The journey of becoming a mother.
Nature intends that the physical and hormonal changes of pregnancy insure the growth and development not just of the baby but of the mother. The physical and emotional changes of pregnancy and, then, labor, birth, and breastfeeding play vital roles in guiding women on the journey of becoming a mother. Standard prenatal care and medicalized labor and birth interfere in powerful ways with nature's plan and, consequently, women's ability to negotiate this journey. In this column, these issues are explored, and implications for childbirth education are discussed.
JUDITH LOTHIAN is a childbirth educator in Brooklyn, New York, a member of the Lamaze International Board of Directors, and the associate editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education . She is also an associate professor in the College of Nursing at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey.
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