Giulia Volpe by Gynevra Interview Bianca Buchal, writer of the book

"CONSCIOUS PREGNANCY"
The task of women: to build a better world.
Editor: Bambini Nuovi 'New children for the man of the future'.

1. Conception, pregnancy, delivery, breastfeeding and the first education. A life dedicated to the theme of childbirth. What pushed you to cultivate this theme and what is your “mission”?
I had the luck to receive teachings from an authoritative voice who wanted to lead women towards the conscious understanding of their task: “maternity”, since Nature has given only to them this role. The task of women is therefore first of all: care for procreation. Fascinated by this theme, I felt that the diffusion of all what concerns maternity, enriched with aspects medicine does not mention, should become for me a real “mission”, I would like all women to be ready to take this task into consideration, not only from the physiological point of view, but in respect of the Energies of Nature operating in her and with her, in order to give humanity a wave of renewal. I am sure everybody feels the need of it.
2. The pages of your book are full of sacrality, more than religiosity: a sense of deep respect for the dynamics of Nature… Could you explain what means sacrality in moments of life such as conception, gestation and delivery, considering them miraculous and at the same time “scientifically perfect”? In fact, I would like all women who want to become mothers to be conscious that during gestation they are not alone in carrying on their task, since, from the moment of conception until delivery and beyond, they are accompanied by precious forces I would call ‘cosmic’.
The creation of the child in mother’s womb is happening in a “scientifically perfect” way independen-tly from mother’s competence. For me, this means ‘sacrality’. The Woman has to offer the space in her body and the nourishment, i.e. the necessary substances for the construction of a sane body. All the rest realizes itself thanks to the external influences which, in my opinion, deserve to be recognized and respected, in order to give them the possibility to act in total quietness. The woman should add not only a good quantity of trust, but also elevated thoughts for feeding the child’s mind, deep feelings for the psyche and the will to transmit to him/her healthy principles for giving humanity a being useful and equilibrated at all levels, for himself and for the entire world.. All this enriched with that Love only a mother is able to give, not selfish but for a better existence for all. 3. A book half way between medicine and instinctive wisdom. Two parallel dimensions sometimes in conflict. How can we bring together, pregnancy and delivery, the use of medicalization necessary for granting security in such delicate events, and the ‘rituals’, ‘energies’ ‘etherics’ suggested in the book, for integrating the aspects medicine often neglects. Certainly, a minimum of information on the medical plane is absolutely necessary for all women, still it is not sufficient for giving to childbirth that touch which goes beyond the physicity of the event. I like to enrich it with other aspect, in order to be understood in its importance: to give to the family and to society a new individual, to whom we have transmitted through our love, our thoughts and our feelings only the very best of ourselves, obtaining in that way a person capable to bring in life only positive aspects. This is women’s task, since we carry in and with ourselves for 9 months the child in formation, aware that he/she is participating actively to all we are living. During that period, the baby is not only living in symbiosis with the mother, but he/she receives also many influences from the external environment. Anyway, nothing has such an important as what he/she receive from mummy. This makes us responsible for the baby’s formation at all levels: physical, psychological and spiritual. The medical approach has shown its utility in many cases, therefore it is welcome when really necessary. As a matter of fact, babies and women’s mortality has been reduced since medicine has started managing the birth event in maternity clinics, opened for assisting women ready to deliver their babies. And for this we must be thankful.. Thanks to the study of the wombs world, still running all over the world through many researchers since over 50 years, medicine has enriched itself with an information which was not known before. On that basis, in the maternity clinics have been formulated rules to be respected during pregnancy, delivery and beyond. But the rules should be changed according to experiences and results. Nothing is definitive ! Recently people talk much about ‘sweet birth’, in comparison with the ‘medicalized birth’. Many women wish to live the delivery of their child according to the rules dictated by Nature, which are different from those contained in the protocols of the clinics, rules all women carry in themselves instinctively. Letting them act by themselves, they know exactly how to proceed. The medical intervention is not always necessary, and for that reason it is better to reduce as far as possible the medicalization, since in many cases, such an intervention is not necessary. 4. In various points of your book you express yourself in a critical way about the protocols, which do not sufficiently respect the needs of mother and child. For instance, the habit to cut the umbilical cord before the baby is ready to live without it (causing a strong pain and the sudden lack of blood and hormones which stresses the organism of the baby), or to take away the newborn from the mother immediately after delivery, and so on…. You mention heavy potential damages deriving from such and other treatments on the physical and above all on the psychological health of the baby. In fact, the child seems to be more ready to develop, during his/her growth, unhealthy tendencies, such as disturbed alimentary behaviours, tendencies to abuse of alcohol and drugs, even violence! The need of more respect towards the most delicate moments of pregnancy is evident. It is evident that more respect for the mostdelicate moments of the delivery could cause the change of the way of living of individuals, and consequently obtaining a “ better world”. Could you explain why in pregnancy is hidden the secret of the so strongly desired “better world”? Big philosophers as Aivanhov, Disraeli and Gandhi seem to agree with you. I feel critical towards certain protocols, because their tendencies are to make delivery safe, in order to avoid any responsibility for the hospitals, independently from the immediate needs of mother and newborn and without considering the emotive aspect of the event. The umbilical cord is immediately cut and the baby carried away from the delivery-room for a serial of controls, not always necessary, without manifesting any respect for mother and child. The cut of the umbilical cord is very painful for the child, a pain equal to an amputation without anaesthesia. Furthermore, in that way, the blood and the hormones still contained in the umbilical cord belonging to the child are lost. Would it not be better to wait until also the placenta is born spontaneously leaving the baby still connected with his mother, for letting all the beneficial substances contained in the cord flow towards the child and cut the cord only when it stopped pulsing ? Instead to carry away the baby from the delivery-room, the baby should be put on mummy’s tummy, delicately cleaned and then put between mother’s arms, skin against skin, where mother and child cross the first sight. As soon as the baby opens his eyes, the first face he/she should see is his mother’s face. In that way, the inprinting between the two becomes strong and lasting all life long. After a symbiosis lasted 9 months, mother and child need to continue to remain together. The baby must make acquaintance with the new so different environment in which he/she find himself, and the mother needs to study at last the imagined and loved result of the long wait. Of course, the father must participate to this emotional moment. In that way, the ‘triade’ is formed. When the welcoming does not happen in that way, a laceration, a deep wound is created not only with his/her mother but also towards the external world, a laceration which leaves an emptiness very difficult to fill. Mother and child feel that something very important was lost. Only breastfeeding could fill this emptiness, but even that only partially. Even if each case is a special case, children who have suffered this initial emptiness, are easy victims of substances which create dependency, substances they take just for filling the initial emptiness. When still very little, they substitute mummy sucking their thumb or keeping day and night e little bear with themselves. But growing, they can show tendencies even to violence. These are the results of a very accurate study made by a psychologist, Willi Maurer, who has studied many cases starting from birth and following their development for many years. The result is that the entire birth, from before conception until the birth and immediately after is building the basis for the entire existence. This is why I am so interested in this theme: because a correct observation of all that concerns the beginning of life, creates the basis of the whole existence. And if during many years birth has been made without respect for mother and child, this is due partially to the lack of respect for the emotional aspect which in all environments should be recuperated, and partially due to the lack of information. Nobody should be considered guilty until disinformation is dominating. When things are not known, nobody can put them in practice. This is why I think that the science of procreation should be widely spread and tought even to young boys and girls in schools, in order to inform them how to organize their life. Only on the basis of this knowledge and of the widespread practice of this matter will it be possible to aspire to “a better world”. 5. Why is breastfeeding so important, compared to artificial milk? The importance of breastfeeding is found not only in the better quality of mother’s milk, more suitable for the baby, warrantor of the most important immunity defences, but also in the extraordinary perception of the alternation between separation and meeting, experience which brings the newborn baby to the recognition of the mother as separate object, longed and found again, and finally to the discovery of the relation. During breastfeeding, the baby discovers duality. The passage from the certainty based on the physical contact to the certainty connected with the perception of mother’s presence, will be fundamental for the growth of the child. The baby nourished with artificial milk, although receiving the necessary nutrition for his development, will be deprived of the etheric elements and of that heath and that love only a mother is able to give, and which feeds also the psyche. Furthermore, breastfeeding should last until the child himself decides to stop since he does not feel anymore the need of it, having obtained all the benefits he expected. After a certain time, the child feels by himself the need for a change. 6. In Italy we reached the highest number of c-sections in Europe, but only a low percentage represents the cases in which the section was clinically advised. Women’s fear of pain is playing a role, the fear not be able to stand it and that something could go wrong; the growing medical intervention and the tendency of the surgeons not to say ‘no’ to the patients, as well as many other factors have very little e to do with the protection of mother and baby. Could you explain to the future mothers what they lose refusing the possibility of a natural birth? The World Organization for Health recommends not to go beyond the level of 15% of c-sections per Year. In 2008 the national average percentage was 38%, and in certain regions even 70% in private clinics, numbers unfortunately in continuous increase. Which is the reason of this tendency? I think the fear of suffering too much, but also the lack of information. Nobody explains to the women who ask for c-section the consequences connected with this technique, which although becoming more and more safe, still it represents always a risk. The biggest risk is the lack of the thorax compression, which causes the child difficulty to start breathing. Is it reasonable that the mother puts in difficulty the baby for protecting herself from suffering during the labour? Even the welcoming of the newborn cannot be made in the best of ways. When for the c-section the epidural anaesthesia is made, the newborn can be given to the mother for the first feeding, since she is not under narcosis. The c-section is in any case a surgical intervention which, for several days, will create to the mother difficulties in taking care of the baby. This lets her feel a temporary an inadequate mother. The wish to get out from a state of invalidism pushes towards the necessity to recuperate something which has gone lost and which has never been lived, causing at the same time a feeling of guilt for not having lived the delivery in a natural way. The origin of the fear of suffering can be due to many causes; one of them could be the particularly difficult experience lived during one’s own birth. To be able to give to the pain a positive interpretation means to transform it, living it in an active way as opportunity to a maturation and not as condemnation. One has to keep in mind that women are in position to stand actively and consciously this physical and psychical deep experience, which is not pathological, with exception of single cases. 7. Woman, mother of humanity, consignee of life, and to-day, at last, also conscious of her social roles, which are not anymore only those of wife, mother and queen of her home. This causes more difficulties in unrolling her ‘natural’ task: to be mother and to live it well. Which is the role of men in all this? Which the role of the institutions? As a matter of fact, for the to-day’s working woman, the quantity of tasks is too high, damaging her position as mother. Until the babies are very little, she can not be there in a sufficient time for obtaining the wanted results. The modern woman is demonstrating to be extremely capable in all branches. If well prepared and adequately protected, she would be happy to live well also her ‘natural’ role as mother and educator of her children., but for doing this she needs the necessary serenity. The same authoritative voice I mentioned under question 1. used to say that, due to the enormous importance for all Nations to have children grown and educated in order to have citizens much less subject to health and behaviour problems, the State could realize enormous savings in fact of hospitals, prisons and educating institutions, and be able to sustain mothers, for giving them the possibility to dedicate themselves to the care and the education of their children. Which is the role of the man in all this? The father, who participates to the development of pregnancy and who is looking forward, together with his wife, to know his baby, should create around her an atmosphere of respect, of love, of help, of protection and of serenity, communicating with the baby through his voice and the touch, for creating the first bonding with the expected son, bonding which will successively become more and more strong. The presence and the involvement of the father is of extreme importance for the development of the child in all aspects. And if also the father follows consciously all phases of the child development, this gives the couple not only a moment of reflection and of self-education in view of the future parenthood, but it creates from the beginning the ’triade’ mother/father/baby, i.e. that empathic bonding which represents for the new being the first experience of love and for the couple the consolidation of their union. 8. Let us leave with an assay of the book, in which you disprove the most commons myths of the modern psychology. When the baby is clean, breastfed, nurtured and put in his bed starts crying, does it mean that he is having tantrums and should be neglected? Why is it cruel to let children cry? Yes, it is a cruelty because, for little children, crying is the only way to express themselves. When he/she cries, the child has a need which should be immediately satisfied. For each different need, the crying of the baby is different. The mother who is nurturing her baby is able to distinguish which need the baby wants to express. From the sound of crying, she knows what the baby wants. If he/she is immediately satisfied, the baby feels to have made a reasonable request, and becomes self-confident, property which will be very useful in life. If, on the contrary, the child is left crying without giving him attention , the baby accumulates delusion, anger, despair, fear to be abandoned, becoming in that way insecure, with all consequences. Therefore, when the baby cries, he/she can be hungry, thirsty, feel too warm or too cold, needs to be cleaned, or even only because he/she wants to be turned or to be pet. To ignore a baby who is crying is like putting a plug in ones ear for not hearing the fire alarm. The crying has the function to attract our attention towards something that must be taken seriously. During pregnancy, I advise to start thinking to the education of the baby, in order to be ready after birth to start immediately in the right way.
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