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Childbirth can be an empowering and positive experience that you
treasure for the rest of your life. KG Hypnobirthing teaches simple
and gentle techniques that have a profound effect on you and on
your baby. KG Hypnobirthing can reduce the need for pain relief and
shorten labour, and you are more likely to experience a natural,
calm, comfortable birth. It actively involves the father or birth
partner; you will both learn skills to instil confidence about the
birth and your role as parents.The Hypnobirthing Book and MP3 is a
complete antenatal preparation which guides you to achieve the
birth you want - for you and for your baby. KGH The Home of
Hypnobirthing
Since the middle of the twentieth century, the development of
plastics has been one of the main factors influencing the history
of medicine. For example, an anaesthesiologist was formerly an
expert in delivering drugs by inhalation. Today, this expert
delivers drugs through plastic catheters, in particular via
intravenous and epidural routes. Traditionally, the scalpel was the
symbol of surgery. Today, surgeons operate on internal organs with
flexible plastic endoscopes - without cutting the skin. A typical
modern woman in labour has one of her arms connected to a plastic
bag through a plastic tube, while a plastic catheter is inserted in
the epidural space in her spine. Focusing on obstetrics, this first
book about the history of medicine in relation to the plastic
revolution asks vital questions about childbirth today - and
tomorrow - and demonstrates that the current turning point in the
history of childbirth is also a turning point in the history of
humanity. Introduced as a medical student to the surgical unit of a
Paris hospital in 1949, and still involved in several fields of
medicine, Michel Odent has the authority to study contemporary
history from this new perspective.
Humanity, argues Michel Odent, stands at a crossroads in the
history of childbirth - and the direction we choose to take will
have critical consequences. Until recently a woman could not have
had a baby without releasing a complex cocktail of 'love hormones'.
In many societies today, most women give birth without relying on
the release of such a flow of hormones. Some give birth via
caesarean section, while others use drugs that not only block the
release of these natural substances, but do not have their
beneficial behavioural effects. 'This unprecedented situation must
be considered in terms of civilization', says Odent, and gives us
urgent new reasons to rediscover the basic needs of women in
labour. At a time when pleas for the 'humanization' of childbirth
are fashionable, the author suggests, rather, that we should first
accept our 'mammalian' condition and give priority to the woman's
need for privacy and to feel secure. The activity of the intellect,
the use of language, and many cultural beliefs and rituals - which
are all special to humans - are handicaps in the period surrounding
birth. Says Odent: 'To give birth to her baby, the mother needs
privacy. She needs to feel unobserved. The newborn baby needs the
skin of the mother, the smell of the mother, her breast. These are
all needs that we hold in common with the other mammals, but which
humans have learned to neglect, to ignore or even deny.' Expectant
parents, midwives, doulas, childbirth educators, those involved in
public health, and all those interested in the future of humanity,
will find this a provocative and visionary book.
What is the future of the human capacity to give birth? What is the
future of underused physiological functions? Should we expect an
evolution of Homo sapiens in relation to the way babies are born?
Can fast-developing scientific disciplines induce a new awareness?
In this wide-ranging, interdisciplinary look at the future of
birth, renowned obstetrician Michel Odent takes the question 'Do we
need midwives?' as a starting point. If a paradigm shift occurs,
what kind of midwives shall we need? For how long can we go on
neutralizing the laws of natural selection? Are human beings able
to raise vital questions before it is too late? Unprecedented
situations should first and foremost inspire appropriate questions.
Drawing on a diversity of fast-developing disciplines including
genetics, physiology, pathology as well as the history of canoeing
and studies of the fluctuation of sea levels, revolutionary thinker
and birth pioneer Michel Odent examines the case for viewing the
genus Homo as a 'marine chimpanzee' - particularly adapted to
coastal areas. By exploring the practical implications of this
vision of our species, including in the period surrounding birth,
the author raises questions about the very survival of humanity. At
a time in history when human domination of Nature is more profound
than ever before, are we on the cusp of a 'symbiotic revolution'?
With his characteristic ability to look at the 'big picture' and
ask questions that challenge conventional thinking, Michel Odent
once again manages to persuade readers to view themselves, and
their species, in a new light.
How different would your life be if your priority were love? In
this groundbreaking book, Antonella Gambotto-Burke encourages a
complete re-evaluation of motherhood, showing that our lack of
respect for maternal love is at the root of our widespread
dissatisfaction with modern life. Written from the heart of a woman
who was herself revolutionised by her experience of motherhood,
this is a book that challenges, comforts and inspires, offering
positive solutions through personal revelation and intellectual
exploration with some of the greatest visionaries of childcare.
Mama is not only the key to a better world, but to a better
relationship - with yourself, your child and your life.
At a global scale, love hormones are now redundant in the critical
period surrounding birth ... reasons for questions? Between 1970
and 1990, in many parts of the world, the rates of caesareans
escalated from roughly 5% to roughly 25%. During this short phase
of history, the father's participation became routine. Is there a
link between these facts? Health care systems are on the way to
collapsing. Should we go on focusing on the preventive and curative
treatments of particular diseases or should we give a greater
importance to the way our basic adaptive systems, involved in what
we commonly call health, reach a high degree of maturity? These
examples are sufficient to illustrate the "neo-Socratic attitude"
of the author. Our contemporaries are constantly dealing with
unprecedented situations. Question marks, therefore, can symbolise
the current phase of our history. Throughout this book, radically
new situations are analysed, before appropriate questions are
phrased. At a time when people commonly debate on the long-term
effects of human activities without considering the probable
transformations of Homo, one cannot avoid a preliminary question:
How to reach an audience made up of female and male open-minded
people who are turned towards the future but have not yet realised
that the important period surrounding birth has been radically
transformed during the past decades? In the age of cultural
blindness related to overspecialization, The Future of Homo is also
a training tool to think across boundaries.
At a global scale, love hormones are now redundant in the critical
period surrounding birth ... reasons for questions? Between 1970
and 1990, in many parts of the world, the rates of caesareans
escalated from roughly 5% to roughly 25%. During this short phase
of history, the father's participation became routine. Is there a
link between these facts? Health care systems are on the way to
collapsing. Should we go on focusing on the preventive and curative
treatments of particular diseases or should we give a greater
importance to the way our basic adaptive systems, involved in what
we commonly call health, reach a high degree of maturity? These
examples are sufficient to illustrate the "neo-Socratic attitude"
of the author. Our contemporaries are constantly dealing with
unprecedented situations. Question marks, therefore, can symbolise
the current phase of our history. Throughout this book, radically
new situations are analysed, before appropriate questions are
phrased. At a time when people commonly debate on the long-term
effects of human activities without considering the probable
transformations of Homo, one cannot avoid a preliminary question:
How to reach an audience made up of female and male open-minded
people who are turned towards the future but have not yet realised
that the important period surrounding birth has been radically
transformed during the past decades? In the age of cultural
blindness related to overspecialization, The Future of Homo is also
a training tool to think across boundaries.
How did a magnificent rescue operation become such a common way of
giving birth? And how safe is it really? Why do some countries have
10 per cent of caesarian births, and some more than 50 per cent?
Why have risky procedures, such as forceps deliveries, not been
eliminated by the C-section? What is the birthing pool test? What
are the very first microbes met by a caesarean-born baby? Is it
easy to breastfeed after a caesarean? Why are different approaches
taken to scheduled C-sections, C-sections during labour, and
emergency C-sections? What do mother and baby miss out on by not
sharing a vaginal birth? What do we know about the long-term
consequences of being born by caesarean? What do we know about the
long-term consequences of giving birth by caesarean? What is the
future of the 'a la carte'C-section? What is the future of a
civilisation born by caesarean? Having been involved in half a
century of the history of the caesarean, Dr Michel Odent is
uniquely and authoritatively equipped to deal with these vital and
urgent questions.
Love has been the realm of poets, artists, and philosophers
throughout history, until recently, where it has been studied from
a number of scientific perspectives. What the scientists are
missing, argues author Michel Odent, is that love is vital as a
strategy for the survival of the human race. Aggression and
domination are no longer what we need to have an evolutionary
advantage. What we need is the capacity to love. With a foreword by
Miriam Stoppard, The Scientification of Love weaves together data
from a multitude of disciplines, offering a number of insightful
and exciting explanations and making the case for the adoption of
radical new strategies for human survival. With maternal love as
the prototype for all types of love, the book examines the short,
but critical, time just after birth which has long-term
consequences for our future capacity to love. The Scientification
of Love looks at love holistically and in terms of the hormones
which affect it in different parts of life, helping us to
understand the conflict between civilization and the natural state
of the human race. Originally published in 1999, revised in 2001,
and now re-released in paperback for 2014, this controversial and
fascinating book by the world renowned Michel Odent - an
influential pioneer in the history of childbirth and health
research - is still truly groundbreaking.
Michel Odent, the leading pioneer for natural childbirth, indicates
that the period between conception and a child's first birthday is
critical to life-long health. In this prophetic book - first
published in 1986 and reproduced here in its original form - he
argues that different parts of the 'primal adaptive system'
develop, regulate and adjust themselves during foetal life and the
time around birth and infancy. 'Everything which happens during
this period of dependence on the mother has an influence on this
basic state of health, this primal health.' He suggests that the
later well-being of adults, their ability to withstand the
'diseases of civilization' such as hypertension, cancer, alcoholism
and failures of the immune system resulting in AIDS, allergies and
viral diseases, can all be traced back to society's ignorance of
the vital importance of the primal period. Since the first edition
of this groundbreaking work, research has continued apace, offering
further evidence to substantiate Odent's ideas. In the important
new "Introduction and Postscript", the author reviews recent
developments and relates them to the central themes of Primal
Health. This book is essential reading for all who care about the
health of our children and the ongoing health of society as a
whole.
After introducing the concept of the birthing pool in the 1970s,
Michel Odent has continuously expanded his interest in the
mysterious connections between humans and water. In Planet Ocean he
shows that the evolution of the oceans - particularly the
fluctuations of sea levels - and the evolution of humans are
inseparable. The oceans are the givers and sustainers of life,
holding ninety-five per cent of the planet's habitable space within
their immense depths. Odent steers us towards a radically new
vision of human nature. Our defining feature - a supersized brain -
becomes a leitmotif that enables links between topics as diverse as
our nutritional needs, our relationship with sea mammals, and the
way members of our species give birth. He relates 'transcendent
emotional states' with what the French writer Romain Rolland
referred to as 'the oceanic feeling' - both suggesting the absence
of limits. Access to such states can be associated with, for
example, a 'foetus ejection reflex'. This leads to the
extraordinary conclusion that swimming - as learnt behaviour among
humans - the birth process and access to transcendence are
interrelated topics for students of human nature. Planet Ocean is a
fascinating interdisciplinary study that demonstrates our manifold
connections to water and suggests their relevance to everyday life.
A book for pregnant women who would prefer to give birth with as
little intervention as possible, so as to make things as good as
possible for both themselves and their babies. The 'countdown'
takes the reader through 10 key topics, and all discussion of
issues is supplemented with birth stories and comments from all
kinds of women and professionals too. The tone is practical,
reassuring and even inspirational because the many positive birth
stories show how it's possible to have a really happy, healthy
experience of birth. Contributions come from Janet Balaskas (the
woman who realised we're better off not lying down when we give
birth ), Michel Odent (pioneer of water births) and Bill Bryson
(the travel writer)... as well as from many other experts and
'ordinary' but extraordinary mothers, who made this book possible.
The advice is based on current research evidence and in any cases
where the evidence is controversial the research and relevant
issues are discussed in an optional extra 'notes' section at the
back of the book. There is a comprehensive Glossary of pregnancy
terms and a user-friendly Index, so as to make it an optimally
useful book in all sense of the word. In short, this is a handbook
which could make a real difference to a pregnant woman's experience
and also to that of her baby. A comment from an antenatal teacher:
"What every woman will want to know, put simply and clearly." A
comment from a midwife, perinatal researcher and adjunct professor
(Betty-Anne Daviss): "Sylvie has created a prescription for healthy
birth in a 10-step approach to keep parents focused on what is
important in a potentially disastrous birth environment... She
has... provided us with a book that encapsulates anything you
wanted to know about keeping your birth normal and healthy..." And
a comment from a mother: "Had a very late night Friday as I could
not put your book down. Wow "
'After the historic student revolt in France a period of audacious
creativity resulted. The watchword was: "It is forbidden to
forbid". We took advantage of this transient cultural folly to do
what would have been impossible ten years before or ten years
after, introducing in the maternity unit of a state hospital an
inflatable outdoor pool as a way to replace drugs during birth.' -
from the Introduction In this groundbreaking book, Dr Odent takes
as his starting point the world-famous work on childbirth at
Pithiviers, where he first noticed the strong attraction to water
that many women have during labour. As well as discovering the
practical advantages of water during the birthing process, he began
to consider the meaning and importance of water as a symbol. Water,
Birth and Sexuality examines the living power of water and its
erotic connotations. Odent evaluates what water meant in different
cultures throughout history, through myths and legends, and what it
means for us today: from an advertiser's tool to a metaphor for
aspects of the psyche. He also studies humanity's special
relationship to dolphins, and the related 'aquatic ape' theory.A
practical section on the use of water during birth and in various
therapies, particularly sex therapy, is included. This edition of
this classic work features a new Introduction.
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