PRENATAL AND PERINATAL EDUCATION SERIES - ARTICLE 1
FOUNDATIONAL INFORMATION AND INTRODUCTION
- Shivakumar Belavadi, PPNE, Bangalore, India
TOPIC - Define Pre and Perinatal Psychology (PPN) and describe why it is
important to human development.
Wikipedia states that “Pre and Perinatal (PPN)
Psychology explores the psychological and psycho-physiological effects and
implications of the earliest experiences of the individual, before birth
(prenatal), as well as during and immediately after childbirth (perinatal)”.
This is probably a simplistic and minimalistic definition, but a good point to
begin exploring the scope.
First, the emphasis on the period viz. - “Birth of a Child”
is significant. If the reference is to the time before birth, it will include
the period:
- · in the womb of the mother after conception
- · before conception i.e. Preconception – within the DNAs of the parents.
Hence PPN periods would include
a period preceding conception, the course of pregnancy and the early period after child
birth.
Second, psychology deals with unity of both the body
and mind. The notion that ‘preceding birth, a prenate has no mind’ - has been
dispelled. A prenate is sentient and a live being. Further, in addition to the
mind and body, the dimension of spirit may need to be formally reckoned into our
understanding. Religions and mythology across the world accept the spiritual
realm. Anecdotally and through research, evidence has been gathered about the
spirit/energy realm. Today, science is possibly moving to that conclusive
dimension.
Thirdly, the vista of PPN is ever expanding. While
psychology may have been at the root, today it has many
collaborating fields including epigenetics, neurosciences, sociology, health,
medicine and obstetrics. Thus PPN seems to be the melting pot functioning
actively with many other branches of knowledge.
Why is it important to human
development?
It is important for at least three reasons:
1. What
happens in the pre and perinatal stages, impacts subsequent development of a person.
To build a better human being, knowledge of these stages becomes important. With this the Health of a person would be
better addressed.
2. Collectively,
human beings make society. Society faces many problems including violence,
abuse and intolerance. Solutions to many of them could lie in understanding the
problem at the root – which may well be the PPN period. Healing would be more purposeful with this awareness.
3. As
a branch of pure knowledge, it helps in better understanding of human beings
through the mind-body construct, the actions and emotions which are in play and
explore dimensions of spirit or energy. Society at large would benefit from
this and so would all of mankind. The
world will hence be a better place for all!
