The benefits of haptonomy in pregnancy for the baby and the parents
- · What is haptonomy?
- · Aptonomy in pregnancy: even the father can be the protagonist
- · What is the right time to start the haptonomy sessions?
- · How does an aptonomy session take place?
- · Haponomy as an aid to childbirth
- · After birth
What is haptonomy?
The word aptonomy comes from 2 Greek terms hapsis / haptein which means touch, bond, touch and nomos which means norm, rule. Haponomy is therefore the discipline of "emotional touch." This method creates, during pregnancy, an exchange between the baby and both parents and is a perfect preparation for childbirth.
Haponomy is a technique of caresses and contacts addressed to the child by the parents. It was studied and put into practice by the Dutch doctor Frans Veldman. The baby perceives the caresses and the touch of the parents through the wall of the womb and the uterus. The baby is sensitive to this and responds positively.
Based on this observation, a method has been developed to create parent-child contact in the uterus and to help the mother deliver as peacefully as possible. Haponomy is not a simple practical method, but a first exchange before welcoming. the child.
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Aptonomy in pregnancy: even the father can be the protagonist
The strength of haptonomy in pregnancy is that the father is fully included in this practice of communication with his child. Through the gestures of the father and mother on the belly, the child receives the signs of love and enters into communication with the parents. .
Deep bonds are formed and the father-son relationship is born during the sessions. For once, the father would also have an advantage over the mother because the deep voices are well transmitted through the amniotic fluid, the fetus would be particularly attentive to the father's voice. This prenatal exchange is a guarantee of attachment between the baby and its parents after delivery.
The bond is mainly created by the voice and the application of the hands of the mother or future father on the belly.
When is the right time to start haptonomy sessions?
The best time is usually from the 4th or 5th month of pregnancy, when the mother begins to feel the baby move. One session per month is recommended to start.
How does an aptonomy session take place?
An operator - often a "midwife - accompanies the parents to indicate the gestures to be made to communicate with the baby. Both parents apply light pressure on the mother's belly to invite the baby to respond by moving and approaching the source of pressure (the hand). ).
Of course it is preferable to accompany the gestures with words addressed to the child. Many fathers experience the first real contact with their baby when he begins to move by responding to the sound of their voice or by little kicks against his hand when he exerts light pressure on the belly of the future mother.
Haponomy as an aid to childbirth
The operator who accompanies the practice of haptonomy will also be able to show the future father the gestures that will alleviate the pains of the mother during childbirth.
Indeed, haptonomy allows the mother to relieve contractions with the help of the father. For example, she can sit down and hold her future mother between her legs. In this position, she will be able to rock her gently, which will not only relax and reassure her, but will also help relax her lower abdominal muscles, helping the baby to be gently guided outward.
The father's hands, through the pressure exerted, invite the baby to go up or down in the uterus. The operator and the parents can then invite the baby to change position, especially when he is in the breech position.
After birth
One or two haptonomy sessions are recommended after delivery to promote harmony between life in utero and the life of the newborn.
