Season 6 Episode 4: Mother-Baby Bond: How Attachment Changes the Epigenome, Brain Development, and Health Outcomes with Laurel Wilson of MotherJourney

InCast

The words bonding and attachment are common words, but what is the deeper meaning behind those words for new parents and their newborns or yet-to-be born babies? How can parents connect with their newborn in utero? How will the attachment before and after the baby is born affect the epigenomes, brain development, and future health of their little one? Laurel will take us on a fascinating dive into this topic to help us translate this information to our patients, students, and clients so that more new parents will understand the benefits of attachment to their new babies.

Laurel Wilson, IBCLC, RLC, BSc, CLE, CCCE, CLD is a TEDx and international speaker, pregnancy and lactation specialist, consultant, educator, and author. Laurel is the co-author of two books, The Attachment Pregnancy and The Greatest Pregnancy Ever; original editor of The CAPPA Lactation Educator Manual; as well as a contributing author to Round the Circle: Doulas Talk About Themselves. Her passion is blending today’s recent scientific findings with mind/body/spirit wisdom to highlight the magnitude and importance of the perinatal period. Spending 17 years as Executive Director for Lactation Programs for the Childbirth and Postpartum Professionals Association formed the foundation of her inquiry into the science of human milk. She has acted and still acts in many capacities locally and nationally promoting the belief that the journey into parenthood is a life-changing rite of passage that should be deeply honored and celebrated.

Listen and Learn:

• The physiological and emotional process of bonding and attachment that occurs during birth & beyond
• What is epigenetics, epigenome, and microbiome and how are they connected?
• How epigenetics work in a human is based on the external reality of that person’s experiences
• How the first 1,000 days of a baby’s life and their external reality impacts their organ systems
• How most diseases are not DNA related but rather influenced by epigenetic impact
• What impact chronic stress, including weathering, has on future health
• How to teach parents to move away from stress when possible
• What full engagement means during pregnancy

Resources & Mentions:

• https://motherjourney.com/index.html (Laurel’s website with many more resources)
• Association for Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health
• Kindred – One Family, One World

Related Products from InJoy:

• Understanding Pregnancy
• Understanding Breastfeeding
• Understanding Your Newborn
• Understanding Fatherhood