Preconception
Have you ever wondered about when parenting starts? More and more research is pointing in the direction that it starts even before conception.
We accept that preparation is important in all areas of life to have a successful outcome but why do we not include the most important aspect of life, bringing a new being into the world? Science is now discovering that it does make a difference, you are in fact a co-creator in this transformative journey of pregnancy and birth.
I think it is important when sharing this information, that this is not to blame or create guilt, but to raise more awareness, more compassion for yourself and to empower you to realize that you can start to already have a positive impact in your future baby’s overall health.
If you had a child already, please remind yourself that as you didn’t know that information then, you couldn’t have done it any different. It is only once we have more awareness that we can make changes!
Cellular biologist Dr. Bruce Lipton PhD states in his book, The Biology of Belief:
"Research reveals that parents act as genetic engineers for their children in the months before conception (...) In the final stages of egg and sperm maturation, a process called genomic imprinting has a profound influence on the mind and body of their child.’
Thanks to the discovery of epigenetics, the environment can make modifications to the expression of a gene, the environment consists of the outer environment, i.e. toxins, events, cultural etc. and your inner environment i.e.thoughts, feelings, experiences, and perceptions.
Your journey to parenthood really starts month before conception - So it matters the life you lead months before conception, because your and your partner’s mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual state of health imprints on the egg and sperm which are going to become your future child and consequently has an influence on his/her future life.
The influences your eggs and sperm have received come not only from your life experiences but could also be intergenerational. The reason being is that you are already present as an unfertilized egg in your mother’s womb when she herself is in her mother’s womb, which is your grandmother’s womb, at five months of pregnancy.
Research now shows us that we are aware and sensitive right from conception, not in a cognitive sense but in a felt sense and the imprints we receive stay in our sub/unconscious. So, you might choose before conceiving your baby to be curious and become aware of your own imprints, thoughts, feelings, beliefs, of what you have received and learned from your parents/ ancestors about life, and become aware of what you are happy about and where you want to do it differently.
You might want to educate and empower yourself to learn to live a positive pregnancy and prepare for a calm and gentle birth experience as this will create positive memories for yourself and your family and positive imprints for your baby on all levels and has a rippling effect onto future generations.
Not everybody might feel ready to dive into theirs and their family pasts, but that doesn’t mean, that you can’t make positive life changes before conceiving your baby and educate yourself for a positive pregnancy and birth experience.
An interesting study done by Professor Gerlinde Metz, Ph.D. Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Lethbridge in Canada shows that positive experiences, stress reduction and social support promote resilience and longevity and reverse epigenetic signatures.
Researchers are now finding that our thoughts, inner images can change the way how our genes express through the process of Epigenetics. This comes as the body/mind or our subconscious doesn’t know the difference of what physical reality is and what are our thoughts and perceptions, for example a scary movie produces adrenalin, and you feel your heart is pounding, etc, but you are safely sitting in your living room, your body reacted to your thoughts by watching a movie and not your physical environment.
Before conceiving spending time to create positive images through visualisations, and meditations, learning to manage stress, creating a loving support around you and focus on gratitude for what is good in life, all that has a positive effect on your body and once you are pregnant on your baby.
The world isn’t perfect, nor do we need to be perfect ourselves. We can’t change the world around us, but we have an influence over how we react or better act to it, empowering ourselves or getting help to be empowered to be the best we can be at that time.
Pregnancy can be a deep and transformative journey! You are shaping and inspiring the next generation and this can be challenging. There is no perfect way to do this but you can find the way which is right for you.
What I offer:
I think it is important when we explore our life to approach this with compassion for ourselves and others, this is not about blaming anybody, it is about being curious about what is your own and your birth family’s story, what is useful to you and what you would they like to improve.
You might not feel ready about discovering or uncovering your past, and that is fine. I will work with you in a supportive, gentle, and safe way depending on what you feel comfortable and ready to explore. You can either go deep into your story and past or choose not to.
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In whatever way you feel ready to, we will look at your feelings about becoming a mother, your relationship with your parents, partner, family members, your own conception/pregnancy/ birth journey, and any other personal issues, such as fears, anxiety, phobias…
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I can assist you by supporting you to focus on a loving awareness of yourself, on life affirming images or affirmations and create an empowered and positive mindset.
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I will suggest to you some tools of how to manage stress and learn to build resilience in your nervous system so that you can deal better with triggers and stress.
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I will educate you and share resources with you about how to make this amazing journey of conception/pregnancy and birth a positive and empowering experience for yourself, your partner and your baby.
I offer one on one online sessions using my counselling, Hypnotherapy and EFT skills integrated with my knowledge of Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and experience of working in the field of pregnancy and birth for nearly 20 years.