Newborn Memory
 "Each choice leads to the one-and-only birth
day of your child. Be consciously aware of what you
are creating." ~ Kim Wildner, author of Mother's
Intention
It's up to you to create the safe, gentle birth
your baby deserves. Don't let this alarm or
overwhelm you. Your instincts and factual
information will guide you to the best birth you can
possibly create for yourself and your baby.
Why is gentle birth important? It's important
because babies are aware at birth. That probably
looks strange the first time you read it, but it's
true. Babies--even before they are born--are able
to experience sensations (pleasant or not), feel
pain, and make memories. The type of memory is
subconscious rather than conscious, so at first you
might think what happens to a baby before he has a
conscious memory doesn't really matter. But
subconscious memory has a surprisingly profound
effect on a person's emotional and psychological
well-being. Therefore, a traumatic birth and/or a
traumatic newborn period do have a long-term
negative impact on your baby. Sometimes medical
necessity makes trauma unavoidable, but there are a
lot of choices you can make to help create a gentle,
trauma-free birth an newborn period for your baby.
These choices include:
-
A peaceful, drug-free labor (Hypnobabies
is a wonderful way to facilitate this);
-
A calm and supportive birth place and birth
attendant (such as a home birth with a midwife);
-
Dim lights and a quiet room;
-
Immediate skin-to-skin contact with mother;
-
Delayed cord-clamping (allowing the cord to
provide oxygenated placental blood allows your
baby to have an easier transition to breathing
air);
-
Immediate breast-feeding and breastfeeding on
demand;
-
Delayed administration of vitamin K shot,
prophylactic eye drops, and Hepatitis B
vaccination or opting not to do them at all;
-
No
circumcision (it's never painless or
trauma-free even with medication and it's
medically unnecessary);
-
Rooming in (no separation from your baby unless
medically necessary).
Birth Psychology Resources
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