Accompanying Childhood From Pregnancy
The importance of accompanying childhood and adolescence from pregnancy is increasingly well known due to the consequences of the type of accompaniment carried out in the vital development of children and in their arrival into adult life.
Many symptoms, diseases and physical and mental disorders have their origins in certain events that occurred during this period of life. Even, many of the small personal difficulties that we run into throughout our lives are the result of life experiences that occurred during these years.
Many professionals have worked for years in the dissemination of information, training and prevention of perinatal and child health.
What exactly is accompanying childhood from perinatal and infant prevention?
This approach is based on the idea, based on numerous investigations, that the experiences that occur from intrauterine life to the end of adolescence will, to a large extent, condition the development of adult life of people.
It is from the experiences that the child is having that he learns to know the world. Children, as dependents, need to be accompanied by adults during this vital period.
The type of adult accompaniment carried out will establish the bases on which the child will develop the way of perceiving himself, others and the world. You will learn through life experiences provided by the adults who accompany you.
From this perspective, prevention and intervention throughout this period are of crucial importance to facilitate positive childhoods. Thus, these childhoods will establish healthy foundations on which to develop healthy adult lives.
In which areas is prevention necessary?
The ideal is to carry out prevention, with the necessary intervention, from the moment of conception and during all those critical moments, likely to generate situations with significant repercussions on the baby, his mother, his family and his environment. As stated by Xavier Serrano Hortelano, director of the Spanish School of Reichian Psychotherapy:
Intervention and prevention will be essential in the following moments
- During pregnancy, carrying out a family accompaniment that favors the state of well-being and calm in the mother. In this sense, this will have a positive impact on the baby and the beginning of a positive bond with him.
- With a preparation for childbirth that offers the mother the necessary information and tools that allow her to reconnect with her natural ability to give birth without the need for intervention, beyond a respectful accompaniment.
- Respecting natural childbirth. The experience of childbirth has direct consequences on the mother and her baby on many levels. Associations such as “El Parto es Nuestro” report on the importance of respecting natural childbirth and the need to train health professionals in this regard.
- Encouraging and normalizing breastfeeding as part of the natural process of creating the mother-baby bond, among many other benefits. Lactation advisory groups are working towards standardization.
- Accompanying the puerperium that, beyond the physiological puerperium, includes from the birth of the baby to the first two years of life, approximately. It is a critical moment to establish the foundations of a secure bond between mother and baby. Here too, support groups for mothers are essential.
- Advice during the upbringing of children up to their adolescence, through family support groups, informative and formative talks, family gathering areas to favor the support of the group or tribe, offer spaces and playful times for children that favor their own needs of its development. etc.
- Promoting the training of teachers in this prevention perspective to accompany children and families in a respectful way and in accordance with their vital moments.
- Making the dissemination of the importance of this precautionary approach in other areas such as social change and social improvement.
As a conclusion to accompany childhood from pregnancy …
The fundamental thing about these interventions is to favor the appropriate environments and circumstances so that the baby or child, the mother (or main companion) and the family find the necessary support in the event of possible crisis situations during their upbringing. This will favor more satisfactory resolution of problems, which will have a positive impact on the child’s experience.
Ultimately, children with happy childhoods will grow into healthy adults. A world run by healthy adults will bring about important and much-needed social changes.
Finally, as a means of disseminating all the information raised, you can access the documentary Creatures, which will soon circulate freely on the network offering valuable information regarding this prevention perspective.
