The neurobiology of birth has one purpose: to create a caring bond between the mother and her infant. Nature does not only seek to secure the survival of the young human, but to gain maximum emotional, social and physical fitness. If there is something all new parents find out it is that their infant´s heads…
By Esther Ramírez Matos, perinatal psychologist and family therapist My body spoke to me again, last night while I was calmly reading a novel about maternity. As a traumatic birth was described, after which mother and infant were separated, I felt an intense pain in my pelvic area; I had not been so uncomfortable in…
The quality of mother–child interactions is central in the social and emotional development of the child. It is the process by which infants are initiated into the social world. But interactions need time and space – they requiere mother and infant to be together. A recent study by Plotka, R. & Busch-Rossnagel…
“There are no feet too small to leave prints on this earth.” The child that dies during the perinatal stage: lifelong impact on the family Although there has traditionally been silence in our society about children who die at the beginning of life, this silence has been unravelling. Scientific papers and worldly magazines, support groups…
Use of opioids during pregnancy can result in a drug withdrawal syndrome in newborns called neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). A recent analysis of the extent, context, and costs of NAS shows that it is rising worldwide. In the United States, substance use among pregnant and postpartum women is a public health issue. An estimated one…
Giving birth physiologically is an intense and transformative psychological experience that generates a sense of empowerment. The benefits of this process can be maximized through physical, emotional and social support for women, enhancing their belief in their ability to birth and not disturbing physiology unless it is necessary. By Ibone Olza, MD, PhD, perinatal…
A recent study from the University of Louisiana (summarized below) has discovered that some mothers with postpartum depression have an “altered expression of oxytocin receptors”. Oxytocin is the hormone of love, human connection and wellbeing; it is produced at high levels during birth and breastfeeding and it is intimately involved in the mother-infant bond, as…
In many women’s minds, birth and epidural go together. But how many of us are conscious of the impact of this routine intervention on birth and the days that follow? According to Dr Sarah Buckley, author of Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering, its effects can significantly alter birth progression and have an impact on the woman´s…
A UN report published in April 2019 warns against “the widespread and systematic phenomenon of violence towards women and girls in reproductive services”, and urges states to “address the structural problems and root causes of violence against women in reproductive health services, with a focus on childbirth and obstetric violence.” We publish below an…
