What is toxic stress during pregnancy? A gynecologist answers us

One in four pregnant women would suffer from stress-related symptoms regardless of their socio-economic statusaccording to a study by the Children’s National Hospital published April 30, 2022. This is the first scientific research to shed light on the consequences on the brain development of the fetus in utero exposed to high levels of stress during pregnancy.

In a previous article, Madmoizelle had already considered this notion of transmitting anxiety from pregnant women to their babies. Do not worry, the child’s cognitive deficiencies would be remedied within the first 1000 days of the child thanks to careful and emotional care. But how ?

With the help of Daniele Flaumenbaum, gynecologist since 1972, actively engaged in the movement for the emancipation of women e expert in transgenerational psychoanalysiswe have tried to highlight, among other things, the way in which our ancestral heritage plays on the toxic stress of pregnant women. And above all, what are the keys to trying to overcome it.

The interview: “Toxic stress is bathing in a heritage in which the fetus already inherits the emotional disorder”

Miss: How would you define what is called toxic stress? And how to differentiate it from persistent anguish?

Daniele Flaumenbaum: I would talk about the emotional turmoil of the pregnant woman who does not have the peace of mind to shape this newcomer. There is permanent agitation, worry, fear, anxiety … But we must distinguish acute stress, acute transient panic, such as anger, from a state of stress that is toxic to it. This state is materialized by the fact that the fetus constantly feels vibrations from its container, the womb. Its habitat will continually receive waves of unrest. The fetus is therefore in a uterus that does not have the necessary reception for its proper development. It is also not as well received as it should be.

Madmoizelle: In general, what is the cause of toxic stress?

Daniele Flamenbaum: Several reasons can explain this. But often this depends on the child’s conception conditions. In other words, the fact of having wished or not sharing a child’s project with the partner. If it is desired by both partners, we can say that the baby will be able to incarnate in an already informed uterus. The fact that the baby can be conceived in words before being implanted in a womb creates an important difference in its reception and its right to exist. We must also keep in mind that we are heirs of a more or less complex family history. Again, it is important to differentiate this from a transient state of anger, such as an argument with your partner, which is not serious. But behind the idea of ​​toxic stress is bathing in a heritage where the fetus already inherits the emotional disorder.

Madmoizelle: In fact, you also work on transgenerational psychoanalysis. How can our ancestral heritage play on a pregnancy and more particularly on the fetus?

Daniele Flamenbaum: Toxic stress will repeat itself from womb to womb, from grandmother to daughter, then to granddaughter … For example, having a grandmother who was single mother, or abused, is recorded in our cellular memory. And the fact of passing on to a new generation, of perpetuating life, passes on its history. It is the intersection of the maternal and paternal line that makes us all. And so, the story of the dramas, of the accidents that could not be metabolized, which could not be digested, will create toxic stress in the pregnant woman, without her always being aware of it. Her uterus will therefore always be contracted instead of being flexible and elastic.

Madmoizelle: Could this harmful stress secreted during pregnancy jeopardize the mother-child relationship? Or is it really curable in the first 1000 days of the child thanks to “emotional” care?

Daniele Flamenbaum: Toxic stress is induced by an environmental madness that reigns around the pregnant woman. So obviously this madness will act on the cognitive functions of the fetus and on the mother-child relationship. This can sometimes cause breastfeeding problems: the baby is afraid to take breast milk which could be infected with her “emotional obstructions”. You know, inconsistency makes inconsistent. If you are inconsistent with a baby, even when it is still a fetus, if you are not authentic, he will notice. Consistency is key which is why it is important to reveal the truth of your story to your fetus, whatever it is. In this way there is a concordance between what he feels and what he feels. And this consistency gives the fetus more fluid cognitive abilities.

And of course that at birth, it makes up for it! We are so amazed to see this little being giving us an endorphin shot. It is a mutation. Birth marks a transformation of the person. We will tell him about our past and we will surely explain to him the causes of what may have caused us to panic during pregnancy. The baby definitely comes out of a stressed womb, but lands in a speech bath which can be quite supportive. He is allowed to take his place entirely.

Miss: So what can you do when pregnant to get rid of toxic stress?

Daniele Flamenbaum: Ideally, before wanting a child, it is good to have done some housework and listed what may have burdened us in our history to give relief to our future descendants. Because they too will have their share of tragedies. This is why I think we should focus much more on the follow-up of stressed pregnant women on their transgenerational history. This would help them understand what is happening to them. You need to realize that you are part of a family heritage and not just that of your mother’s family. We are in the heritage of the women of our family: how they reproduced, how they had their children, how they lived their lives as mothers and women, what their partner was like … All this creates stress that can perpetuate itself. if we have not understood that we must accept them in order to digest them. We must accept that we are all heirs of our family histories, even of its secrets, or even of its abuses. If we close our eyes to it, it creates a confinement, a crypt that is passed on from generation to generation. This is what transgenerational psychoanalysis calls “ghost” and which we must try, especially during pregnancy, to overcome.

Thanks to Danièle Flamenbaum for this interview. And if you feel concerned about toxic stress, don’t hesitate to contact a health professional : your gynecologist or midwife for example. They will guide you in an attempt to get rid of it.

Featured Image: © Josh Willink – Pexels