The Mind-Body Spirit Connection: Ancient and Modern Healing Strategies for a Traumatic Birth and the Sick Newborn
Rice, Ruth D.
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 11-19

This essay offers historical and multi-cultural perspectives on the birthing process in contrast to contemporary US practices, suggesting that the former have retained a more holistic approach that honors the body’s natural processes.

Enhancing Early Speech, Parental Bonding and Infant Physical Development Using Prenatal Intervention in Standard Obstetric Practice
Van De Carr, F. Rene
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 20-30

In order to test the efficacy of the Prenatal University (a prenatal stimulation program), questionnaires were mailed to parents who were patients of two physicians using the program whose children would be 6 months to 3 years old. Respondents were divided into three groups of 50 by raters who determined whether they had been full participants in the program, partial participants, or did not use the program. This article reports on three factors tested. First attempts at communication and recognizable spoken words occurred early in the prenatally enhanced infants. Mothers and fathers who used the program were more bonded with their babies. Physical development as measured by the emergence of the first teeth was more advanced in participants.

The Psycho-Technology of Pregnancy and Labor
Verny, Thomas R.
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 31-51

A critique of the increasingly technological approach to pregnancy and labor analyses the benefits and drawbacks of mechanization, which may lower risk but introduce new problems. The article covers hospitalization, amniocentesis, ultrasound, the use of fetal heart monitors, fetoscopy, fetal surgery, and selective abortion.

Frank Lake's Maternal-Fetal Distress Syndrome and Primal Integration Workshops--Part II
Moss, Roger C.
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 51-68

A brief description is given of Frank Lake's theory that the origin of certain personality disorders lies in the impact of the mother's emotions on the fetus. It is followed by the preliminary analysis of a self-report survey of 170 participants in a 6-day primal integration workshop about the efficacy of the workshop.

Tess: The Emotional and Physiological Effects of Prenatal Physical Trauma
Riley, Clara
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 69-74

This paper presents the verbatim account of an abreaction to the prenatal trauma of a blow to the mother's abdomen with its subsequent effects on the physical and emotional development of the person and its sequelae in adult life. The patient presented with a psychosomatic complaint of determatitis, revealed in the record to be associated with a sublimation of expressing needs and wants through fear. Resolution of the issue led to an uncoupling of the association with skin eruption and therapeutic change.

Birth Recall: A Clinical Report
Laibow, Rima E.
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 78-81

The author presents a case study of her son's recollection of birth produced at 30 months after birth. Owing to the child's unusually precocious verbal development, the account was very complete and consistent with the circumstances of his birth, including information and details to which the child had not been exposed later in life.

A Sound Start in Life
Olds, Clifford
Vol. 1 (1), 1986, 82-85

This paper is an interim report gathering information on studies of the impact of sounds--music, the mother's voice, etc.--on prenates.

Psychological Treatment of Birth Trauma with Age Regression and its Relationship to Chemical Dependency
Hull, William F.
Vol. 1 (2), 1986, 111-134

Based on clinical experience with over 200 patients, this article presents a constellation of symptoms collectively called Prenatal Suffocation Syndrome (PSS) that result from fetal oxygen deprivation: breathlessness, helplessness, panic, depression, hopelessness, exhaustion, and rage. PSS appears to be a factor in borderline schizophrenia, alcohol and drug abuse, and "nervous breakdown" in which individuals seek to avoid feelings of panic, depression, hopelessness, exhaustion, and too long a period of "feeling good" because all are associated with memories of PSS. Induction therapy, a specific therapeutic intervention based on abreaction regression therapy, is outlined as being efficacious in treating such cases. Causes for fetal oxygen deprivation are presented.

Treating the Trauma of Abortion
Watkins, Helen H.
Vol. 1 (2), 1986, 135-142

The author presents a technique to ease the trauma and guilt of abortion to the mother by having her attempt to communicate with the fetus using hypnotic visualization. Anecdotal evidence from the author's clinical practice suggests that women who employed the technique experienced little or no guilt following abortion, and a few had spontaneous miscarriages. Each reported the experience as positive. The author also presents cases of attempted but uncompleted abortions in which adults in age regression reveal the trauma of the attempted abortions on the fetus.

Pre- and Post-natal Care: Today's Health Frontier
Buttram, Harold E.
Vol. 1 (2), 1986, 143-148

Despite increases in pre- and peri-natal health care, studies show that the proportion of children with some limitation of activity has doubled over the last two decades, increasing the trend toward childhood disability. There are suspicions but little proof that this trend has its origin in adverse prenatal influences, including malnutrition, environmental toxins and other harmful factors. This article is a call to arms to move prenatal care from being the stepchild of modern medicine to center stage.

Preparation for a Conscious Conception, Pregnancy and Birth: A Holistic Approach
Borg, Palema C.
Vol. 1 (2), 1986, 149-159

A philosophy of intentional parenting in preparation for bringing a child into the world is presented in this essay. Advocating a holistic approach, the author encourages parents to practice and develop conscious loving of self, partner, and the child to be conceived; conscious parenting in preparing for conception and throughout the pregnancy; conscious birthing for a gentle, positive birth; and conscious bonding in which the parents maintain active communication with the unborn child through touch and talking, continuing this process postnatally. A model of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual behaviors is presented to operationalize this approach.

Prenatal Yoga, "Inner Bonding" and Natural Birth
Olkin, Sylvia Klein
Vol. 1 (2), 1986, 160-168

A record of a speech given on a yogic fitness program for pregnant women and their partners, this article presents a few of the special breathing techniques and movements that are part of the program.

Prenatal and Perinatal Imprints: Apparent Prenatal Consciousness as Revealed by Hypnosis
Cheek, David B.
Vol. 1 (2), 1986, 97-110

This essay discusses the growing but still immature body of literature on pre- and peri-natal memories accessed through hypnotic regression, and presents three case histories obtained through hypnotic regression. Based on clinical experience and research, it discusses criteria for assessing the validity and veridicality of such reports as well as the results of attempts to create false memories or deny the factual nature of a memory imprinted at the time. It notes the presence and distinction of memories held in the body, as evidenced by the accurate replication of head and shoulder movements during delivery as well as that of an out-of-body vantage point that seems to describe events from a point outside the mother's body. Detailed case histories concern two verified out-of-body prenatal memories, as well as an apparently valid recollection of a breech birth.

Transuterine Communication in Problem Pregnancies
Riley, Clara
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 180-190

In a paper presenting adult recall of prenatal experience as well as the mother's communication with the fetus in problem pregnancies, the author develops and describes a clinical technique for communication with the unborn child. Four cases are presented of women who were conflicted about their pregnancies, directing and communicating their feelings toward their children. Three out of the four cases terminated, two from spontaneous miscarriages shortly after the session. The latter was medically terminated but with positive emotional resolution. In the fourth case, the mother decided to go through with the pregnancy and bore healthy twins she is very happy about having had.

The Role of Prenatal Trauma in the Development of the Negative Birth Experience
Barnett, E. A.
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 191-207

In a clinical population study, the author found that the incidence of negative birth experience as expressed through regression therapy seems to be constant at about 30% even among relatively symptomatic patients. In a consecutive series of 260 patients, 76 (29%) indicated they had had negative birth experiences. Of these, 48 (63%) reported prenatal experiences responsible for their negative feelings at birth. An investigation of 61 cases of depression revealed a 40% incidence of negative birth experience and a 77% incidence of prenatal trauma. The results suggest that almost 20% of all patients undergoing psychotherapy (and perhaps 30% of depressives) suffer from symptoms due at least in part to prenatal trauma.

Prenatal Preparation: Suggestion for Modification
Wallach, Helene
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 208-222

Twenty-one variables divided into psychological childbirth-related variables, physiological childbirth-related variables, demographic variables, and trait variables were assessed for their association with the experience of pain during childbirth. The sample population was 116 primiparous women delivering in 13 Metro Toronto hospitals. Some had participated in prenatal preparation programs. Two measures of the intensity of the pain were used along with the McGill Pain Questionnaire. Women who had received an epidural before transition were compared to those who did not. The only significant correlations were with the affective component of the McGill Pain Questionnaire. The significant sets of variables were the trait and physiological sets. Extroverted women with an external locus of control experienced more pain, as did women who had longer labors with more complications and who received more medication.

The Alice Givens Approach to Prenatal and Birth Therapy
Givens, Alice
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 223-229

Using a case history, this article illustrates a therapeutic intervention for abreacting prenatal and birth memories, especially the impact and internalization of the mother's emotions on the unborn child.

Techniques for Dealing with Prenatal and Perinatal Issues in Therapy: A Bodymind Perspective
Hendricks, G., & Hendricks, K.
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 230-238

Case studies are presented indicating a relationship of pre- and peri-natal dynamics with psychological problems. The authors discuss diagnostic clues for discriminating between pre- and peri-natal issues. Several treatment techniques are explored: verbal psychotherapy, breathwork, a prenatal therapy procedure done in warm water, and movement therapy.

Psychosocial Stress, Anxiety, and Pregnancy Complications: Issues for Public Safety
Kalil, Kathleen M.
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 239-243

A review of the literature on the relationship between psychosocial stress, anxiety, and occupation on complications in pregnancy reveals that emotional reactions during pregnancy and stress before pregnancy have been associated with a larger number of pregnancy complications, such as miscarriages, prolonged labor, breech births, and premature births. With approximately 63% of women over the age of 16 working in the US, public policy changes may be needed to ensure the safety of the fetus. This paper suggests that preventative programs may include disseminating information, granting pregnancy leaves, reducing work loads, and providing supportive work environments.

Alternatives to Biological Conceptions
Baker, Jeannine Parvati
Vol. 1 (3), 1987, 244-252

This paper discusses the psychological, social, and cultural issues associated with infertility and the impact of artificial insemination technology.

The Politics of Intrauterine Life: How Society Reaches within the Womb
Jacobs, James
Vol. 1 (4), 1987, 265-275

This essay is a call to explore critically the social and cultural factors that impact the process of bringing children into the world with a view to social change. It treats attitudes and values concerning conception, pregnancy, parenting, and birth, and how educational, health care, political and legal institutions bear on the process.

Hospital Birth Routines as Rituals: Society's Messages to American Women
Davis-Floyd, Robbie E.
Vol. 1 (4), 1987, 276-296

In an anthropological analysis that treats US hospital birth routines as cultural rituals, this article seeks to interpret the messages sent to women through "standard procedures for normal birth." It isolates the core values and central beliefs of contemporary American society through their expression in hospital procedures surrounding birth, from the use of the wheelchair to enter and leave the hospital through placing the infant in a bassinet. It identifies strategies and techniques that childbirth educators and medical professionals can offer a pregnant woman to counter the negative messages she may receive in the institutional process.

Influence of a Bath during Labor on the Experience of Maternity
Gillot-de-Vries, F., Wesel, S., Busine, A., Adler, A., Camus, M., Pattesson, R., & Gillard, C.
Vol. 1 (4), 1987, 297-302

Two hundred randomly selected pregnant women were part of a study conducted by Braine-l'Alleud Hospital and the Department of Developmental Psychology of the Free University of Brussels in which a warm bath during labor was offered as an alternative to traditional analgesic techniques during labor. Eighty-nine took a warm bath during labor. Of the 200, 12 had pathological pregnancies; 51 had pathological deliveries; and 15 had pathological pregnancies and deliveries. All women filled out a retrospective questionnaire between the third and sixth day postpartum. The bath improved the experience of pregnancy and delivery, particularly for women of the pathological group, and among those, mostly for primiparas, allowing their experience to come fairly close to that of the normal group.

Perinatal Memories as a Diagnostic Psychotherapeutic Tool
Raymond, Steve
Vol. 1 (4), 1987, 303-317

This paper articulates Morris Netherton's approach to regression therapy, which includes reincarnational ideas. In this model, the unconscious mind of the prenate contains: past life memories of an individual consciousness; mythological archetypes from the collective unconscious; the prenate's individual emotional reactions to the mother's conscious and unconscious emotions, ideation, and physical circumstances of gestation, labor and birth; and the stronger experiences of the consciousness of medical personnel, et alia, when the mother's awareness is compromised (e.g., through anesthesia). The argument is made that accessing pre- and peri-natal experiences with clients in therapy is an effective and quick diagnostic tool for the unconscious source of their problems.