PRE NATAL PSYCHOLOGY
Mário Resende
Sandra Gonçalves
AlmaSoma
Earth, July, 2010
DEFINITIONS
• Pre-natal Period: “Before Birth”; period between
fertilization and birth
• Peri-natal Period:”Around Birth”; since 22 weeks
of gestation (5 months) until one week after
birth
• Pos-natal Period: “After Birth”; period started
immediately after birth until, approximately, 6
weeks after birth.
DEFINITIONS
• Embryonic Period: Fertilization until 10 weeks of
gestation (8th week of development)
basic system and all organs formation
• Fetal Period: Since 10th week of gestation until
birth (about 40 weeks of gestation)
Growth and maturation
WESTERN MYTHS ABOUT NEWBORNS
1 – BABIES DO NOT FEEL - EASILY VICTIMIZED AND
DISCRIMINATED, THEY ARE NON-PERSONS, WITHOUT
RIGHTS. No need for anaesthesia, even if they feel they will not
remember later.
2 – VERY LIMITED BRAINS – BRAIN IS UNABLE OF SUPERIOR
FUNCTIONS AS THINKING, MEANING ATRIBUTION OR
MEMORY. WITHOUT BRAIN THERE ISN’T A PERSON NEITHER
THE NEED TO EDUCATE OR EXERT PATERNITY.. MYELINATION
ONLY COMPLETED DURING ADOLESCENCE
Chamberlain, The Mind of Your Newborn Baby, 1998
MYTHS ABOUT NEWBORNS - II
3 – BRAIN OF ASSEMBLE – IT ONLY WORKS WHEN IT’S
COMPLETED?
4 – BABIES DO NOT THINK – PRE-SYMBOLIC, PREREPRESENTED, PRE-REFLEXIVE. WITHOUT LANGUAGE
THERE IS NO THINKING?
Chamberlain, The Mind of Your Newborn Baby, 1998
MYTHS ABOUT NEWBORNS - III
5 – WITHOUT CONSCIOUSNESS- AUTISTIC, EGOCENTRIC, SOLIPSIST? –
DISCOURAGE INTIMATE DIALOGUE. HOWEVER, THEY LISTEN CAREFULLY,
PAMPER EXPRESSIONS, RESPOND AND INICIATE DIALOGUE. HIGHLY
INTERESTED IN THE WORLD.
6 – DON’T NEED THEIR MOTHERS, ONE BABYSITTER IS ENOUGH OR A NURSERY
IS ENOUGH – HOWEVER, MOTHERS PROVIDE ANTI-BODIES, REGULATION OF THE
BODY TEMPERATURE, THEY IMPROVE METABOLIC RATE, HORMONE AND
ENZYME LEVELS, HEART AND RESPIRATORY RATE.
Chamberlain, The Mind of Your Newborn Baby, 1998
MYTHS ABOUT NEWBORNS - IV
7 – AGE MYTH – WE SEE ALL AGE GROUPS
DIFERENT FROM OUR OWN, AS INFERIORS IN ALL
LEVELS: EMBRYO, FETUS, NEWBORN, CHILD,
TEENAGER OR ELDERLY
Chamberlain, The Mind of Your
Newborn Baby, 1998
Fetal Investigation
• Historically, fetal research was merely about physical
evolution, because the mechanisms of prenatal consciousness
- and the means to measure them – were not thought to
exist.
• Since 1975, approximately, technological advances have
allowed researchers to observe all stages of fetal
development, and to actually observe the responses of the
pre-born, to certain stimuli. Especially since the 90s, there
was an exponential increase in our knowledge of the sensory
ability of the fetus and its consciousness.
• Association For Prenatal & Perinatal Psychology and Health,
APPPAH, founded in 1983.
Fetal Senses
Touch
THE FIRST SENSE TO DEVELOP.
* BEFORE 8 WEEKS – MOVEMENTS TO AVOID THE TOUCH OF A
HAIR ON THE CHEEK;
* 10 W – SENSIBILITY IN THE GENITAL AREA;
* 11 W– PALMS
* 12 W – SOLES;
* 17 W - ABDOMEN AND BUTTOCKS;
* 32 W – WHOLE BODY IS SENSITIVE TO THE SOFT TOUCH OF A
HAIR
FETAL SENSES
MOVEMENT
* 3 W – FIRST HEART BEAT
* 6 - 10 W – HEAD, ARMS AND LEGS MOV.S;
* 10 W – HAND TO HEAD, TO FACE, TO THE MOUTH, MOUTH MOV. AND
SWALLOWING;
* 10 - 15 W – REACTIVE MOV. TO ENVIRONMENT (MOTHER COUGHT OR
LAUGHTER)
* 14 W – FULL REPERTOIRE OF MOVEMENTS
Early communication and motion games. Permanence of the
object.
FETAL SENSES
TASTE AND SMELL
* 11 - 15 W – NOSE DEVELOPS, ODOURS BECOME AVAILABLE IN THE
FLUIDS BATHING THE NASAL CAVITY
* 14 W – THE STRUCTURES OF TASTE ARE COMPLETED – SWALLOW MORE
WITH SWEET TASTES
MORE CHANCES OF EARLY COMMUNICATION AND EDUCATION. FOOD
PREFERENCES (COMMON AND LEARNED), RELATIONSHIP WITH MATERNAL
MILK AND ODORS.
FETAL SENSES
LISTENING
*16 W – REACTIVE LISTENING;
* 24 W – AUDITIVE STRUCTURES ARE COMPLETED.
MOTHER’S VOICEARE THE SOUNDS BETTER HEARD
RESEARCH: BRAHMS’S LULLABY - 6X 5 MIN / DAY: GREATER WEIGHT GAIN.
RECOGNITION AND PREFERENCE FOR MATERNAL VOICE AND KNOWN
MATERIAL
FETAL SENSES
VISION - I
* 16 W – AVOID OR ATTACK NEEDLES FROM AMNIOCENTESIS;
•20 W – TWINS LOCATE EACH OTHER WHITHOUT DIFFICULTY, TOUCH EACH
OTHER’S FACES, OR GIVE EACH OTHER’S HANDS;
* BEFORE 26 W – LIGHT SENSITIVITY
* 26 W – OPENING OF THE EYELIDS;
* 31 - 32 W – VISUAL FOCUS AND FOLLOW-UP VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL.
*
FETAL SENSES
VISION II
•TERM BABIES – ACUITY, CONTRAST, REFRACTION AND ACCOMODATION
SENSITIVITY, SPATIAL AND BINOCULAR VISION, PERCEPTION OF DISTANCE
AND DEPTH, COLOR VISION AND SENSITIVITY TO OSCILATTION. CURIOSITY
AND PERCEPTION OF BASIC FORMS.
*AT BIRTH – PERFECTLY FOCUSSED VISION OF 8 TO 12 INCHES.
THE LUMINOUS ENVIRONMENT OF MOTHER IS FOLLOW BY PRE-BORN.
THERE IS A FINE SPACE AND TERRITORIAL PERCEPTION.
AWARENESS OF THE LIGHT AND THE VISUAL OF THE ENVIRONMENT AT BIRTH.
FETAL SENSES
INTEGRATED
* 16 W – ERECTIONS IN ULTRASOUNDS, AS REACTION TO FINGER SUCKING;
•THIRD TRIMESTER – DURING SEXUAL RELATIONS OF THE PARENTS, THE
HEART ACCELERATES AND DECELERATES IN A REACTIVE WAY AND THERE
IS INCREASED FETAL MOVEMENT ASSOCIATED WITH PARENTAL ORGASMS.
*23 W – REM SLEEP
*30 W – ALL SLEEP DURING PREGNANCY IS REM. IN THE END, 50% OF THE
SLEEP IS REM
Memory location in Pre-born
3 Memory Models:
• 1 – Localized models: memories are codified in
identifiable structures in brain
• 2 – Non-localized models:
• A) Memories are related to physiological structures
of the cortical nervous system, but aren’t reducible
to certain points (brain model of Pribam)
• B) All cells store memory in Ribonucleic Acid (RNA),
so that memories are stored in the hole body.
Memory location in Pre-born
3 - Non physical or transcendent model:
conscience and memory are prior to physical
body and aren’t limited to the brain. Likewise, it
consider that the consciousness and the memory
source is out of the material dimension; brain is
only the temporary instrument of reception.
Each model is based in abundant empiric data,
but none is conclusive.
SARAH HINZE – Case Studies
NEAR BIRTH EXPERIENCE (NBE) - I
•WHEN THEY HAPPEN?
* BEFORE CONCEPTION - 53%
* DURING PREGNANCY- 47%
•TO WHOM THEY HAPPEN?
* MOTHERS - 63%
* FATHERS - 13%
* OTHERS - 24%
NEAR BIRTH EXPERIENCE - II
TYPES OF NBE:
* VISIONS
* DREAMS
* AUDITION
* TELEPATHY
NEAR BIRTH EXPERIENCE - III
10 ASPECTS OF A TYPICAL NBE:
* LOVE IRRADIATION
* CELESTIAL LIGHT
* GRATITUDE AND LONGING TO COME TO EARTH
* LEAVING A LOVABLE CELESTIAL HOME
* IT’S TIME TO COME TO EARTH
* AN UNIQUE MISSION
* PROTECTION/ WARNING
* MESSAGES
Sarah Hinze (1997), Coming from the Light,
Spiritual Accounts of Life Before Life, Pocket Books.
BIRTH MEMORIES
Concordances and contradictions in 10 pairs of mothers and
children under hypnosis (Chamberlain, 1998)
Pairs 1 2 3
Conc. 12 12 9
Cont. 1 1 0
4
9
1
5 6 7 8 9 10
16 19 8 13 24 15
0 0 1 4 0 1
,
In A Mente do Seu Recém- Nascido, David Chamberlain (Hugin, 2003)
Interesting Resources
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www.birthpsychology.com
Chamberlain, D. (2003) A Mente do Seu Recém-Nascido. Lisboa: Hugin.
Grof, S. (2000) Psychology of the Future. Albany: SUNY
Hinze, S. (1997), Coming from the Light, Spiritual Accounts of Life Before Life,
Pocket Books.
Odent, M. (2005) A Cesariana. Operação de Salvamento ou Indústria de
Nascimento? Lisboa: Miosótis.
Saldanha, V. (1997) A Psicoterapia Transpessoal. São Paulo: Komedi.
Seligson, F. () Oriental Birth Dreams. Hollym
Verny, T. & Weintraub, P. ( ) Nurturing Your Unborn Child.