The 'natural child' - a term that describes the healthiest setting for our species - embodies certain inherent expectations, among them the experiential and environmental nutrients that help the developing brain grow naturally, just as a seed of a plant has needs for healthy growth.
To the extent these expectations are not met, we see the emergence of dysfunction, violence, abuse and distress as a presentation and manifestation of the impact of those unmet natural expectations.
Natural expectations, in the context I am using, means the natural developmental behavioural dynamic that fosters the child's healthy emotional development, to which children are supremely adapted for, yet can only cope with, when presented with loss of same. And adult or child coping with distress due to real needs not having been met leads to a very difficult life indeed.
To the extent these expectations are not met, we see the emergence of dysfunction, violence, abuse and distress as a presentation and manifestation of the impact of those unmet natural expectations.
Natural expectations, in the context I am using, means the natural developmental behavioural dynamic that fosters the child's healthy emotional development, to which children are supremely adapted for, yet can only cope with, when presented with loss of same. And adult or child coping with distress due to real needs not having been met leads to a very difficult life indeed.
Neuroscience now confirms this, and can describe with some accuracy the living processes of how the developing human brain builds the neural pathways essential to a future healthy adult human being.
Our evolutionary roots, our bio-logical mandate is always in nurture as the core behavioural dynamic.
Photo: S Mitarart/Fotolia
We all start here. We are all citizens of the womb.
Video : Allan Schore on Attachment Theory 2.0, since John Bowlby and James Prescott
Video : Allan Schore on Attachment Theory 2.0, since John Bowlby and James Prescott
Below is a list of some of the nutrients necessary for healthy emotional and psychological growth from infancy through early childhood, as outlined by James Prescott in the 1960s, half a century ago, confirmed by Allan Schore's work, and that of a great many other diligent researchers.
Prescott and Bowlby did not have the technical skill base to confirm their insights. Today Schore and others do have that skill base, and the research is continuing to reveal so much about parenting, behaviour and emotional learning as bio-logical processes that underpin nurturant behaviour of a culture.
Prescott and Bowlby did not have the technical skill base to confirm their insights. Today Schore and others do have that skill base, and the research is continuing to reveal so much about parenting, behaviour and emotional learning as bio-logical processes that underpin nurturant behaviour of a culture.
Ten Principles of Mother-Infant Bonding
for Health, Happiness and Harmony
by James W. Prescott, Ph.D.
1. Every Pregnancy Is A Wanted Pregnancy. Every Child Is A Wanted Child.
Unwanted children are typically unloved, abused and neglected who become the next generation of delinquents, violent offenders and alcohol/drug abusers and addicts.
2. Every Pregnancy Has Proper Nutrition & Prenatal Care—medical and psychological—and is free from alcohol, drugs, tobacco and other harmful agents of stress.
3. Natural Birthing—avoid wherever possible obstetrical medications, forceps & induced labor with no episiotomy nor premature cutting of umbilical cord. Mother controls birthing position with no separation of newborn from mother. Newborn maintains intimate body contact with mother for breastfeeding and nurturance.
4. No Circumcision of newborn. The traumatic pain of newborn circumcision adversely affects normal brain development, impairs affectional bonding with mother and has long lasting effects upon how pain and pleasure are experienced in life.
5. Breastfeeding On Demand by newborn/infant/child and for "two years or beyond", as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF. Failure to breastfeed results in positive harm to normal brain development & to the immunological health of the newborn, infant and child. Encoding the developing brain with the smell of mother's body through breastfeeding is essential for the later development of intimate
sexuality.
6. Intimate Body Contact is maintained between mother and newborn/infant by being carried continuously on the body of the mother for the first year of life. Such continuous gentle body movement stimulation of the newborn/infant promotes optimal brain development and "Basic Trust" for peaceful/happy behaviors. Mother-infant co-sleeping is encouraged for "two years or beyond". Mother-infant/child body contact can also be optimized with daily infant/child massage. The Father must also learn to affectionately bond with his infant and child by being an additional source of physical affection.
7. Immediate Comforting is given to infants and children who are crying. No infant/child should ever be permitted to cry itself to sleep.
8. Infants and Children Are For Hugging and should never be physically hit for any reason. Merging childhood parental love with parental violent pain helps create adult violent love.
9. Infants and Children Are Honored and should never be humiliated nor emotionally abused for any reason. The emerging sexuality of every child is respected.
10.Mothers Must Be Honored and not replaced by Institutional Day Care which emotionally harms children before three years of age. Mother-Infant/Child Community Development Centers must replace Institutionalized Day Care.
THE CHILD IS THE FATHER OF THE MAN
THE CHILD IS THE MOTHER OF CULTURE
THE CHILD IS THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY
The Origins of Peace and Violence
The start of the awakening...
------
The solutions to the problems of civilisation emerge as we begin to understand, respect and provide for those natural expectations, for all children.
Expectations of every child : A song about those natural expectations
http://www.reverbnation.co
Peace of Mind : A song of hope and determination
http://www.reverbnation.co
Do what you love : a song celebrating honesty and love
http://www.reverbnation.co
Expectations of every child : A song about those natural expectations
http://www.reverbnation.co
Peace of Mind : A song of hope and determination
http://www.reverbnation.co
Do what you love : a song celebrating honesty and love
http://www.reverbnation.co
Psychologist, writer and elder ancestral sister of Humanity, to whom much is owed.
Kindest regards
Corneilius
Do what you love, it's your gift to universe
3 comments:
I can finally comment!! I'll be linking to your previous post on Sunday. Love your blog!
In regards to breast feeding it concerns me that content such as the above (point 5) puts unnecessary pressure on new mums. It is unrealistic to expect all mums to breast feed. Breast feeding is not an easy task. Many women can not breast feed for any number of reasons beyond their control. Which raises the point, what is in the 'best interest' of the baby and mum, a happy and settled forumla fed baby or a baby who is in pain and traumatised because they are starving and breast feeding is just is not working. I believe every mother is doing what is best for the baby and for themselves. Why must people make mum's who can not breast feed feel as guilty as hell by implying that by not breast feeding we are causing almost 'abuse' to our babies. A little more empathy please.
To Anonymous, I take your point that it's not useful to put Mums under unnecessary pressure, or to encourage a situation where guilt is likely. However the pressures that exist within our culture regarding parenting and motherhood are the real problem here, and those are not addressed by your comment.
Those pressures are Societal - such as the nuclear family, processed foods, two working parents, the 'teachings' of Spock and others, the childhood history of the mother herself, a society that denies support unless one is prepared to participate in the economy, religious beliefs, a sexuality divorced from nurture and commercialised. These pressures translate into very damaging experiential learnings that harm the developing brain of an infant. I have written about this elsewhere.
When a mother is allowed to understand that those Societal pressures have no place in healthy parenting, when she is 'let off the hook' so to speak, breast feeding and many, many other aspects of parenting become much much easier, more natural. The body knows how to parent. It is innate. The pressures of Society mask that knowing. Intentionally.
That intent is proven by the suppression of Prescott's work, by the ways in which Governance ignores the work of Alice Miller, by the ways in which Governance today is blocking the process of taking the Catholic and other Churches to court, to face open and public accountability for their 1600 year long Institutional abuse and cover-up of that abuse
Many mothers go to the bottle, not because breast feeding is not working, but because of those outside pressures - the milk formula business is a HUGE international business with a powerful lobby at the political level.
It's in their interests that formula is promoted, interests that happen to dovetail with those who espouse a violent, militaristic Civilisation devoid of empathy.
Society as we know it cannot function profitably unless most parents are working in the 'economy'. Who benefits, and who loses out?
Post a Comment