Journals

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of “good, rational thoughts” (called “prayer”) on the fetus and the mother during the 3rd trimester of pregnancy. The good thoughts (prayer) are radiated, in the form of recording, from Swami Vijnananand, a person who was a selfless, benevolent, philosopher, thinker, who devoted his entire life for social good and totally isolated from the families undergoing the experiment. In all, 1850 cases were critically analyzed, in this study.

Interview with Mary Jackson, CPM,Midwife integrating pre and perinatal psychology principles into midwifery practice. Mary Jackson RN, CPM, LM, RCST, has been a home birth Midwife since 1975. She has attended over 2,000 births in the Santa Barbara, Ventura, and Ojai, California areas and is now attending home births with her second generation of babies. She has incorporated a two-year craniosacral training with Michael Shea and the two-year Castellino Prenatal and Birth Training into her midwifery practice.

In the last two decades the classical post-Cartesian mind-body dualism (which by many scientist and philosophers is considered to be old-fashioned and overcome by modern monism of materialism) seems to be prevailed by a kind of body-brain dualism propagated by modern neurophysiology and neurophilosophy.

The neurodevelopmental risks of prenatal exposure to synthetic Oxytocin (OXT) during childbirth are relatively unexplored; however, it seems plausible that lifelong consequences could occur. This article expounds upon a pilot study (Kurth & Haussmann, 2011) that posited an association between prenatal OXT exposure and childhood onset of ADHD, suggesting neurodevelopmental disorders may be a consequence of this exposure. Study results, conclusions, and speculative impressions are discussed1.

Recent research across various disciplines, including attachment theory, neuroscience, developmental psychology, and pre and perinatal psychology, suggests the importance of redefining parenting effectiveness to include empathic attunement. In light of this research, the importance of prenatal education and training for mothers in body-centered contemplative practices, due to the resulting potential for the development of empathic attunement and the corresponding impact on the developing mind/brain of their children, is discussed.

Pregnancy as a feminine initiation becomes conscious to a woman when she engages with her pregnant imagination through dreams, art, emotions, and somatic changes. If the woman acknowledges her emotional and psychological reactions arising from core archetypal patterns, a “conscious pregnancy” occurs. Three stages of the initiation are outlined: Gateway, Attending, and Passage. Focusing on the Attending stage, three key psychological components are explored: shadow, syzygy, and simultaneity. Viewing the prenatal psyche through C.G.

In order to validate external perceptions there are clear criteria in the natural sciences as to what is known and what is not known. In psychology we are dealing with internal perceptions, where the boundary between knowledge and non-knowledge cannot be so clearly defined due to the subjectivity of the observer. However, during the past hundred years, a culture of validation of internal perceptions has been developed in psychoanalysis and other psychotherapies by means of controlled self experience and supervision.

In this issue of JOPPPAH we connect strongly with one of the primary ancestors of our field, psychoanalysis, and find there relevance and wisdom that informs and challenges us to consider all perspectives in what constitutes pre- and perinatal psychology today. We find that psychoanalysis is not only an ancestor, but a current explorer in this realm. Nora Swan-Foster brings the Jungian perspective in with an in depth look at pregnancy as feminine initiation.

Repairing the broken bond between a mother and her child is relatively easy when one knows how to do it. The four-stage protocol presented here involves (I) suspecting that there is a bonding problem, (II) searching for the cause, (III) metabolizing the painful feelings, and (IV) creating an alternative birth. The therapy is short, quick, and effective. Eight cases are presented as examples.