The place of the father
The man remains a spectator of the adventure of pregnancy but he can get ready to become a father by establishing a physical and verbal bond with his child.
- In addition to touching his child in the mother’s belly, the father can associate a sound to increase the bond.
- The male voice travels easily through the uterine wall. The child will recognize his father’s voice, to his delight! The fathers who participate to prenatal singing classes admit that they find it easier to communicate with their child through songs that with words alone. The low frequencies of the male voice bring relaxation and comfort.
- When the mother inhales, odours pass through the placenta and reach the baby. That is another way for the father to be part of the sensory environment of his child.
- Finally, signing allows the man to feel useful at the time of delivery. The moral, physical and psychological support of the mother is possible with simple gestures: rhyming his breathing on hers, making vocalizations with her during contractions, making supporting sounds. It will also allow the mother to stay relaxed, focused and confident.
Therefore, singing allows the parents to communicate with a little being that feels real instead of remaining and idea of what their child will be at birth. Those workshops aim to help everyone find their place in this father-mother-child trio by accepting his own ideas and reactions.
The social bond
When quitting, even briefly, your professional life, the individualism of big cities, your relationships with friends, for which you have no time, the short medical appointments, a lot of women feel isolated and helpless. There is not that many occasions to share your experiences with others, prenatal singing is one.
For women of foreign origin, it is a good opportunity to learn the language and to feel valued when sharing traditional songs. Many women mention that it is through prenatal singing that they manage to relax, breathe and forget their problems for a while. Friendliness, gaiety, humor and sharing experiences provide a significant source of balance. Friendships formed during the classes often last beyond the period of pregnancy!
Voice and childbirth
Whether in India with Carnatic vocals, in China, in Egypt or in Italy where women use repetitions of words while swaying rhythmically, the voice has always been used in various ways by pregnant women during delivery. We use those rites because they are linked with the production of endorphins, which reduce pain.
Labour
As we already mentioned, breathing is the foundation of singing. It also represents an essential part in birthing techniques. The principle is to exhale during a contraction. When we sing, we exhale; so let’s sing in a deep voice to see through contractions. The advantage: emitting a low pitch sound takes little air so the woman can go though a contraction by singing a low pitch and upheld sound without having to voluntarily control her breathing. Also, the mouth remains open and helps relaxing the jaw.
When contractions get closer together and increase in intensity, the woman focuses more and more. She can choose a comfortable position and decrease her activity to start listening to her breathing. Those sounds sang on O or OU and descending in the low pitch sounds have an analgesic and relaxing effect that contributes to dilate the cervix.
There is no recipe. Prenatal singing is not magical but it often helps women to live their delivery fully and positively. All women should feel free to listen to themselves and express the way they want.
Prenatal singing is enjoyable and rich. Far from wanting to make “super-babies”, the mothers who took part in prenatal singing during pregnancy share their observations. Many of them testified that there were differences between a child who vibrated to the sound of their voice and another who did not experience this preparation: the child is calmer, more attentive, more relaxed, sleeps better, reacts to the songs heard during pregnancy (appeasement). The moms feel a connection between before and after birth.
It is your turn now to choose the activity that pleases you, according to your interests and your desires!
