Consciousness and Birth
Mind body medicine and integral approaches to healing are beginning to build momentum and create change in how medicine is practiced in the 21st century. It is commonplace to hear of hypnosis, yoga and meditation being used to supplement the treatments of individuals with cancer, AIDS, chronic pain and a multiplicity of other serious complaints. Although new research and important studies continue to document the profound connections between consciousness, health and healing, there seems almost zero application to childbirth. While consciousness studies continue to peal back the layers of subtle interaction between mind, body and spirit, obstetrics perhaps more than any other specialty seems stuck in a 19th century paradigm of the body as a machine. Mind body medicine techniques are being widely researched and applied to a broad spectrum of medical realities one can only question the reasons for the glaring blind spot regarding childbirth.
I meet women every week who tell me stories of frightening and dehumanizing birth experiences. I meet newborn babies who have been traumatized by their passage into this world, who are dazed and disoriented looking to a mother who is reeling in an attempt to assimilate antiquated medical applications doled out in unwieldy assembly line hospitals. Childbirth is among the most psychospiritually vulnerable passages in the human experience for both the mother and the baby yet it is treated with the ham-handed perspective of the medicine of the past. Birth is widely accepted as a "medical event" requiring drugs, surgery, interventions and technology.
"By medicalising birth, i.e. separating a woman from her own environment and surrounding her with strange people using strange machines to do strange things to her in an effort to assist her, the woman's state of mind and body is so altered that her way of carrying through this intimate act must also be altered and the state of the baby born must equally be altered. The result it that it is no longer possible to know what births would have been like before these manipulations. Most health care providers no longer know what 'non-medicalised' birth is. The entire modern obstetric and neonatological literature is essentially based on observations of 'medicalised' birth." World Health Organization.Birthing babies in the United States has been monopolized by allopathic medicine since the early 20th century. Allopathic medicine has long defined treatment through the lens of pathology and disease. The presuppositions of this medical paradigm have curiously been overlaid upon pregnancy and birth, which by definition has nothing to do with illness. Along with this paradigm of medicine has come the long-entrenched view of the patient as the passive recipient of the recommendations of the all-knowing medical professional. Most obstetrical care, both figuratively and literally, puts women on their backs while their babies are "delivered" by their doctors. The new model of a collaborative physician-patient relationship has not seemed to penetrate obstetrical care to date.
"The perceived need for ritualized medical care during pregnancy is more cultural than medical."
Thomas H. Strong, Jr. M.D., Expecting Trouble
The cultural blind spot regarding childbirth is undoubtedly part of a convoluted story. Unfortunately, prejudices regarding women are still deeply embedded in our collective thinking. These unexamined proclivities are part of a complicated history involving psychology, philosophy and religion. Freud's theory that women unconsciously recognize and despise their own fundamental inferiority molded the secular landscape of thought for almost a century. Philosophers whose influence spanned thousands of years such as Aristotle wrote, "The female is a female by virtue of a certain lack of qualities, we should regard the female nature as afflicted with a natural defectiveness." This perspective has deep roots in our collective cultural attitudes. Western religion contributed the view of women's existential connection with Original Sin and made birthing a painful punishment to be endured by the daughters of Eve.Although the feminist revolution of the 20th century created some in-roads into these historical perspectives, they are nevertheless so subtly buried in cultural prejudices it may take many centuries of consciously questioning and revisiting them to eradicate their pernicious influence in everything from our thought processes to societal institutions. The emerging field of social healing which seeks to deal with the wounds of large-scale oppression and identify how they have shaped consciousness seems relevant to the long shadows these misconceptions have cast.
These perspectives have been instrumental in laying the foundation for the mistaken notion that a woman's body is somehow broken in relation to birthing. Scientific research each year pushes the boundary of our quantification of the elegant intelligence at work in our interwoven system we call our mind-body-spirit. Each new discovery further confirms the subtle intelligence at work in the larger economy of the natural systems in our body. For example, only in recent decades has science quantified exactly how precisely human breast milk nourishes the human infant. Subtle enzymes (that cannot be replicated by formula manufacturers) uniquely feed the infant's brain and critically contribute to its quickly unfolding development. Meantime, as the new mother breastfeeds, the astonishingly interactive intelligence of nature releases hormones that stimulate contractions of the uterus, returning it to its pre-pregnancy size.At the same time breastfeeding itself stimulates a release of hormones in both the newborn and the mother which facilitate the flow of love and what we now call bonding. Within days after birth a miraculous dance of reciprocity develops as the mother's milk lets down in direct response to the hungry cry of her baby. As an example of our cultural confusion and its complicated history surrounding women, sexuality and birth whether a mother can breastfeed in public is still hotly debated in the 21st century. While it is widely accepted that women's breasts can be used openly to sell beer and automobiles, where and when she can nourish her infant is regulated by specific laws. In seemingly liberal Marin County, California an upscale and chic gymnasium was forced to create a private room out of the potential gaze of offended members who could not tolerate a woman discreetly putting her child to the breast at poolside.
Integral medicine has also begun to quantify the power and purpose of the body's perpetual tendency to restore equilibrium. If we can eliminate the human tendency to be our own worst enemy, to remove anxiety, eliminate stressful environments and situations and stop making life-style choices that create impediments to health, the body will find its own way to heal itself. What about childbirth? Has the economy of nature somehow left this one human experience devoid of intelligent design? Women's heath issues have long been unconsciously placed at a lower rung of priority. The notorious 1988 study on heart disease, which had 13,385 male participants and remarkably concluded women were not at risk, is only one glaring example. In 1990 the National Institute for Health was publicly criticized for devoting 13% of its funds to research regarding women. Women were diagnosed for decades with hypoglycemia based on sugar levels established in men. Only recently it was discovered women's levels are not the same. Breast cancer received the least focus in cancer research until female celebrities took up the cause, creating focus and necessary fund-raising.
The cultural blind spot regarding women's health in general is uniquely compounded in obstetrics, with its direct association with long-entrenched social reserve around sexuality, menstruation and the primal act of childbirth itself. It is remarkable how little has been scientifically quantified and researched, especially regarding the psychological dimension of childbirth. In the 1990s a study revealed for the first time that women retain a heightened memory of giving birth to their children for the remainder of their lives. This memory remains a locus of vital energy (positive or negative) in the coloration of consciousness from empowerment and pride to anger and victimization. Why does this particular memory have a unique longevity? Why do more women in the United States experience post-partum depression than any other industrialized nation? Is there a connection between a traumatic birth experience and post-partum depression? Is there a connection between post-partum depression and Cesarean section?How common is post traumatic stress disorder following birth? What is the connection between a positive birth experience and bonding? What is the impact of the birth experience on successful breastfeeding? Does the newborn likewise have a positive or a negative birth experience? How does Cesarean section impact the newborn? What is the effect of common interventions such as a vacuum extractor, forceps or internal electronic fetal monitoring on the newborn? How do newborns experience trauma? How do newborns assimilate and heal from trauma? Studies aside, it would be exciting and revealing to ask women themselves, "What is the birth you dream of for your child?" It would also be informative to ask new mothers and fathers immediately after the birth how they would quantify their birth experience.
The incessant drumbeat of birth has lead to a sense of ordinariness which no doubt also has contributed to a lack of creative questioning. Before the appropriate questions, can be raised, we need to stand back and reassess our presuppositions about the meaning of birth. What is the significance of a new human consciousness entering the larger human story and what does it mean for a woman to have life pass through her? If one embraces a divine plan and metaphysics of spiritual connectedness, then birth stands at the sacred center of life. If that is true then birth matters. Consciousness in birth matters. How a woman births matters. How a woman births matters to her baby. How a woman births matters to the consciousness of the planet. Birth is a journey across the threshold into a completely new life. It is often the single most profound psychological and spiritual shift a woman will experience in a life time. Identity, values and societal status alter dramatically and the process can re-define self-image and self-worth. A woman enters into the journey of giving birth having a mother and she will emerge being a mother. Birth is a journey across the threshold into a completely new life.An African proverb has it:
Being pregnant and giving birth are like crossing a narrow bridge.
People can accompany you to the bridge. They can greet you on the other side.
But you walk that bridge alone.
It is a boundary crossing and therefore a rite of passage.
You can't give birth and end up at the same place. The passage itself demands transformation, being among the most intense physical, emotional and spiritual experiences of life. With the proper preparation and support the passage can be joyous, triumphant, challenging, life-changing, and life-giving for both mother and child. It can be a peak experience which will eternally be a source of confidence. I have met many who have faced the challenge heroically and the glow of pride that lights up their faces when recalling their unique story, even decades after the event, tells its own tale. One mother told me, "I climbed Mt. Everest that day and no one will ever be able to take that away from me." Unfortunately our collective cultural ignorance teaches that birth is something to be feared and endured, not experienced.
What about the pain of childbirth?Is it as unbearable as we are led to believe? Is the only humane choice to deaden the body? The pain is interwoven with the totality of the experience at all levels. Childbirth is not meaningless pain but pain with a purpose. At the physical level the pain acts as a guide for the woman to respond to, she then moves in response to what she is feeling. Her instincts can take over using breathe and positions that help the baby move down and into position for its journey down the birth canal. As the pain builds, so does the release of endorphins, the body's natural anesthesia. The flood of endorphins and oxytocin will open the door to an altered state of consciousness which is simultaneously primal and transpersonal. The flow of oxytocin will increase as labor builds and this same hormone will cause her to fall in love with and bond with her baby after the birth. When the pain of labor is stopped entirely, nature's feedback system is interrupted. This is no doubt why the most common side effect of an epidural is for labor to stall. This then requires pitocin augmentation to stimulate labor and the cascade of interventions begins.
Rites of passage in all cultures involve challenge, suffering and trials. The obstacles encountered are the very things that create transformation, causing us to feel more capable by their mastery. It is by facing and overcoming a challenge that we discover who we are. The upheaval of birth is part of nature's grand design. Birth was meant to be overwhelming, it is supposed to shake a woman down to her roots, leave her in awe of the power of the experience and also the power in herself. To deny the pain is to deny the growth. To remove the challenge is to remove the potential for a unique form of spiritual learning. We don’t find ourselves when things are easy. Modern psychology defines peak experiences and flow experiences as ones involving absolute absorption, total commitment and complete concentration in challenging ourselves to stretch beyond our known limits. When we are invited to face our fears and work through them we emerge with knowledge of our own courage. Many women experience childbirth as a peak experience.
Conversely this is undoubtedly why women who are given early epidurals and manage to pass through the process without incurring trauma often feel let down, experience grief or disorientation as though the completion of the design of nature has been psychospiritually interrupted. Joseph Campbell in his consideration of the hero, says classical and aboriginal cultures saw childbirth as the heroic quest of women. He likewise acknowledged its lack of novelty perhaps detracts from the splash and dazzle of other outward accomplishments we deem remarkable or transformative for society. These cultures esteemed women's power in birth and she was often seen to be participating in the pure power of creation of a goddess. Campbell tells us among the Aztecs the mothers who died in childbirth went to the same heaven as warriors who died in battle. A critical element in his definition of heroism is it requires putting your life on the line for another which literally qualifies birth.
It is inspiring to imagine a cultural awakening around the importance of consciousness in birth. Imagine a woman who believes her body was designed to birth wisely and well. Imagine a woman who is confidant she has the psychospiritual power to traverse this extremely challenging yet rewarding passage. Imagine a woman who is trained in appropriate mind-body medicine techniques which give her the tools necessary to remain calm and conscious in both her body and her heart. Imagine a woman who can stay poised at the intersection between spirit, mind and body. Imagine a woman who can self-consciously choose to surrender and simultaneously support this mysterious juncture between heaven and earth. Imagine a woman who is able to fully embrace the heroic challenge of birthing her child. Imagine a woman who can be fully present to the sacredness of the first breathe of her baby. Imagine a woman who emerges from childbirth awake to her own power and purpose and who is ready to assume the awe-inspiring task of being a mother. Imagine a woman for whom the life-long memory of birth resonates with the confidence it has sealed into her spirit. Imagine the pure consciousness of the tiny bud of humanity we call a newborn baby being welcomed with courage and love.
