Why love is important for a newborn

Michelle Odent is a French obstetrician who advocates the natural process of pregnancy and labour. His website is full of natural perspectives, but the subject of suicide wasn't something I expected to see.

Could the way we nurture our babies during pregnancy, childbirth and post nataly affect their perspectives on life itself?

It appears from the evidence Michelle Odent once stated that the medicalisation of birth has contributed to the incidence of suicide. He acknowledges other key factors. However the nurturing process appears to play a key role in determining whether adolescents will become depressed enough to be taking medication from a young age, develop addictions or even worse commit suicide.

Mr Odent documents a trip to China during the 1970's where he noticed that the Chinese were obsessed with technological birth, and had turned their backs on traditional birthing methods. Babies were kept separately from their mothers, swaddled in material and ritually fed every four hours. There appeared to be limited contact with their mother. Could this isolation attribute to feelings of isolation later on in life? I think so don't you. Why would any one think it natural to detach a newborn infant from its mother for long periods of time?

When my mother gave birth to me during the 60's (yes I know I'm getting on!) she was only allowed to see me at feeding times. Once feeds were over I was taken back to the nursery until the next feed. I have suffered from feelings of alienation and rejection throughout my life. There are times when I have cried in despair and yet I have not understood why I have felt so awful. My mother had to foster me when I was two weeks old, we were apart until I was three months old, now I'm beginning to see why I have moments of utter despair. I probably felt that separation deep within my soul, and yet I have never been able to understand it until now.

If this feeling is the same as that of other children detached at birth no wonder our society is so fragmented and confused. Babies need to be with their mothers as soon after birth as possible, the realisation that there are long term implications of separation cannot be over stated the World Health Organisation  (WHO) and many other organisations have published research on this subject.

Depression is on the increase one of society's biggest issues, could one of the issues be depriving a baby of it's mothers love as soon as it is born? Thus contributing to a chain of events that lead to feelings of alienation and lack of love. Humans exist on love, if this love is denied at birth what chance do we have?

Were you alienated at birth?
Love and Peace 
Wendy Richert