Earlier in the course we looked at the very first physical attachment to your mother as the small bundle of cells known as a blastocyst first implanted into the uterus. You spent around 9 months living in the womb, securely attached physically to your mother. Now you are moving through your next transition where, with the cord cut and you born, you are now physically separate from your mother. But not emotionally and energetically. Our natural biology, evolved over millennia, has a wonderful system that promotes bonding of mother and child so that she will want to take care of her child. Much of the motherly behaviour - cooing, cuddling, stroking, is biologically regulated; meaning that it is instinctive and a mutual sensory experience between the newborn and mother. When this goes smoothly, this step of your transition to an independent being will be gentle. Studies show that children who are well bonded to their mother (and/or other primary caregivers) are usually physically healthier and emotionally more stable.
Here I will offer an overview of the process from the physical biological view point and then we will reflect on how your journey through this stage may have impacted relationships, support and intimacy throughout your life.
Biological Bonding.
Again, this is a complex process that is not fully understood, but we do know there are many hormones involved and sensory signals that elicit responses. Studies have repeatedly shown that the baby is wired to know and prefer the scent of her own mother and the sound of his mother’s voice. The mother is also drawn to the scent of her newborn baby who will be covered in vernix and smell of the “womb” – the amniotic fluid. The baby smells familiar to the mother as they smell of her own body.
The sensory stimulus between mother and baby is a mutual chain reaction that stimulates release of hormones that further encourage bonding behaviour such as cuddling and “cooing”. Mimicry that you often see between the mother and baby further strengthens their connection and the interaction continues to help brain development, boost the immune system and support the babies to thrive and grow.
Oxytocin- This is one of the most studied hormones we already saw playing a part during labour. When labour is undisturbed its levels are high and this hormone continues to play a vital part in the bonding process. Oxytocin continues to be produced by both the baby and mother when stimulated by physical closeness that happens with skin to skin, breastfeeding and cuddles. This promotes attachment and strong bonding.
Studies on mice showed that once injected with oxytocin, mice who had not given birth and who would usually have no interest in responding to newborn mouse cries would quickly go to the rescue of stranded baby mice. Read more here
Note- Synthetic oxytocin does not have the same impact as our own natural oxytocin. It does not cross the blood brain barrier and does not impact on mood in the same way. Further high levels of synthetic oxytocin can hinder the production of natural oxytocin leading to lower levels down the line and interfering with the bonding process.
Prolactin - is produced during breastfeeding and this hormone helps with the contraction of the uterus that then reduces postpartum bleeding.
The Golden Hour
Despite its name this is not a strictly 60 minute time frame. However, the first 1 to 2 hours has been identified as a critical period for initiating the bonding process. This is the time in which mothers and babies should be left undisturbed in peace, quiet and relative dark to adjust and connect with each other. The time of uninterrupted skin to skin contact is crucially important for optimal health. This supports the baby to process the birth experience. The mother’s close contact (or other parent if necessary) aids the newborn stabilise by regulating their nervous system, body temperature and heart rate as they settle into breathing air. Usually, they will also establish breastfeeding which further cements the bond and promotes further hormonal shifts as part of the birth process – stimulating contractions of the uterus for example.
It is quite amazing to see what happens between the mother and baby on a physical level that is quite unconscious. For example, Cardiorespiratory Stability: The familiar sounds of the parent's heartbeat and breathing help stabilize the newborn's heart rate and breathing patterns. The mother's body temperature naturally adjusts to warm a cold infant or cool an overly warm one in a process called thermal synchrony. I have personal experience of this where I started sweating like a furnace from an internal boiler in order to heat up my baby who had got cold during birth. It stopped as soon as he was warm again.
A study by Dr John Kennel established that the greatest impact for this process of strong bonding is well within the first 12 hours and that delaying the initial close contact can interrupt the process severely. This can cause mothers to struggle on a long term basis to bond with their babies and lead to longer term health issues for the baby. Understanding of this has led to most places in the UK promoting skin to skin and aiming to honour the' Golden Hour'. In some cases, some checks are delayed to allow this connection to take place, however despite that being a common protocol, the delay does not always happen.
Note on bias in reporting statistics and facts:
“Immediate Skin to skin decreases post partum bleeding, increases breastfeeding success and decreases depression” This type of sentence is very common and grates on me because it is taking the measurements from disturbance as the baseline from which to measure all change. The biological norm is the baseline from which studies should operate. Skin to skin and undisturbed time with the mother is the biological norm that the baby expects at an evolutionary level. Whatever measurements are noted when that has occurred are the base line that should be used to measure against.
This reversal in reporting is incredibly common. It is widely seen in studies on the impacts of formula feeding versus breastfeeding. I will stop there so as not to go off on a further rant.
In our work in this course, we we are healing the impact of any deviations from the evolutionary expectations and norms the baby expected and deserved.
Some other thoughts
Below are a few more thoughts on elements of the process of bonding in our modern world and what may impact the experience
Assessment
Of course there are assessments to check on how a baby is and they have their place and use. But in a centralised, and often strained and under resourced system to boot, these assessments can also become part of an accumulating trauma. A lack of awareness of babies experience of birth and needs can lead to insensitivity in timing and application of any checks, for example weighing the baby. Everything is done quickly to a time schedule that is not shared by the baby.
Procedures and protocols vary over time , from country to country and in different establishments within the same country. Possible experiences you may have undergone that impact the process of bonding are: suctioning the mouth, antibiotic eye drops, circumcision, being washed, rubbed, slapped, moved around with limbs dangling, dressed, weighed naked on a cold surface, and general experience of bright lights, cold, strangers and the words being spoken. You may then have been given to your mother for a varying amount of time and you may have been separated into a nursery with other babies for many hours at a time.
The Breast Crawl and other reflexes
Babies are a lot more capable than we realise. They are innately programmed with everything they need for survival. They have reflexes at birth that include the rooting and sucking reflex so that they can feed. The breast crawl is particularly fascinating - left to their own devices a baby on a mother’s chest will make their way to the breast and latch on by themselves. They have the stepping reflex that will cause their legs to make stepping actions and arms to move until they get to the breast. They will usually find a good latch by themselves. Compare this to several tales I have read or heard of babies heads being pushed onto the breast by health care providers to initiate feeding so they can tick the box off, even if baby or mother is not yet ready.
A further note on Oxytocin – natural and synthetic
The disruption of the delicate hormonal balance may start earlier during labour with the addition of synthetic oxytocin. The concentration of Synthetic oxytocin in the bloodstream, delivered via IV can lead to an overloading of the body’s own system of oxytocin production. It binds to the body’s oxytocin receptors in the uterus leading to a process called desensitisation, meaning the body is less responsive to both synthetic and natural oxytocin. The contractions resulting from use of synthetic oxytocin can be stronger and feel relentless. This combination of factors which can cause muscle fatigue and more pain, as well as significant stress physically and emotionally for the mother, can be the beginning of a “cascade of interventions” that can see the need for forceps, ventouse, and ultimately, potentially a Caesarean section. In addition, a ‘fatigued uterus’ may not be able to strongly contract after the birth of the baby which can lead to an increased risk of post partum haemorrhage. Furthermore, as previously noted, natural oxytocin, called the love hormone, positively impacts mood and lessens sensations of pain. Synthetic oxytocin does not do this.
Of course, when needed induction can be life saving and does not always mean trauma. Nevertheless, it is an increasingly overused practice that now plays a significant part of many birth stories. It also plays a part in the way bonding happens, including the success or not of breastfeeding.
Reflection Questions:
1. How was your first hour or two after being born?
2 Was there a gap between what you expected from an evolutionary perspective and what you experienced?
3. How easily did your mother bond with you?
4. What is the impact of those first few hours of your life earthside on your relationships with people and with support today?