long ordeal and having those sprinkled in with the story would have made more sense to me. By the end, I felt like I had read the same book three times from three different points of view.

My rating scale explanation:
1 star - could not even finish the book
2 stars - I finished it but it was a waste of time
3 stars - I finished it and enjoyed it, but probably won’t read again
4 stars - I could read this one again!
5 stars - this goes on my “stranded on a desert island list!”

[Jillian DeSimone · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was also sent a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I felt very moved by Diana's story--and by her resiliency during what honestly sounds like a terrifying pregnancy. I appreciated her honesty and emphasis on destigmatizing mental health.

That said, I felt a little concerned about the intense emphasis on competitive running as an outlet, and a desire to hear more about her family and husband. Below is a more in-depth breakdown of my thoughts.

What I responded positively to:

- Diana's strength and honesty--I was very moved by how terrifying this experience must have been, and grateful for Diana's POV on how challenging it was to not allow herself to get too excited about her pregnancy as to not set herself up for future pain should anything go wrong. I cannot begin to imagine how scary those 30 weeks must have been.
- The perspective glimpses where we heard from the NICU nurse, her husband Cam, and others around her about their experience of the pregnancy/birth/postnatal time.
- The detailed medical descriptions, including postnatal/NICU terminology I had never heard of. I felt like I learned a lot that is not typically discussed when it comes to pregnancy.
- The emphasis on destigmatizing mental health struggles before, during, and after pregnancy.
- I appreciated Diana mentioning that there was a great deal of luck and privilege that allowed her to quit her job and prioritize this pregnancy--she mentioned that not many people would be able to afford that in terms of finances or time, and I was very grateful for that.

What would have made this a stronger read for me:

- Diana touched on it a little, but I would have appreciated a bit more of an assurance for readers that there are other outlets and ways to relieve stress than intense exercise. While I understand and applaud runners for their passion for the activity itself (I am a casual runner and love it!), I felt vaguely concerned about the strong emphasis on running as one of the only lifelines for normalcy--and also, for the lack of acknowledgement that while running can have a positive impact on your body, competitive running can also have many negative and long-lasting impacts on your body, even when a great deal of care is taken in training and recovery. The pressure and urgency to get back to racing felt borderline problematic and honestly, a little triggering for me as a former eating disorder patient. Not trying to make this about myself, but was really concerned about the messaging that running is ONLY good for your body... that simply isn't true. And while I understand that the book was trying to parallel marathon training to the pregnancy training, and I am glad the book emphasized writing as one outlet, I wish there had been some more discussion around why running is not the end-all-be-all for everyone, and how people can be strong without intense, constant, physical exercise.
- I really appreciated Diana's emphasis that everyone's story matters--I believe that's absolutely true, and hers is so unique. It's incredible that her girls survived this. That said, I would've enjoyed hearing more about others who have experienced similar-ish pregnancy complications sprinkled in with the POV sections from folks surrounding this pregnancy. I think zooming out, in addition to the close zoom-in, would've really rounded this out. This may have helped with the feeling of the running theme hitting too hard--hearing about other women and THEIR passion/outlet would've been a nice way to remind readers that there is no 'correct' extracurricular activity to channel your excess energy.
- I would have liked hearing more about Cam, Diana's husband, and their partnership--how they met each other, why they loved each other, etc. I felt like I heard way more about running than about Cam until late in the book when he finally gets a couple of pages.

I am grateful for the chance to read this and applaud Diana for the courage to tell this story--as well as for the strength to make her way through this pregnancy.

[Frrobins · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was given a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. 30 Weeks 1 Day is the memoir of a complicated pregnancy that ended with a stay at the NICU. While pregnant the author, Diana Nicholls, a runner, was told it was too risky to run so she started writing as a way to cope with the stress and anxiety of her pregnancy.

At the beginning the story alternates between journal entries written while Nicholls was pregnant to chapters with her memories giving a bit more context to events, interspersed with chapters written by various specialists such as an obstetrician who specializes in high risk pregnancies, a NICU nurse, a psychiatrist, and Nicholls' husband. From the beginning it was apparent that the book needed some editing. The story lacked context and given all of the medical terminology was sparse on the details. While I was familiar with what Twin To Twin Transfusion Syndrome is for instance, I did not realize there were varying levels and that different levels require different interventions, and I am still fuzzy on what the difference between level two and level three is other than that one requires surgical intervention and the other does not. The lack of context was made worse by the fact that while Nicholls relates the events that happened, she does it in a very bare bones fashion and does not flesh out a fully formed story. Basically it was a lot of tell and no show.

Sometimes the journal entries preceded events detailed in the chapter, other times they would follow, making the narrative a bit messy. This would get worse when the chapters detailing the pregnancy ended and the ones detailing life in the NICU and at home began. Towards the end it felt as though Nicholls realized she needed to make the book a bit longer and kept adding chapters revisiting events she'd already covered rather than fixing the main problem by giving details, creating a scene, and giving context and life to the events that happened.

The story was still compelling enough to keep me reading and I was invested enough to want to see how things turned out and I did get an appreciation for how much she endured during her pregnancy and her daughters' stay at the NICU and felt her insights into how she emotionally coped during this trying time were the strong points of this narrative and definitely can be used to help others. At the same time I couldn't help but feel that the emotional blocks she developed to cope with the possibility that she could lose one or both of her babies prevented her from fully telling the story. This felt more like a preliminary draft than a final, polished book.

[Caitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This year, I became a mom. My pregnancy was uncomplicated, my birth included a long labor but a healthy baby, and other than some breastfeeding problems, everything has gone well - except for postpartum depression.

Diana's story is completely different from mine, except for that last part. Diana struggled with endometriosis her whole life, so she was thrilled to go to the OB/GYN and find out she was expecting. Her world turned upside down when she went back and found out she was expecting twins...and then that there were likely to be some severe complications due to the babies sharing a placenta. The first third of this book chronicles Diana's many trips to several different hospitals and specialty teams to try and keep both fetuses alive and in her belly for as long as possible. That turned out to be 30 weeks and 1 day.

The next section of the book follows Diana back and forth from one end of the NICU to the other, visiting with and learning to care for both babies. Thankfully, both survive and come home almost 3 months later, but not without some setbacks.

Finally, Diana talks about adjusting to becoming a mother to two little girls - something she never let herself dream about when she was pregnant because she never knew how many babies she'd bring home (if any). She battles anxiety and depression throughout the book but finally meets with a psychiatrist to work through the trauma of the pregnancy and birth.

I couldn't relate to the first two sections. I've worked with babies and toddlers born prematurely, but I've never known that stress myself. A lot of the NICU stay reminded me of "Juniper, the Girl Who was Born Too Soon". But during my pregnancy, I had an awful time with depression until my nurse practitioner found the right medicine for me. Once we brought the baby home, as I was struggling with trying to breastfeed, I needed another medicine change for the overwhelming anxiety I felt. Becoming a mother is a huge struggle, and that first day alone with your new baby (or babies) is overwhelming in a way no one else could understand. I'm working with a therapist myself.

I applaud Diana for telling her story - for sharing her vulnerabilities, bringing to light the mental and emotional sides of a complicated pregnancy and NICU stay, and showing how she was stronger than all of that. More people need to know.

[Nic · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was given a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars = I liked it.

What did I like? The cover image. An unglamorized photo of Diana Nicholls displaying her honest, post pregnancy body. It speaks of the journey and hardship she's endured to this point. I think this is a book which will appeal to any woman who has given birth, been pregnant, or about to embark on that path. It definitely kept me turning pages for these reasons. It brought back the postpartum experience, the difficult reality of it. Nicholls wrote this book for her mental health as she could no longer run, due to a high risk pregnancy, and she relied heavily on running to maintain her mental balance. Pregnancy is difficult enough when everything goes well, but Nicholls had a complicated pregnancy. Writing this diary of the unfolding events of her pregnancy became a new form of meditation to carry her through. I like that she included the points of view of her maternal fetal medicine specialist, perinatal psychiatrist, and her husband.

However, because the book reads like a diary it feels a bit choppy and disconnected throughout. When I came across the first section, written by the fetal medicine specialist, it took a few seconds to figure out what was going on as everything, until then, had been written by Diana and there aren't introductions leading up to the co-authored/guest written sections. As with many self-published books, there's a sense of needing more polish, in comparison to a 5 star rating. That being said, Nicholls book is a relatable and page-turning read for any woman/family who has endured a pregnancy, complications or otherwise.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I read this book very quickly in less than a week. My favorite section of the book (the majority of it) was the diary entries and stories during the pregnancy. The book had a suspenseful feel to me since we knew the girls were born at 32 weeks and one day, but the narrator/author did not during the diary entries.
I have been through two very healthy and thankfully uneventful pregnancies thus far. A friend of ours, however, went through a triplet pregnancy that had a lot of similarities to Diana’s story. Two of the three babies had twin to twin transfusion and she also had to have a procedure where they sever the shared vessels of the babies. The babies did not have high chances of survival, similar to this story. This book really helped me get a glimpse into the emotional toll she went through, like Diana. I sent my friend a screenshot from the book and she said she would love to read it, so of course she will get this book from me now and she can keep it as I think she will really relate to it.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book-and I thought during my run the other day that I should enjoy it and be thankful because someone out there doesn’t have the freedom to run like I do as of now.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a complimentary copy of this book and was asked to give my honest review. This is a memoir that recalls the author’s struggle with her anxiety and mental health during the traumatic pregnancy and birth of her daughters. The author is a newer writer and decided to write this story while her other coping mechanisms (running) were unavailable to her during pregnancy. I appreciated how detailed she was when explaining the medical terminology and procedures. I loved the added perspectives from her OB/GYN, husband, therapist and a NICU nurse. I also really appreciated the pictures of her girls grown to show that they were okay. That isn’t really a spoiler because they are on the back of the book. There was one or two parts that I was confused by the diary entries and summary of the same events. Although I did like the diary formatting, some of the information felt redundant. Overall this was an emotional read that would be good for those interested in medicine, high risk pregnancy, the mental and emotional strains of pregnancy and NICU babies, and memoirs.

[Michline Fiordelisi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of receiving a complimentary copy and I am so glad I did. “30 weeks, 1 day” is an inspirational memoir that every mother, mom to be and runner should read. Diana Nicholls’ story is not only beautifully written, it is raw. The hurdles she faced and overcame: a difficult pregnancy, anxiety and depression all while finding a replacement for her love of training, was truly amazing. I connected to her reflection on so many levels. Running has helped me through life’s struggles. As a mother of two boys, I also had to find a source of escape and stress relief when I wasn’t able to run. Diana has proven that as a mother, we all have moments when we struggle, but we all are capable of pushing through and regaining ourselves. Thank you Diana for the inspiration to keep moving.

[Cassie W · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very inspiring and I loved how the author added her actual diary entries and personal pictures into the book. It made the story more real.

From the beginning, I felt a connection with Diana. She’s self-employed, so am I. She’s a fitness instructor and I’m really into fitness. She had daughters via c-section. I had my daughter via c-section. She enjoys writing. I am also a writer.

Because of this and how completely honest she was in her writing, I was able to put myself in her shoes and realize how strong and capable women can be.

[Mukta Sharma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this book has been an emotional experience in itself. In my opinion, a childbirth is a miracle in itself. Being mother of two kids myself, I know that childbirth is not completely challenge free. It tests the grit and perseverance of future parents in so many ways. And if the story of childbirth is like Diana and Cam, it absolutely requires some attention and applause.

Few things about writing if this book -

1. This book is written in very simple, easy to follow language. If you are trying to find literary pleasure, you might not find it here.
2. In many ways it feels like reading someone's diary. At many places, I wanted to know more about the voice and perspective of Diana's support system which I felt was missing.
3. In the end, my aggregated emotions are less of an inspiration and more of the sympathy and applause.

[Jessica Archote · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s a book written by a person, not an author. I think this is a good story to be told & probably resonates with women who have a similar pregnancy. However, it was not for me. If the writing was better, I may have read the entire book but I quit before the end.

[Sonja · Rating 4 out of 5]

An honest and heartfelt story of how a high risk pregnancy affected Diana and how she overcame her anguish and anxiety.

[Shey Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Diana’s story is honest and I felt privileged reading it, knowing her inner most thoughts during and after her twins birth.