The Prenatal Shadow

Healing the Traumas Experienced before and at Birth

De: Cherionna Menzam-Sills

Narrado por: Simran Singh

• Explains how babies remember their experiences from the womb and birth as implicit memory, impressions that are held in emotions, images, and the body

• Examines scientific evidence of how preverbal memory works and how prenates are highly responsive to their mother’s perceptions

• Looks at how to become aware of and acknowledge implicit memory from the womb as well as how to heal and prevent birth trauma

In a world where it is believed that babies lack awareness, somatic pre- and perinatal therapist Cherionna Menzam-Sills, Ph.D., reveals that babies do perceive negative prenatal and birth experiences, which can easily become unconscious shadow, infiltrating the psyche and affecting personality, relationships, behavior, and perceptions throughout life.

Drawing on scientific evidence of how preverbal memory works, the author shows how babies, even before birth, are exquisitely sensitive with remarkable potential. She explains how babies remember the intensely formative experiences from this primal period as implicit memory, and she looks at how prenates are deeply influenced by their mother’s perception of safety or threat, including during labor and birth, which affects their developing nervous systems.

Examining the healing and integration of the prenatal shadow, the author presents body awareness exercises, reflection questions, and meditative practices for sensing the little one within and offering them what they need. She also shares stories about how clients were able to express their prenatal emotions, changing their lives with these techniques. By integrating the prenatal and perinatal shadow hidden just beyond conscious awareness, we can heal our relationships with ourselves and our loved ones as well as reconnect with our original potential.

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Cherionna Menzam-Sills’s well-researched and thought-provoking book tells the story of prenatal and perinatal development from the perspective of how each event may contribute to shadow material and how the reader can benefit from shining light into these unlit places and move toward wholeness in mind and body.”

“In this book, Cherionna gives a knowledgeable overview about the history, insights, and therapeutic application of prenatal psychology. Her book realizes a convincing connection between the Jungian concept of shadow with the observation and insights of the consequences of early traumatization before, during, and after birth. It brings insights that were not available in the time of Jung and opens up new insights of prenatal psychology to public awareness.”

“This is a monumental contribution to medicine, psychology, and counseling. Menzam-Sills brings to light a forgotten dimension of human development that holds the key to maximizing potential. This is not just the stunning insight of identifying the shadow components of prenatal and perinatal experience. It is the entire field of prenatal and perinatal psychology that is upgraded by her clear and straightforward writing. Such a revelatory awakening is profoundly needed now for people to actualize their power to act on behalf of future life and the Earth.”

“In The Prenatal Shadow, Cherionna meticulously and compassionately peels back and sheds light on the many layers of the shadow that influence our earliest moments of life and then further influence us throughout our lives. No aspect of the prenatal shadow escapes her expert gaze as she expands our horizons and deepens our understanding of it, from the individual to the cultural and the collective. The Prenatal Shadow is a must-read for every therapist, parent, and educator.”

“Cherionna’s book is a well-researched antidote to the cultural blind spot of not recognizing the lifelong consequences of our birth and prenatal experience. One of the greatest wounds many of us carry is that we have to hold our birth and womb trauma on our own, usually without even knowing where the trauma came from. In shadow, these traumas have powerful influences on our behaviors and perceptions. This is knowledge that we need to disseminate if we are going to live as more conscious beings.”

“A thorough, gentle, necessary text about prenatal and perinatal somatics that presents the many difficult layers of experience for humans starting at preconception. She shines the light on elements often overlooked in modern maternity care and supports the reader with explanations and reflections about their prenatal and birth journey for their awareness and growth. The Prenatal Shadow is a welcome contribution to the field of birth psychology and a musthave for healing enthusiasts.”