Thursday, January 29, 2015

Overdosing the Fetus and What that Means


Imagine you are taking your four year old child to a doctor. The doctor prescribes opiates for you for your anxiety and you give some to your child.  You are 130 pounds and your baby is thirty.   My oh my, you think how irresponsible, how terrible.  It is criminal!  But if I told you that one in four mothers might be doing that would you be shocked?  Yes.

Well, a new study finds exactly what I am writing about.  A report from the CDC (disease control) states that one-third of women of reproductive age have filled a prescription for opiate drugs in the last year, and every year for before that.  So what does that mean? It means that drugged mothers in large numbers are giving birth. They describe these numbers as "astonishing".    They believe it presents a great risk for birth defects, which I think is true.  But there is a more subtle effect; that of down regulating the who biology.  We need to know what percentage of these babies may not have obvious birth defects but are also much more vulnerable to depression.   Think now:  a 130 pound mother is stuffing herself with heavy drugs which reach a one pound fetus.  Clearly there is a massive down regulation of so much of his physical system, from heart and liver to hormones and stress and energy levels.  Then to make matters worse, there is a birth with again massive drugs given to the mother which affects the newborn;  more down regulation.  He has no chance.   He is passive and lethargic,  never has enough energy, has low blood pressure, perhaps a few allergies and cannot concentrate in school.

Ayayay; it is constant mystery to us all because no one realizes what those medications to the mother have done. The baby is heavily drugged before he is out on the world.  We understand if the mother hands her baby drugs but few understand if she directly transmits them into her baby's system while he is living in the womb.  She herself does not mean to but she doesn’t understand what she is doing.  After all, no one can see it happening. And so the baby is sluggish and is a future depressive but it is a sub rosa event.  Later, he cannot get out of bed to go to work; takes uppers and “speed” to get going, and we all run around trying to cure him of his depression.  Oh and what do we do? Well now we give him uppers and find it helps. Or we give him LSD, as the new wonder drug because  it temporarily lifts the depression; what it does is ease the depression by blasting open the cerebral gates.  Of course, anything that eases the repressive gates, lashed into action with the aid of our own opiates during womb-life, is going to help.

It is not rocket science; we are fighting heavy repression, the base of depression.  (see my article in the World Congress of Psychiatry 2013-14 on Depression http://www.activitas.org/index.php/nervosa/article/view/157).   I still believe that given a healthy birth and gestation there is little reason to suffer terrible afflictions.  Of course, heredity plays a role but not as great as we might think.  Epigenetics plays the predominant role, in my opinion.  We are dealing here with invisible forces that are not obvious to the eye so we ignore them.  Anything that a carrying mother takes will affect the biology of the baby.  It is a tiny little baby, helpless, trying desperately the escape the constant onslaught of  a mother’s constant smoking and drinking with not great success.  We need to teach that in schools so that students will not be so insouciant about it. While pregnant,the mother and child is as close as they ever will be again. Their biologies are very close so that the predominant state of the mother, anxious or depressed, will be reflected later on in the baby.  Take care, friends, and be a good friend to your baby.

13 comments:

  1. Hi Art,

    I remember you saying in a much earlier post of yours that many years ago, when your generation were children, mothers were not given so many drugs and there simply weren't that many available to choose from either. It seems that yours and perhaps my parents longevity (my Dad still driving at 87) could well be attributable partly to the absence of fetal drugging back then.

    Sadly, my son is the victim of methadone / heroine poisoning when he was a fetus and at last we have got past the wall of denial existing in the lower ranks of the NHS (and other agencies). He has been to see a senior pain specialist who has accepted he is down printed from prescribed methadone. He is also a victim of the stupid detox his mother was put through whilst she was pregnant with him. That is now illegal by the way. Further up the chain of 'command' they all know the facts. . .

    Paul G.

    Your post above pretty much describes his symptoms to a T. . . Hardly a day goes by without me ruminating about my part in his sorry downfall.

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    Replies
    1. Hi,

      I feel it may be appropriate to point out that I was father number 3, my son child number 4 and it didn't stop there. 7 kids in all by 4 fathers. She dragged me and my ex through court twice, abducted my son, used the other children to do it, lied, conned and manipulated until she died in 2006. The family have been in denial / trauma / PTSD / addiction ever since. The worst thing is that the authorities colluded completely with her highly intelligent manipulations and still are colluding even though she died 9 years ago.
      It's endless. . . As above, so below, and here is muggins me picking up the pieces and fending off the bullshit.

      Paul G.

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  2. How are we supposed to know about our jealousy when it is because we do not know about it?
    That we can murder in the wake of the impact is obvious when analyzing the scientific context and not least when we are feeling and experiencing how.
    We are still at life-threatening experiences when someone we think we love leaves us. Love... something that was life-decisive around the need of our mother.

    We experience ourselves as alone now as then... then we were exposed to unbearable pain of loneliness... pain we could not possibly endure... which we battle against eversince... something neocortex now... still interprets to be life-threatening and madness is a fact .

    We must learn to respond correctly to what our neocortex announces... even for what professionalism can be deceptive.

    Frank

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    Replies
    1. Frank, the point I think you are making is that someone goes violent when his love wants to leave because early on, when mother left, it was life endangering. You must get help with your english. art

      Delete
    2. as adults, is it worse to lose imagined love or real love?
      neurotic love includes defense from catastrophic reality.
      losing real love is not a catastrophe. i imagine.

      i think jealousy can easily resonate womb life. it is really awful.
      one on one is the most demanding and rewarding relationship, i imagine.
      it really takes courage for it. the whole brain.

      Frank, there is probably a leaning curve for the system to start using neo cortex as a
      part of integration instead a part of a defense. you know it better then i do. your language is powerful.

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    3. Hi vuko,
      I really like your post and I agree on your three points, if I may embellish a little:

      -"is it worse to lose imagined love or real love"?

      I doubt it is often either / or. A bit of both mostly, I think. Perhaps that's one of many issues the three week intensive will help to clarify, so one can start from the the right station for you (and not some other lovers).

      -"one to one is the most demanding and rewarding relationship"-. I think jealously comes from wounding in that primary relationship and then infects later relationships where loyalty is at stake and betrayal becomes inevitable. . .

      -"leaning curve for the system to start using neo cortex as a
      part of integration instead a part of a defense"-. How very well put.

      Paul G.


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    4. vuko & Paul,

      I pause in the room... looking out the window... then ceases my cognitive activity. Like a boundary is blurring out and I experience a "euphoria"... like a need that I do not know where it belongs. An emptiness manifests itself. My tears flowing down my cheeks... loneliness and re loneliness until memories around tragic circumstances are visualized. "Dad we have never talked to each other and now you're gone... gone forever DAD".
      As through a curve... I have arrived for what I suffer.

      Frank

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    5. Paul, a thought
      it could take roughly three weeks to make acquaintance with therapy.
      and about a year to truly start believing the primal process.
      i am thinking, John Lennon needed just some more time.

      i am not sure if i believe anything i write or read. but i keep doing it. do i doubt anything fully? is there a cure for this mess? to be sure of something without the need to prove it. and be open to explore it further. this sureness. can we fake it? i hope at least a therapist would see it even before it happens! prevent it.

      i missed a moment with one person. i felt a bit of her and got scared instead to ask more about it. i think i missed another one few days ago with another person…and another one... this therapy could work, people want it but they probably just keep stumbling upon people like me. i miss myself i guess.

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    6. Hi vuko,

      -"it could take roughly three weeks to make acquaintance with therapy.
      and about a year to truly start believing the primal process"-.

      Yes I agree. My main point about the three week intensive is that without this disciplined 'retreat' one could easily start from the same old, same old station and spend years on the wrong track. I have realised that love relations as an adult can easily provoke access in the wrong place, ie: the wrong station and therefore result in endless abreaction.

      As a previous poster said: "one might not notice until one had experienced the subtle tell tale signs often enough". . . words to that effect. This is a conclusion I was coming to under my own steam with my own insights and only the teensiest bit of 'advice' from others who have posted subtle and supportive messages. . . Thanks to all those who did that.

      Let me share some more of MY OWN insight:

      It is possible to be properly betrayed in later life by the 'most well meaning' of people. It can then turn into a game of "who's got the strongest gates". But only the person who has come into contact with Primal theory and seriously considered their own hidden agendas would truly understand this 'injustice'.

      'Target of denial' then becomes a much more appropriate description of one's dilemma than 'victim of abuse'. . . So my conclusion to this conclusion is that abreaction may be the only way to begin to see how one put oneself in the firing line of other people's denial.

      I learned to do this from my parents. Basically I kept on challenging their denial and was met by further denial; so it's hardly surprising I have found myself repeating and repeating and repeating until. . .

      Yours sincerely,

      Paul G.

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    7. Paul, your english is too... complicated for me, sometimes. so many phrases for me. i really struggle to understand all your references you use to help express yourself. sorry. not being my native language doesn't help too. hopefully i learn...and my concentration is not the best.
      regarding your first paragraph> yes, relations in general are a good trigger. there is a need at the root of many of them, i guess.... growing neocortex in combination with "failed" relationship is a interesting combination. it is not a bad thing if one can be reserved at the beginning of retreat. slowly...
      ahh i struggle with the rest of your text.
      and writing mine ))

      Delete
  3. the weight of the baby at birth is not a precise index for deprivation in the womb. it also depends on genetics, right? if baby's genetic need was to be 4kg but resulted 2.6kg it could be worse than if the other baby ratio was 2.8/2.1kg?
    i watched CFI documentary from the 60's about how non civilized people from different continents treated their newborns to the age 1. babies were never punished. it was few years ago, but i remember how woman from some african tribe was watching over her baby while the baby was sleeping. she explained that if the baby wakes up and there is no one around, baby could get very scared. i wouldn't be surprised if they new perfectly about the effect of neglect during critical period to their senior members later... wonder how they treat their pregnant women, how they give birth... it all strongly and immediately affects their community. is everybody allowed to have kids?
    to me it is interesting how early traumatized organism can have several different outcomes. the unresolved pain kills within a range of years, range of behavior, range of suffering, experiences...i think it all makes the diagnose more difficult, the connection more miraculous. and another human more indispensable as a therapeutic help. among other attributes, human with a good sense of "smell" and readiness to change the direction fast. towards the source.

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  4. The consequence of that we believe in God makes us "perfect" and science is lost but a science that has made many crazy and we believe in god. It is a consequence.
    Frank

    ReplyDelete
  5. Our need of love is an outcry!

    We "loves" our mom and dad it is a biologically sworn law as the basis of life. That we can not opt out parents when we are small due to lack of love... it's a physical scourge and we are doomed to a life of lovelessness... we suffocate in our bud if it was not for the discovery of Janov:s Primal Therapy?

    Frank

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Review of "Beyond Belief"

This thought-provoking and important book shows how people are drawn toward dangerous beliefs.
“Belief can manifest itself in world-changing ways—and did, in some of history’s ugliest moments, from the rise of Adolf Hitler to the Jonestown mass suicide in 1979. Arthur Janov, a renowned psychologist who penned The Primal Scream, fearlessly tackles the subject of why and how strong believers willingly embrace even the most deranged leaders.
Beyond Belief begins with a lucid explanation of belief systems that, writes Janov, “are maps, something to help us navigate through life more effectively.” While belief systems are not presented as inherently bad, the author concentrates not just on why people adopt belief systems, but why “alienated individuals” in particular seek out “belief systems on the fringes.” The result is a book that is both illuminating and sobering. It explores, for example, how a strongly-held belief can lead radical Islamist jihadists to murder others in suicide acts. Janov writes, “I believe if people had more love in this life, they would not be so anxious to end it in favor of some imaginary existence.”
One of the most compelling aspects of Beyond Belief is the author’s liberal use of case studies, most of which are related in the first person by individuals whose lives were dramatically affected by their involvement in cults. These stories offer an exceptional perspective on the manner in which belief systems can take hold and shape one’s experiences. Joan’s tale, for instance, both engaging and disturbing, describes what it was like to join the Hare Krishnas. Even though she left the sect, observing that participants “are stunted in spiritual awareness,” Joan considers returning someday because “there’s a certain protection there.”
Janov’s great insight into cultish leaders is particularly interesting; he believes such people have had childhoods in which they were “rejected and unloved,” because “only unloved people want to become the wise man or woman (although it is usually male) imparting words of wisdom to others.” This is just one reason why Beyond Belief is such a thought-provoking, important book.”
Barry Silverstein, Freelance Writer

Quotes for "Life Before Birth"

“Life Before Birth is a thrilling journey of discovery, a real joy to read. Janov writes like no one else on the human mind—engaging, brilliant, passionate, and honest.
He is the best writer today on what makes us human—he shows us how the mind works, how it goes wrong, and how to put it right . . . He presents a brand-new approach to dealing with depression, emotional pain, anxiety, and addiction.”
Paul Thompson, PhD, Professor of Neurology, UCLA School of Medicine

Art Janov, one of the pioneers of fetal and early infant experiences and future mental health issues, offers a robust vision of how the earliest traumas of life can percolate through the brains, minds and lives of individuals. He focuses on both the shifting tides of brain emotional systems and the life-long consequences that can result, as well as the novel interventions, and clinical understanding, that need to be implemented in order to bring about the brain-mind changes that can restore affective equanimity. The transitions from feelings of persistent affective turmoil to psychological wholeness, requires both an understanding of the brain changes and a therapist that can work with the affective mind at primary-process levels. Life Before Birth, is a manifesto that provides a robust argument for increasing attention to the neuro-mental lives of fetuses and infants, and the widespread ramifications on mental health if we do not. Without an accurate developmental history of troubled minds, coordinated with a recognition of the primal emotional powers of the lowest ancestral regions of the human brain, therapists will be lost in their attempt to restore psychological balance.
Jaak Panksepp, Ph.D.
Bailey Endowed Chair of Animal Well Being Science
Washington State University

Dr. Janov’s essential insight—that our earliest experiences strongly influence later well being—is no longer in doubt. Thanks to advances in neuroscience, immunology, and epigenetics, we can now see some of the mechanisms of action at the heart of these developmental processes. His long-held belief that the brain, human development, and psychological well being need to studied in the context of evolution—from the brainstem up—now lies at the heart of the integration of neuroscience and psychotherapy.
Grounded in these two principles, Dr. Janov continues to explore the lifelong impact of prenatal, birth, and early experiences on our brains and minds. Simultaneously “old school” and revolutionary, he synthesizes traditional psychodynamic theories with cutting-edge science while consistently highlighting the limitations of a strict, “top-down” talking cure. Whether or not you agree with his philosophical assumptions, therapeutic practices, or theoretical conclusions, I promise you an interesting and thought-provoking journey.
Lou Cozolino, PsyD, Professor of Psychology, Pepperdine University


In Life Before Birth Dr. Arthur Janov illuminates the sources of much that happens during life after birth. Lucidly, the pioneer of primal therapy provides the scientific rationale for treatments that take us through our original, non-verbal memories—to essential depths of experience that the superficial cognitive-behavioral modalities currently in fashion cannot possibly touch, let alone transform.
Gabor Maté MD, author of In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction

An expansive analysis! This book attempts to explain the impact of critical developmental windows in the past, implores us to improve the lives of pregnant women in the present, and has implications for understanding our children, ourselves, and our collective future. I’m not sure whether primal therapy works or not, but it certainly deserves systematic testing in well-designed, assessor-blinded, randomized controlled clinical trials.
K.J.S. Anand, MBBS, D. Phil, FAACP, FCCM, FRCPCH, Professor of Pediatrics, Anesthesiology, Anatomy & Neurobiology, Senior Scholar, Center for Excellence in Faith and Health, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare System


A baby's brain grows more while in the womb than at any time in a child's life. Life Before Birth: The Hidden Script That Rules Our Lives is a valuable guide to creating healthier babies and offers insight into healing our early primal wounds. Dr. Janov integrates the most recent scientific research about prenatal development with the psychobiological reality that these early experiences do cast a long shadow over our entire lifespan. With a wealth of experience and a history of successful psychotherapeutic treatment, Dr. Janov is well positioned to speak with clarity and precision on a topic that remains critically important.
Paula Thomson, PsyD, Associate Professor, California State University, Northridge & Professor Emeritus, York University

"I am enthralled.
Dr. Janov has crafted a compelling and prophetic opus that could rightly dictate
PhD thesis topics for decades to come. Devoid of any "New Age" pseudoscience,
this work never strays from scientific orthodoxy and yet is perfectly accessible and
downright fascinating to any lay person interested in the mysteries of the human psyche."
Dr. Bernard Park, MD, MPH

His new book “Life Before Birth: The Hidden Script that Rules Our Lives” shows that primal therapy, the lower-brain therapeutic method popularized in the 1970’s international bestseller “Primal Scream” and his early work with John Lennon, may help alleviate depression and anxiety disorders, normalize blood pressure and serotonin levels, and improve the functioning of the immune system.
One of the book’s most intriguing theories is that fetal imprinting, an evolutionary strategy to prepare children to cope with life, establishes a permanent set-point in a child's physiology. Baby's born to mothers highly anxious during pregnancy, whether from war, natural disasters, failed marriages, or other stressful life conditions, may thus be prone to mental illness and brain dysfunction later in life. Early traumatic events such as low oxygen at birth, painkillers and antidepressants administered to the mother during pregnancy, poor maternal nutrition, and a lack of parental affection in the first years of life may compound the effect.
In making the case for a brand-new, unified field theory of psychotherapy, Dr. Janov weaves together the evolutionary theories of Jean Baptiste Larmarck, the fetal development studies of Vivette Glover and K.J.S. Anand, and fascinating new research by the psychiatrist Elissa Epel suggesting that telomeres—a region of repetitive DNA critical in predicting life expectancy—may be significantly altered during pregnancy.
After explaining how hormonal and neurologic processes in the womb provide a blueprint for later mental illness and disease, Dr. Janov charts a revolutionary new course for psychotherapy. He provides a sharp critique of cognitive behavioral therapy, psychoanalysis, and other popular “talk therapy” models for treating addiction and mental illness, which he argues do not reach the limbic system and brainstem, where the effects of early trauma are registered in the nervous system.
“Life Before Birth: The Hidden Script that Rules Our Lives” is scheduled to be published by NTI Upstream in October 2011, and has tremendous implications for the future of modern psychology, pediatrics, pregnancy, and women’s health.
Editor