NOW!
Especially for Dads!
"Women are the mothers of humanity; do not let us ever forget that or underemphasize its importance. What mothers are to their children, and to others, so will men be to men. Women must assume the full birthright of motherhood."
Ashley Montagu, The Natural Superiority of Women, 1952
At a time when more and more women are asking for elective Caesareans sections and the normal procedure in hospital is to have an epidural, you might ask why I am speaking about an alternative choice for staying present with all the feelings in your body. There are many reasons. Foremost among them is to emphasize and honor the powerful influence of the consciousness of the Mother on all of society. I also want to encourage the sense of deep satisfaction awaiting a woman who has had a goal and worked to achieve it.
As long ago as 1939, a very wise philosopher and teacher proposed that we could bring about peace on Earth and eradicate many life threatening diseases in a few generations. He said that this could happen by giving specific attention to the environment, health and consciousness of pregnant women, and thus their babies. That teacher was Omraam Mikhail Aivanhov. Many voices have followed. Journals of confirming research are published regularly by The Association for Pre and Perinatal Psychology and Health, based in the United States, and the International Society for Pre and Perinatal Psychology and Medicine based in Europe. The Organization for Prenatal Education in England has as an aim to provide information related to prenatal life in order to promote harmonious physical and psychological development of the unborn child. There are groups in every civilized country working to support the realization that babies are alert and learning in the womb and at birth. It is of utmost importance that we address the issues, both personal and global, that this knowledge brings forth.
Was your mother
aware of your consciousness when she was pregnant with you?
Did she speak to you while you were in her body?
Did she listen while you were co-creating a body . . . making up your
mind? Did your mother look forward
to your birth as an opportunity to express her power and authority?
We share a
common experience, you and I. We
come from the warm waters inside another – part of a whole.
Most of us have arrived into cold air and a plastic box outside – alone
and separate.
What decisions
do you think you made? What
decisions would you make right now if you were abruptly separated from your
known environment and found yourself in a place where no one acknowledged your
awareness?
THE ESSENTIALS FOR AN ECSTATIC BIRTH
CONSCIOUS CHOICE and COMMITMENT
Decisions made in a heightened feeling state have a lasting effect. The basis of all of my work is the philosophy, thought plus emotion creates results that are then experienced as our personal reality. A conscious choice to have an ecstatic birth is the first step toward creating that result. No matter what the reasons are, a deep personal commitment is necessary once the choice has been made. When you make a heartfelt commitment, seemingly magical forces come together to bring you exactly what you need.
WILLINGNESS
Spontaneous ecstatic birth is not the norm at this time. The most widely held belief in civilized society is "Birth is painful, even excruciating". The desire to engage and discover another path must be followed by willingness to explore your own fears and belief systems. It is possible to release the past gently with love and forgiveness. My suggestions for preparation for an ecstatic birth always include deep inner work on all levels, physical, emotional, and transpersonal. Accepted practice today includes the use of technology to test, photograph, and study the movements and responses of the unborn child. Technology is also available in the form of psychological and psycho-spiritual processes to contact and interact with the “unborn child” in the adult. We can encounter “The One” who may have been ignored, unstimulated, even unwanted. That baby, “The One who lives in your heart", deserves attention. With patience, honor and respect we can heal and reveal the whole and complete, forgiving and powerful creative consciousness within us. As we acknowledge “The One who intended to be here in the first place”, we give birth to Original Intent . . . the Soul. Then the babies born through us and with us don’t have to forget.
SUPP
If you intended to participate in the Olympics, you would prepare psychologically and emotionally, as well as physically. I doubt that you would leave anything to chance. There are many resources and tools available for both inner and outer preparation. Choose carefully those that feel comfortable and right for you. The inner agreement to support yourself with intentional choice of all your activities, nutrition, environment, care and guidance is fundamental to your success. Opening to receive the support is of equal importance to choosing support. I have observed that this is the most difficult task for many women.
The most supportive "action" anyone can take is to accept the truth "I am connected, I matter!" Based in that affirmation of life, develop intimate relationship with those closest to you. You have the opportunity to transform all your relationships if you pay attention to the relationship you have with yourself. Open to a loving relationship with the baby. A relationship that includes listening to it, as well as speaking to him or her. Everyone at a birth causes an effect on the outcome. Be aware of creating relationship with all the people who will accompany you through labor and birth and after. Choose these people mindful that you can have what you want. Get to know them and allow them to know you.
MY RECOMMENDATIONS
TO SUPPORT
THE
Explore and express your creative potentials. The creative energies are intensified during pregnancy and are available. Take an art class that appeals to you, write poetry, or learn a new language (It is likely that the child will have an affinity for that language if he or she begins to study it later.) Every pregnant woman is working with fabulous creation energy in, around and about her all the time. It is wonderful just to be with them, and to be with the beings who are in the creation process and to communicate with them - to listen. Most of the people whom I have met and worked with over 25 years have not had a direct experience of being listened to, especially in utero. Oh yes, we listen for the cries, and we listen for what they need. Do we listen for and receive the love that is there? Do we listen for and receive from our babies, and the babies around us, the very real instructions about what they need for their Soul's growth, for the evolution of their Souls?
Surround yourself with people, images and books that support the possibility of ecstatic birth. Know who to call and where to look for reassurance when you have doubts about yourself.
Focus on what inspires and uplifts you.
Guided visualizations that I call a SOURCE Meditation (available on CD) are important for relaxation, creation and re-creation. Women report excellent results with "Having a Baby The Most Natural Thing in the World". One track has an audible message with exceptional music and the other tracks the message is subliminal. Listening to the subliminal track for 20- 40 minutes a day and doing the audible side while relaxing and lying down once a week can be highly beneficial.
Physical exercise that is appropriate and expands your relationship with your body, i.e. yoga, belly dancing, swimming, and walking in nature.
A balanced nutritional program is vital to the immediate and future health of both Mother and baby.
Consider your physical environment, and make changes where it doesn't support you. You deserve peace, beauty and harmony. Clearing spaces that you have meant to clear can symbolize making way for new beginnings. The simple addition of a plant or a candle can change the atmosphere in a room.
Seek out birth preparation classes that focus on the whole being, stimulate your enthusiasm and love of life, and support your goals.
Avoid pictures, programs and literature that contain violence.
Take the time to learn about and work with forgiveness. Many consider that it is the key to happiness. My recording called "Forgiveness The Key to Happiness" includes the Process ForGiving,
I always introduce private clients and workshop participants to Source Experience Breathwork (known previously as Healing Birth Rebirthing). It is a powerful personal process and philosophy using the breath as a tool to release energy held as fear and stress in the mind and the body. As the life energy is set free to flow it can be used to energize new life enhancing thinking. It is possible to eliminate primal trauma and transform the subconscious impression of birth into a gentle, awakening event. As we bring forth experiences of pre and perinatal memory, the result is a new sense of individuation, self-esteem and self-motivation. Direct experience of oneself as conscious before or during birth causes an integrated perspective that supports the commitment to another way of giving birth. People who choose to do this work are inspired to respond to the child in utero with attention, honor and respect. Learning to use the breath in the open, full, connected pattern used in Source Experience work supports a woman to handle the higher levels of energy and sensation in labor.
I will recommend trained breathwork coaches, and I offer workshops and trainings.
Key Benefits of Having an Ecstatic Birth
 | Personal Empowerment |
| Happier and Healthier Mother and Baby |
| Opportunity for the Partner |