One Flesh
Chapter Eleven
Prenatal Culture-Practical Applications
Preliminary Essentials
Once again, we take much of the following from the instructions found in How to Create the Perfect Baby. Where we felt it was important to bring the teaching up-to-date, we have done so in the body of the text using parentheses, indent text and the use of an occasional footnote. As he often did, Dr. Clymer began with a certain degree of systemization but, as he became more involved in his subject, he became more impassioned and system was abandoned for content. Like the "heavenly length" of Franz Schubert's music, we do not complain but are only glad to have both length and passion.
We have been philosophizing; trying to teach vital, arcane and natural Laws governing reproduction, in pleasant (if somewhat unstructured) doses, but there are vitally important preconceptive requirements that should not be neglected if a normal, healthy child is desired.
"First: The husband should have his physician make a thorough examination, or direct him to someone capable of doing this, to make certain he is not suffering from any infectious or inheritable form of disease, or from any condition, mental or physical, that would indicate he should not father a child. (Even if something is found that might normally dictate caution regarding fatherhood, many times measures can be taken using natural treatments to correct the difficulty. We suggest that all those who desire to become parents but have this problem contact the Beverly Hall Corporation Healing Research Center before abandoning their heart's desire.)
"Second: The wife should follow suit. It is highly important that she does not suffer from any inheritable disease; that there be no uncorrected anemic condition of the blood; neither high nor low blood pressure; heart, lungs and kidneys in good condition and, equally important, no form of neurosis.
"Third: A period of waiting and thorough preparation so that the vitality of both be at the zenith."
This was also addressed in Chapter Ten. What Dr. Clymer was suggesting, is two fold: First, that both the husband and the wife should do all they can to assure good health and vitality before they attempt to conceive. Second, that they allow sufficient time between sexual embraces to enable the spermatozoa and egg to be as vital and vigorous as possible. This is explained more fully directly below. If you have personal questions on this matter contact a physician at the Beverly Hall Corporation Healing Research Center.
"Fourth: Thorough discussion, with full understanding and agreement that the child is really desired; that there is a willingness on the part of both to meet sympathetically the moods resulting from a state of pregnancy and that each will help the other in every way possible to overcome such moods;* not by weak sympathy, but by seeking the cause and removing it. BOTH SHOULD FULLY COMPREHEND THAT THEY ARE ENGAGING IN A WORK SECOND ONLY IN IMPORTANCE TO THAT OF THEIR CREATOR WHEN HE FIRST CALLED MAN INTO BEING AND SAW THAT HIS WORK WAS GOOD AND WELL DONE."
*These may occur in some women, but others find pregnancy to be the most stable time of their lives. Experience has shown that if the mother-to-be's nutrition is near optimum and the glandular system balanced by the use of modern methods of analysis, such mood swings in almost all mothers-to-be can be greatly ameliorated.
Gestation or Prenatal Period
"Let us suppose now that the preparatory period has progressed to within a month of the time arranged for pregnancy to take place. If the mother-to-be has a full consciousness of what she desires the future of her child to be and the father equally realizes the grandeur of the act that is to take place, they will also realize that just as the farmer carefully selects the seed he is about to sow, so must the seed of the new life also have proper and most careful consideration. This is accomplished by abstaining from the marital embrace for a short period before impregnation takes place.
"If the expectant father is naturally strong, affectionate and of pure mind, then the spermatozoon being generated will be filled with a vivifying force, vitally strong, incorporating the manhood and character of the father. 'Like produces like,' and whatever is the nature of the father will be impressed upon or be the nature of the seed germs.
"The mother-to-be, in desire, purity and with expectation, consecrates herself to that which is to be; and will do nothing that might have an adverse influence, or impression- mentally, physically or spiritually-upon the ovum to be impregnated and deposited in the uterus for maturation.
"Both father and mother-to-be, during the preconception period, should arrange to obtain plenty of sleep, good, plain food, fresh air, exercise, pleasant recreation and desirable companionship. (It is also wise to continue to use whatever nutritional supplementation-determined by previous testing-has been recommended to balance the chemistry of each.) This will provide the foundation for both mental and physical health of the child to be conceived."
That which follows is taken verbatim from the original 1949 edition of Prenatal Culture. The advice suggested does not take into account some of the modern findings about conception, but is presented here to offer to all the thoughts of this great benefactor of mankind and for its historical value. The present consensus is that impregnation occurs in the fallopian tubes and not the uterus. Most recent research shows that if the egg is not fertilized by the time it reaches the uterus it will not be implanted. Also, modern thought is, that for most women the time of ovulation-that time when the ovum is released from the ovary and travels into the fallopian tube-is approximately twelve to sixteen days before the beginning of the next menstrual period. However, as many physicians have discovered, there are women who seem to be able to conceive at almost any time of the month. I personally have known women who have conceived shortly following the cessation of their menses, as Dr. Clymer suggests. Therefore, since we have great regard for Dr. Clymer's opinions and, also, respect for the modern research on this subject, our recommendation, to those who desire to create the perfect child, is to begin the marital embrace shortly following the cessation of the menses and to continue the embrace every few days for the next two weeks. While this plan may not be ideal as far as the "waiting" period is concerned, it is probably the best possible compromise for all the variable factors involved in the process of conception.
"The marital embrace, hence impregnation of the ovum, should take place as soon as possible after the menses cease and purification has taken place. The egg or ovum is then held in the womb ready for its fecundation. The longer the egg remains there before impregnation occurs, the less its vitality, hence the desirability for impregnation while the ovum is at its highest state of fertility, when the woman's desire is strongest and she is able to return the deepest degree of affection.
"The great majority of women wait for from six to ten days or longer before they permit the marital embrace and allow the semen, a natural magnetic force, to enter. The greatest
number of children are conceived at this time; generally undesired and unprepared for, and when the ovum has lost much of its elasticity and firmness; with fear of pregnancy still present. The result, in all too many instances, is a puny child, weak, with an inborn liability to all manner of illness on the least provocation."
Men and Women Differ in Their Love Nature
As you might surmise, that which follows from Dr. Clymer--originally a Randolphian concept--contributed much to the One Flesh concept of the difference in the PSIs (as well as the need for and possibility of developing the SSIs) of men and women.
"Women, married in love, or what they believe to be love, uninformed of the Laws governing love and its natural termination, permit what we now recognize as false modesty and shame that has no basis in fact to interfere with their full, or even partial, realization of the vital importance of normal natural sexual passion. Many have never been taught, hence do not fully realize, that it is the passional expression of physical love that brings about the best conception; the means to the creation of the perfect child. This passion, BASED IN LOVE AND AFFECTION (a normal woman's PSI), should be strong, vital and alive with intensity. The father, if in reality a man, is normally and naturally strongly impassioned (his PSI), though unfortunately, he may permit his passion to overshadow his love or affection (His PSI predominates over his SSI).
"The woman who permits conception to take place while sexually passive (without passion or real desire) fulfills but a small portion of her maternal duty; irrespective of how well and carefully she takes care of the child after its birth. Her first, greatest and most important duty consists in being sexually and affectionately fully awakened when the seed of a new being is received by the laboratory that is to fashion it and bring it forth into life. Only in this manner can strong, healthy, vitally robust children be brought into life, children fit to meet the battle cry of the strong and even that of the vicious as well. (We see here the importance of a woman's developing her SSI but, also, always keeping it subservient to her PSI.)
"All too many of those we know as 'good' women deny passion's natural sway, hence are suppressed and depressed. They are, because of false teachings, or some other cause, ashamed of the Divinely inherited, God-given power and potency which at first belonged to Him alone, and then was graciously transferred by Him to His creation.
"It is undoubtedly true that more of the safely married 'good' women are in dire need of the cultivation of normal passion than there are of those in need of subduing it. Potentially, all, except those wholly wrongly conceived and ignorantly born, possess passion. It is latent in nearly all, waiting only to be aroused and fanned into a flame; a flame which, if rightly directed, will save and glorify the individual. Conversely, if abused, it will react negatively and ultimately destroy the individual. Like all things both high and low, its nature is dual."
I'm certain that the astute reader can see how these words could lead one to develop the concepts of the female PSI and SSI. The desire of a woman to receive and give love and affection is inherent and natural in most; the ability to feel real passion is not that automatic and in many ways is a quality to be developed later as her SSI. Dr. Clymer tells us that it, her SSI, is not only beneficial for her own needs but is essential for her to create the ideal child.
"The instinct for love and affection, the feeling of passion, is not omitted in any normal creature. Unless based on pure selfishness, the desire of women for marriage, for tenderness, for compliments of the opposite sex are all phases of her love and passion, in their various ramifications.
"Words are worse than wasted in trying to prove the universal existence of passion. Passion is necessary to normal life and constructive existence. Even in religion, it is the basis of the feeling we know as devotion. The passionless creature has neither love, affection nor devotion."
The use of the word "passion" here by Dr. Clymer may be taken to mean many things. He was not speaking of lust but rather of the force that is sufficiently strong to make man a true creator of all things along with his Father. Dr. P.B. Randolph used to say, "Enthusiasts are the ambassadors of God." This is the sort of passion to which Dr. Clymer was referring.
A Woman's Desire Should Be
the Governing Law"The final decision in the matter of marital relationship should unquestionably belong to the woman. She is the arbiter of destiny. The male human, in common with all animals, should be subject to her desire, even when she is arbitrary, unjust or unfair. Where is the moral, self-respecting, manly man who would force his attentions on any woman? The desires of the female govern even in the jungle; even in insect life this is true. In the design of life as now in evidence, only the human male ever forces himself upon an unwilling or unprepared female.
"True, general lack of passion in so many of our 'good' wives is deplorable, and the disappointed, unhappy husbands, plus the haggard, flabby appearance of so many wives while still in the middle years of life-when both should be in their glory-fully attests to this unhappy state. To this situation, largely growing out of ignorance and misconception, are due all too many of the premature deaths of puny children and the almost unbelievable number of women who suffer from what is generally termed 'female trouble' on the one side, and the hell of prostatitis and attendant ills of men, on the other."
While this paragraph may seem very out of date in the sexually emancipated nineties, a closer look at the situation tells us otherwise. In youth, there may be no problem, but it is surprising how soon after marriage a certain degree of sexual apathy can set in that in its own way will produce the same results in a couple that Dr. Clymer attributed to more prudish reasons. My experience as a physician of the nineties shows me that the health conditions Dr. Clymer described-and Dr. Randolph before him-are just as rampant today as in their times.
"When a woman does not respond to the marital embrace with an aroused passion, the results are, necessarily, injurious to her generative organism. Passion prepares the way by the extension and enlargement of the sexual organism and properly lubricates it in preparation for the creative act. Passivity in a woman renders her taut, unprepared, unlubricated, inert, hence the act almost automatically disrupts the equanimity of her delicate organism-created expressly and most exquisitely for this purpose, and which has the ability, when correctly aroused, of adjusting itself, with all its minute blood vessels, to respond freely and joyously to every amatory desire and movement. We must never forget that in woman, at least, thought and desire are the great arousing forces. Man unless he has feelings of positive dislike, responds almost automatically. (Many instances of so called vaginismus-severe vaginal pain during attempted intercourse-are caused by such a simple problem as this.)
"The weakly-sexed (undeveloped SSI) and the self-righteous woman who disapproves, BECAUSE SHE DOES NOT LOVE, actually brings about an inertia and a shriveling of that portion of her being which would, if permitted to respond, prove her salvation in more ways than one. Awakened desire-call it passion, if you will-enlivens these delicate organs and permits them to receive life's magnetic forces from the contact; adding health and longevity to the one who wisely follows Nature's laws. Those who foolishly or unwisely refuse, pay the penalty all too frequently in some form of prolapses, pelvic inflammation and other so-called 'female' ailments caused by suppression or abuse."
Dr. Clymer speaks of "magnetic forces." This was before more was known about the hormonal and vital substances present in the male seminal fluid. This is stated not to discount these "magnetic (vibrational) forces" for they most certainly are a strong factor, but to emphasize that there are other vital entities that her attitude prevents her from obtaining. By her state of mind and heart, she prevents her vagina from accepting most of the good that God and Nature intended to be her due.
Cooperation Brings Peace and Harmony
"The woman who is married, and no longer free to act as she otherwise might, should learn to cooperate with her wedded husband unless he is in fact an unfeeling brute. Through such cooperation, she will bring happiness to the home and family and avoid much suffering. If there are children, as there usually are, it will help to give them a desirable, even if not an altogether correct, heritage."
This paragraph brings to light an age-old battle. Who has the right to be the head of the family? Perhaps the best recommendation today for a couple who can talk to one another is for them to always agree with each other's point of view in front of the children and, if there are differences, to discuss these by themselves and come to a compromise with which both can live.
"The deeper the passion and affection felt during the embrace when conception takes place, the greater the intensity of life conferred upon the offspring. Parents-especially the mother, if her desires are pure and deep-confer upon, or transmit to, their children their physical constitution, intellect and morals. On the part of the woman, this is largely limited to the strength of her desires; in the case of man, to the degree of sexual vitality at the time of conception. The entire parentage, with all its temporary states, is transmitted at this time to the offspring. Dormancy of these functions, at the time of the creative period, will have a strong tendency to weaken the children.
"The love union, i.e., the marital embrace, when deep affection or love is present, activates all of the organs of the body, especially the mind, the nervous system and the heart, and arouses every elevating emotion. The child conceived as the result of such a union will be endowed with great vital energy and emotional possibilities, and therein is laid the groundwork for success, if not actual genius.
"The desirability, in woman, of passion under control is readily conceivable. If we contrast this state of mind, heart and nerves with the passiveness, listlessness or even aversion of all too many woman during the marital embrace, we will readily foresee the difference in results to follow.
"Greater love and affection are essential if a higher humanity is desired. Love should be thought, felt and acted. Love is the creative, activating force of the universe. Lack of love, and lack of keen desire, is the cause of moral, mental and physical weakness. Where there is lack of love, the entire being is out of tune with the universe and with humanity in general. The new creature should be the offspring of a love that is passionate; the deeper the love, the more human (or superhuman) the child.
"The combination of love and passion in both of the parents results in the blending of both of the parents in the child. In instances where the child, as so often happens, resembles only one of its parents in features, habits, temperament and inclination, it is a clear indication of one of two things; either the parents were not united in Soul, or one of the parents was physically and passionately weaker."
If one views much of our current media, one most certainly would not think that lack of passion on the part of either sex is any longer a problem. Certainly the couples in contemporary dramas seem to display more than adequate passion. Unfortunately, most of this passion is more likely animal lust and is usually shown in the unmarried rather than the happy result of the One Flesh union. My own clinical experience has shown that all too often the passion they see on the "tube" or the "silver screen" is about as close to real passion that a great many couples come. The true passion Dr. Clymer spoke of is that passion that comes only from a One Flesh union in which both husband and wife have strong PSIs and at least partially developed SSIs.
"Conception should be a deliberate, prearranged affair. Even the time for birth should be given consideration. All things being equal, August and September are good months for conception to take place because the birth will then be in the Spring when new life begins to express itself in all the world." (A more pragmatic reason for a spring birth is that this allows the child to pass its early months in the spring, summer and fall of the year, thus bypassing the winter until it is older and more likely to be able to withstand the adverse weather and diseases of this season.)
The Time for Conception
"Why are the hours of darkness thought to be the proper time for the creative act? There is a reason for it, though not a sound one. Throughout the ages, the creative act has all too often been considered as something shameful, something to be hidden from all the world. The statement that has been repeated billions of times and continues to be repeated: 'Man is born in sin (as the result of a sinful act), of a few days, and of much suffering,' gives us the key for this idea. THERE NEVER WAS A MORE UNTRUTHFUL IDEA THAN THIS.
"If creation is a sin, then God has been guilty of the greater sin, because He was the first Creator, or cause of the creation of man and nowhere is it written that He created man in shame or during the hours of darkness. On the contrary, after He had made man He looked upon His handiwork and saw that 'it was good.' Why then the taboo on man's creation? There is no shame in creation, nor in the act of creation unless it be the result of passion (lust) alone-without the help of God's handmaidens: love and affection-and the sooner man's mind becomes enlightened on this vitally important subject the better for all of humanity.
"Physiologically, the best time for conception to take place would be during the light of day and more especially during the early hours of the day while the sun is rising in the East and man's vitality is at its peak. Man is so steeped in ignorance and superstition; so obsessed by race belief that the conjugal embrace is sinful, that, with rare exceptions, he has no desire for the embrace at this time of day. On the contrary, this Divinely creative act is reserved for the hours of darkness, as if to hide the face of the actors. It is as though they were committing a crime against man and God when, in fact, they are, or should be, co-creators with Him.
"LIGHT IS LIFE; LIGHT, LIKE LOVE, IS GOD. Light, sunshine, love, these imply health, strength, happiness, mental clarity so much needed in the world. Light with its attendant heat is the source of all life. Darkness is weakness, fear, inertia, all synonyms for decay and death. Physical man never has the amount of vital power during any other time of the day that he has in the morning after a night of rest, recuperation and rebuilding. No one is in possession of his greatest strength when the hours of darkness fall. Conception should not occur when only the shreds of physical strength remain. The universal rule should be: Choose that period when vitality is strongest, when desire is greatest.
"The impressions upon the future child are at no other time more marked than at the time of actual conception; the most holy period in life when the trinity: God, man and woman in love, unite that they may create. It cannot be too often repeated that sex-the creative force-is the strongest of all forces in man. With this force are impressed the desires of the parents upon the child at the moment when the human seed, containing as it does, the image of the future being, is projected into God's divinely designed laboratory, where it is to be fashioned into a human being. This great work is best commenced in the light of day. Who would think of beginning any important project after all the energy of the day is spent."
One of the Great Secrets of Life
"Passion (not lust) cannot be separated from Love, nor can the two be separated in the creation of a perfect child. Why? Because true passion is one mode, and an important one, of Love's expression. Once people understand, accept and implement this one great secret, it will be the beginning of the end for many of the ills from which the world as a whole suffers. Brains and intellects differ almost as much as do physical forms. Hearts, affection and love are ever the same.
"Through love and its powers, alone, can man attain to godhood. When he makes this quantum leap, woman will reign as queen and be his equal, where she now, for the most part, is in his eyes only a drudge or a toy, depending upon the position she holds. Woman, as such, whatever her position, because of her nature, has most of love crystallized in her being and for that one reason, if there were no other, is Divinely entitled to be the peer of any man as long as she directs her love and its power wisely.
"This is not by reason of either her beauty, accomplishments, wealth or position, but because she has the womb, God's laboratory, wherein she may, IF SHE BE WISE AND WILLING, fashion and complete that which it took God, Nature and puny man, singly and combined, to barely begin, and that often so badly, it is ever a wonder that the world is not more of a madhouse than it is today. IF SHE BUT WILLS IT, woman can be such a magical artist that, from the worst seed, she is able to raise many a splendid mental giant; redeem the race from savagery; greatly improve the arts, science, religion and make the Earth truly inhabitable; a beautiful, heavenly place in which to live.
"All this being true, it follows that when a woman is with child, her whole desire should be that of giving to the world a perfect specimen of her art, and if she does this truly, sincerely, we shall soon no longer behold such sadly misshapen human beings as now walk this fair earth of ours.
"The woman carrying a child in her womb, judiciously loved and properly treated, not spoiled and pampered, or kept on a dead level of life, can, during every ten days of her pregnancy, add more Soul (the God side of man), strength, beauty, humanity, energy, power, capability, possibility, force of character and genius to the baby she is carrying, than she possibly could in all the weeks of her gestation if she did not follow the methods outlined here.
"She will be able to build more greatness in every hour she lives under desirable conditions, and each step or stage of gestation will be carried one or more degrees further toward perfection as she continues her efforts in love and dedication to the new being developing within her. The only difference between a genius and a human weakling is in the manner of the 'baking and basting.' The genius is finished step by step as the work proceeds. He is well kneaded, as must be all good bread (he is both kneaded and needed); well risen; well baked; therefore, well flavored; well done; will keep well; will be wanted by all and wept over when gone.
"The weakling is well described by the often-heard expression: 'Oh well, he is only half-baked.' This is a fair description (more literal than most would like to believe) of all too many of those who pass as men. These misfits need not be and would be the result of accidents only, if men and women both fully understood the one great immutable Law: LOVE LIETH AT THE FOUNDATION. Love is CONVERTIBLE, passion, enthusiasm, affection, holy desire, fire, Soul and God. The nuptive moment, that instant wherein the germ (spermatozoon) of a new being is lodged; when a part of man's essential self is implanted within the matrix of the woman with intent and purpose, is the most solemn, serious, powerful moment that can be known to man on this earth."
A Great Truth Expressed
by Dr. B. P. Randolph"Dr. Randolph never wrote a greater truth, and no other writer ever stated a truth half as great or important than this:
" 'Whenever you see a rich, jovial spirit of power in a boy or girl, wherever you behold force or genius, you may rest assured that the conception of which they are the result occurred when their parents both loved and were impassioned. Au contrare: whenever you come across genuine meanness, lean, weaselish, deceitful, slanderous, lying, scrawny, white-livered people; grab-allish, selfish, and accursed generally, you may safely wager your very life that such beings were conceived of force, and were mothered by passionless, sickly, used-up wives, without the slightest danger of periling your stake!'
"Whatever the dominant thought, desire and/or feeling at the time of conception, it is instantaneously impressed upon the impregnating spermatozoon and impregnated ovum.
If the parties partaking in the conjugal act are sane, sensible, cheerful, affectionate and graciously inclined-a term the meaning of which is but little and imperfectly understood by most-the child will, at the outset of its life, be endowed with like desirable qualities. If the husband at the same time be governed by reason and the qualities of true manhood, the child will become a power in the world and affairs of men.
"On the contrary, if the parents be weak, fearful, fretful and uncertain of intent and purpose, the child is equally certain to be frail, unstable, and more or less incompetent; hence a liability, and not a blessing, to society generally."
The reasons for the above seemingly radical concept are not all that difficult to accept and understand if we again consider the effects of sympathetic vibrations. As the sperm and the ovum come together they will be bathed by the vibrations of the two who acted to bring about their union. At the instant of conception, the vibrations from both participants will cause sympathetic vibrations in the new combined cell. As the DNA of the new being is constructed from that of both husband and wife (whether married or not, in God's eyes those engaged in this act of supreme creation are husband and wife), the vibrational milieu in which this process takes place will help to determine which hereditary components are to be the dominate parts of this new human.
Important Facts to Remember
"During the nine months of her pregnancy, the mother-to-be is truly engaged in God's vineyard; doing God's work. If the product of her labor is to be as nearly perfect as possible, reverence and encouragement should be extended to her at all times. Nothing that is impure should pollute the sacredness of body, mind or Soul. Sexual intemperance is to be avoided. Of the many evils to be avoided, inordinate indulgence in the conjugal act is one of the worst. THE DESIRES OF THE WOMAN MUST GOVERN; HER REASONABLE DESIRES SHOULD GOVERN. (While it is never wise for a husband to force himself on his wife, it is more important to follow this rule during pregnancy than at any other time). If sacredness on this matter were allowed to govern, many deformities and weakness of body and Soul would be avoided.
"Purity in EVERY RESPECT is essential during the process and period of maternity, if best results are to be obtained. All too many parents transmit to their children tendencies which will later sully the family honor. Can these children be blamed entirely; are they not merely manifesting that which is inborn in them by their parents?"
Admittedly, Dr. Clymer was correct here, and yet this is a somewhat dangerous legal concept to be advanced today. With the present state of our legal system (with cases such as the Menendez [Two brothers who brutally murdered their parents and used as a defense the excuse that they were abused as children] brothers) could not children use this excuse to commit many heinous crimes and blame their parents? Do we not still have to hold people personally responsible even though they may have been poorly generated.
"Any form of vulgarity, whether in reading, conversation, thought or desire, is to be religiously avoided lest it be impressed upon the cells of the new brain in formation and manifest as a habit during life. Any such tendencies should be eliminated by substitution. This is possible by recalling to mind something pleasant and beautiful immediately when a vulgar thought comes to mind. This is a form of sublimation (transmutation) and is the means of overcoming all evil tendencies of this nature."
What Causes Criminal Tendencies?
"All too many children are born with strong criminal tendencies because their mothers-to-be constantly read tales of rape, arson, vice and murder in newspapers or novels and the feelings aroused were impressed upon the forming cells in the child's mind. Mothers-to-be, wherever you are, whatever you are engaged in doing, draw a circle of purity, virtue, goodness and kindness about you. Do not permit any impression of evil to enter your mind or heart. If it does, immediately 'root it out' by recalling an experience or vision of beauty. Think no evil, speak no evil, permit no one to discuss evil with you. Hold in mind constantly the thought of mental and spiritual well-being as well as physical health for the baby in the making. (Like true secrets of life, this is so simple that most of the sophisticated will feel that it is beneath them to give it a moment's consideration and, thus, continue to create children that bring them pain and sorrow.)
"Every form of true, kind, ennobling emotion you feel and experience will be reflected upon your unborn child. Every intellectual effort on your part will be an influence toward its thoughtfulness and the development of talent and intellectuality. On the contrary, and even with greater force, every thought and feeling of anger, all fretfulness on your part, will impress upon the unborn child's mind the spirit of maliciousness and be a handicap all the days of its life.
"Maternal irritability is all too frequently the inducing cause of ill-tempered children. The destructive, quarrelsome boy, insulting to his mother, tormenting to animals, the bully of his companions, is the more to be pitied the meaner his disposition, just as he should be had he inherited the predisposition to tuberculosis or insanity. HE IS A VICTIM OF THAT WHICH WAS IMPLANTED INTO HIM, knowingly or unknowingly, by the passions of his mother while pregnant. It is she who is most guilty, even though unconsciously or unintentionally so."
Physical Weakness in Children
"A constantly increasing number of children are born without the vital energy necessary for the proper functioning of body and mind. They are 'born tired.' The causes for this are numerous. The pregnant woman performing tasks almost beyond her strength (and thus using nutrients that should go to the child) is undoubtedly a cause, but far from the main cause. (One of the frequent causes of this condition today is mothers who have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or severe nutritional imbalances.*)
*See the books Chronic Fatigue Unmasked and For Tomorrows Children, both available from the Philosophical Publishing Company, P.O. Box 220, Quakertown, PA 18951.
"Our foreparents traveled to the new world in search of a home, labored beyond what we would now recognize as endurance, and in addition, suffered innumerable hardships and dangers; nevertheless, the mothers of those days BECAME THE MOTHERS OF THE MEN, REALLY STRONG MEN, WHO DEVELOPED THE COUNTRY AND MADE IT GREAT. The main cause of widespread weaknesses in our present generation is that the race as a whole, and women in particular, suffer from lowered vitality, due to denatured foods and a conglomeration of what are called 'foods'-preparations made to look attractive and taste well, but are denatured, devitalized and adulterated to such a degree that, in many instances, they work as a poison in the system, rather than a food.
"These concoctions, easily procured and prepared for consumption, are the main cause of the lowered vitality from which man suffers. In addition to this is the lack of proper rest, recreation and exercise; the constant on-the-go-ness; the late hours plus sweets, tobacco and alcohol. All of these things help to denature and devitalize the body of both men and women and as a consequence, the children suffer even before birth.
"ALL THINGS PRODUCE AFTER THEIR KIND. It is equally and most certainly true that ALL THINGS PRODUCE AFTER THEIR CONDITION! Because this is a certainty, it follows that the more vital and healthy, both physically and mentally, the procreating other is, the more so will be the child. Herein is the secret of a perfect generation; this cannot be too frequently repeated or too strongly emphasized."
Idleness as an Evil
"Idleness during pregnancy is one of the worst evils and is to be avoided at all cost. There should be constant activity, but it should be of such a nature as not to deplete the mother's system. Activities having no special aim and not of a constructive nature should be avoided. All duties, whether congenial or not, should be performed in patience and with a sense of being necessary; they are important, and being important, they are constructive, hence confer an honor and not an indignity. There should be recognition of the fact that all necessary labor is honorable and that honor is man's-and woman's-highest estate. This inbreeds honor in the unborn child, and, certainly a new sense of honor is badly needed in the human race as a whole."
The Father's Place During Gestation
"Great emphasis has been placed on the part played by the mother in the drama of bringing forth into the world a new being. This would make it appear that maternity is exalted at the expense of paternity. This is not the impression we desire to give. The father is certainly a great deal more than an incident in procreation. If he will take a part, or be permitted a part, in the preparatory and gestatory period, he will be a great help in the growth, education and government of the child from the time of its birth until its development into manhood or womanhood. "
Isolation Is to Be Avoided:
The Need for Companionship"No woman, no woman in pregnancy, no mother, can live an ideal life in isolation. At best she is but one part of the whole; one-half of a sphere; one part of a little world. Neglect is as destructive as is abuse. Some men, perhaps all too many men, are ashamed of the appearance of their wives during
pregnancy. A degree of modesty is commendable. There comes a time when the home, rather than the social function, is the proper place for the pregnant woman. All things within reason; so should be woman's life toward the end of her pregnancy.
"In days past the pregnant women were honored at home and in public. Maternity was a god to whom the Romans paid tribute, and woman was paid exalted deference. Without doubt, this homage paid her gave her a feeling of superiority which was impressed upon, or imparted to, her unborn child.
"Rome, during her age of greatness, before her manhood and strength were dissipated by idleness and in riotous living, was the envy of all nations, chiefly because of this homage, nobility and sense of honor. In nations where the mother is relegated into the background, or feels a sense of shame or inferiority because of her pregnancy, she is unhappy and dejected when she should feel proud. If she feels embarrassed because her form is, for the time being, misshapen, her forthcoming child cannot escape the impression or impact of this feeling which becomes a most serious handicap to his future welfare and success."
All mothers-to-be today are in a much better position than they were in Dr. Clymer's day. As we come ever nearer to the implementation of the Age of Manisis, we see that women are once again beginning to glory in the appearance and nobleness of motherhood.
The Diet for Mother and Child*
"All too many women during pregnancy, DUE TO DEFICIENCY IN THEIR OWN SYSTEM, become possessed with a desire to consume inordinately undesirable foods, especially sweets of all kinds. Normal desires should be satisfied, but at the first indication of an unnatural desire, restraint must be exercised and the desire itself be controlled by the practice of wise substitution.
"Sweets in one form or another have their place in a normal diet, but when at all possible, natural, undenatured sweets should be consumed and these may be most generously found in honey, dates, figs, raisins and other such fruits. Desserts should not be part of the diet. If there is a desire for the various foods generally known as 'desserts,' then, when not very hungry, a meal should be made of the desired dessert such as real ice cream or pure gelatins, and milk, with no other food at such a meal."
*See the books For Tomorrows Children and How to Create the Perfect Baby for greater details on this subject. Both books are available from the Philosophical Publishing Company, P.O. Box 220, Quakertown, PA 18951.
The Diet During Pregnancy
"The diet for the woman while pregnant is of the utmost importance. It is not for a moment to be forgotten that all of the material to be used in the building of the body of the child-to-be MUST BE OBTAINED EITHER FROM THE FOOD AND DRINK PARTAKEN OF BY THE MOTHER WHILE BUILDING THAT BODY, or FROM HER OWN BODY.
"Since we know that under modern conditions, subsisting on foods that have been greatly denatured or grossly adulterated, the mother-to-be may well be already undernourished herself, that is, has not been consuming foods of a nature supplying her with the required material for body, bone, nerve and brain building, HOW IS IT POSSIBLE FOR HER TO SUPPLY THE REQUISITES FOR THE BUILDING OF A HEALTHY BODY FOR HER CHILD IF SHE DOES NOT POSSESS THEM HERSELF, AND IF THIS IS NOT DONE, HOW CAN THE CHILD BE NORMAL AND BE RESPONSIBLE TO NORMAL ACTION?
"The selection of foods should be a wise one. All denatured and devitalized foods should be refused. The pregnant woman requires additional energy because her bodily needs have been doubled. There should be an abundance of good protein selected from milk, cheese, eggs, every kind of sea food, beans, soybeans, peas and lentils-all proteins, and, for those whose diet included or includes meat, the various meats, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF PORK (especially) and veal.
"There must be a plentiful supply of vegetables, both raw and cooked, because these contain the essential minerals and they also neutralize the acids and toxins in the proteins. There must be starches, especially those obtained from potatoes with their skins, peas, beans, lentils, barley, rice and the various whole grains, all rich in vital vitamins and minerals; some of the grains also containing lecithin, the nerve and brain builder. A certain, but not too great amount of natural fats must be included as a lubricant, and the fruits for their vitamins and minerals and their ability to help neutralize bodily and food acids and toxins.
"Condiments, with the exception of a very small amount of white or red pepper, just enough to season food, come under the same classification of stimulants." (To a degree this is true of many of the herbs used in cooking today. However, the effect of each herb must be taken into consideration individually. Speak to your Healing Research Center doctor.)
Danger of Lack of Calcium
"Very few women, pregnant or not, have as much calcium in their systems as is required for health, and certainly not enough to furnish a sufficient amount for the bony structure of the child being developed. For this reason, foods consumed should be natural and possess plenty of calcium. With rare exception, sweets, whatever their nature or name, do NOT possess this essential building material; hence no great amount of sweets should be consumed; only enough as required for heat and energy.
"Estimates based on careful investigation clearly indicate that not 5 percent of either children or adults have a sufficient amount of calcium in their systems for proper functioning of the human machine. (This percentage is probably better today because of more wide spread information on this common deficiency.) The importance of this mineral element is only beginning to be understood. The deficiency, in general, is because of the lack of consumption of foods rich in this element. (And lack of the nutrients for proper assimilation of this element.)
"Without sufficient calcium there cannot be perfect nutrition. This may cause what is commonly termed malnutrition, and affects the mother before conception takes place. There is consequently imperfect nutrition during gestation; the child in the human laboratory is not properly nourished, perhaps actually undernourished to a degree developing an abnormality. Also, unless this deficiency is remedied, the mother will not be able to properly nourish the child after its birth.
"When the amount of calcium in the food ingested is insufficient, the blood must take the calcium it needs from the bones. If the pregnant woman does not consume foods rich in this mineral, rich enough to supply HER OWN REQUIREMENTS WITH ENOUGH LEFT OVER FOR THE PURPOSE OF BUILDING THE BODY STRUCTURE OF HER CHILD, THEN THE DEFICIENCY MUST BE MADE UP FROM HER OWN BONY STRUCTURE.
THIS DIRECTLY AFFECTS THE DEVELOPING CHILD. MORE THAN THIS, THE MALNUTRITION INTERFERES WITH EVERY OTHER PART OF THE CHILD'S DEVELOPMENT AND HAS A POWERFUL INFLUENCE ON THE BRAIN STRUCTURE. The two most important sources of calcium are milk-natural, untreated, unheated milk-certified when at all obtainable, and bone meal in one form or another.
"Bone meal tablets are also rich in the important brain and nerve element phosphorous. They can now be readily obtained and every woman contemplating motherhood should AT ONCE BEGIN TO TAKE SUCH CALCIUM AND CONTINUE THROUGHOUT HER PREGNANCY AND LACTATION-THE BREAST-FEEDING OF HER CHILD.
Another source of calcium is egg shells. This is second only to bone calcium. Egg shells may be crushed, placed in a jar, covered with fresh lemon juice, stirred frequently for a few days, and this calciumvitamin elixir is ready for use: half a teaspoonful three or four times a day. (The mother-to-be needs to careful as to the type of bone meal product she uses. Some are so prepared that they are much better absorbed and assimilated than others. It is suggested that she contact one of the physicians at the Healing Research Centers for their recommendation.)
"Milk, of course, is an ideal calcium food and should form a great part of the diet before, during and following pregnancy unless one is sensitive to it. It contains a perfect combination of fats, nerve and brain food, and the organic mineral elements required for normal growth and development. Second to this as a food is cottage cheese. Both milk and cottage cheese are highly concentrated foods and must be combined with plenty of vegetables, both raw and cooked."
Iodine
"It is certain that there cannot be proper brain (mind) functioning without iodine. Iodine is essential for mental balance. It is as important to the mentality of man as is calcium to the bony structure and nutrition of man. Experience covering many years has demonstrated that in many instances of mental disturbances during change of life and some forms of emotional disturbances, organic Iodine in conjunction with calcium offers almost immediate relief and gradually wholly eliminates the deficiency, restores mental balance and removes disturbances coincident during menopause. In severe disturbances, the biological thyroid with calcium may be necessary. (While, today, we in the natural healing fields use many other things to help the menopausal period, this suggestion is still worth a try.)
"This essential substance in a highly developed condition and readily assimilative form, may readily be obtained from the sea vegetables such as sea kelp, dulse, sea lettuce, Irish moss. Sea kelp is not alone rich in iodine, but in almost every other mineral element required for perfect body building. It is readily procurable in tablet form and should be taken regularly in conjunction with calcium. (Most kelp is very high in sodium chloride-table salt-and so the other forms of natural iodine are usually recommended unless the additional salt is not considered detrimental.)
"Irish moss is a good food before and during pregnancy, and during lactation (breast-feeding). It is not only a perfect mineral-carrying food, but it can be made into truly delightful dishes.
"These plants grow in the ocean, the cradle of life. The ocean is rich in practically all minerals and supplies the sea weeds with a large amount of organic iodine. Our foods today are not entirely devoid of the essential brain-building iodine, but certainly do not contain nearly enough of this absolutely essential element, the iodine having been soaked or leeched out of the soil in many parts of the country and carried to the ocean by the rivers. For this reason vegetables and other land grown foods are frequently unable to supply the necessary iodine, with the result that both humans and animals suffer from lack of essential iodine. Animals do not suffer this lack as much as humans, because, with them, there is little need of it for mental activity or emotional balance.
"The organic iodine derived from these marine plants not only supplies this element for certain parts of the body, but also assists the body in the proper utilization of other minerals and food factors"
Dulse (Rhodymenia Palmata): generally known as sea lettuce. It is a beautiful purple color and liked by many for its odd taste. Most people prefer to take it powdered in capsule or in tablet form.
Kelp (Mycrosistus Pyrifera): This plant differs from other seaweeds because it grows partly above the water exposed to the sunshine. May be powdered and sprinkled on salads or other foods or taken in capsule or tablet form. Eight to sixteen grains of the powder is the usual amount to be taken at a time. (See precautions mentioned above.)
Irish moss (Chondrus Crispus): Also known as carrageen. This not only supplies a vital Iodine, but also furnishes an equally vital
protein in the form of gelatin; one readily digested. Delicious dishes, such as blanc mange and Irish moss jell, may be prepared. So important is this article of food to the woman who truly desires to give birth to a perfect child that we here give instructions for its preparation in various desirable forms.
Blanc Mange
(Vegetable Gelatin)
Before pregnancy, during gestation and lactation
3 cups milk 2 tablespoons honey
1 cup water 2 egg yolks
1/4 cup gran. Irish moss 1 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
Add the water to the moss and boil ten minutes, then add the milk and reheat until lukewarm, strain through cloth or fine strainer. Add the honey, egg yolks, salt and favorite flavoring. Set aside and chill. Serve with milk or cream.
Irish Moss Gelatin
(Without Milk)
1/4 cup gran. Irish moss 1 quart water
1/4 cup honey 1 mellow apple
Pinch of salt 1 banana3 tablespoons of lemon juice
Boil moss ten minutes, strain through cloth. Add honey. When cool, add other ingredients, set aside and chill. Other fruits can be used.
"To make salads more interesting and tasty, Irish moss gelatin just flavored with lemon (without fruit or vegetables) is used. Cut into small cubes and add to salad.
"Some do, others do not, like the sea flavor. To change it, tart fruits or tart fruit juices like plum juice, fresh or preserved peaches, cranberries, cranberry juice or raw, chopped cranberries help to make the blanc mange more delicious. Any preserved or stewed fruit, berries with juice, extra milk or cream may be poured over moss gelatin. Fresh fruit or berries can be served with it. Berry, fruit or vegetable powder can be sprinkled on top of it.
"The moss gelatin is particularly suited as dessert for dinner if made with either crushed pineapple or grated carrots, celery or other vegetable or mint powder-not so well if made with fruit and milk."
Medium for Pudding
1/4 cup gran. Irish moss 1 quart water
Put moss into pan, add water and boil for one-half hour; strain. This makes a gelatin that is used for puddings instead of cornstarch.
Irish Moss Beverage-I
(A Pleasant Drink)
1/4 cup gran. Irish moss 3 pints water
Wash and drain moss. Bring to boil and strain. Flavor with honey, vanilla or other flavoring.
Irish Moss Beverage-II
(Soothing Drink)
1 pint water 1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup gran. Irish moss Juice of 1 lemon
Wash moss and drain thoroughly. Put into kettle and cover with water. Simmer for thirty minutes or until slightly gelatinous. Strain, add honey and lemon juice. Said to be soothing to the throat.
Irish Moss Powder
"Sprinkle a little of the finely powdered moss over, or in, any food. A shaker comes in handy here. An easy method, no cooking or preparing necessary. This is one way to increase the Irish moss consumption with children and those who object to taking anything in dosage form.
"We cannot too frequently or too emphatically repeat: Our years of experience has convinced us that in the present age and under present conditions, a physically perfect, and mentally normal child is impossible without an abundant supply of organic calcium and iodine."
Thyroid
"In all instances where there is a history of any form of feeblemindedness, mental irritationality, 'queerness,' (in the older sense; not the modern definition of queer) partial or actual insanity, on the side of either the father or mother of the child conceived, thyroid should be prescribed during the entire pregnancy in addition to the calcium and iodine.
WARNING: This is to be taken only by direction and under the observation of a competent physician. The thyroid gland, a highly important one in the proper functioning of the human machine, requires a certain amount of iodine which once more emphasizes the importance of that element." (As Dr. Clymer indicated, no attempt should be made by the mother-to-be to obtain thyroid on her own. If you feel that you may need this substance, contact the Beverly Hall Corporation Healing Research Center and speak to one of our physicians about your desires.)
To Women Who Want Children,
But Have Failed to Conceive"It is roughly estimated that there are millions of women who are most anxious to conceive and become the mothers of families, either large or small, who have made every effort to conceive, but who have failed.
"There are many reasons and causes which prevent conception. One of the most general is that known to the laity as an 'acid field' (the vaginal secretions are too acid for the sperm to make their essential journey). Where this is the cause, three to six months may be required to change this 'field,' but it can be done and it is neither difficult nor unpleasant."
The actual procedure needs to be initiated and supervised by a physician knowledgeable in this method. Call the Beverly Hall Corporation Healing Research Center if you feel this may be your problem. In other instances this condition can be corrected by changes in diet. The use of vitamin A has proved successful in many instances; in others, vitamin E has seemed to be the missing factor. Here, again, self-dosing in not suggested. Contact the Healing Research Centers for recommendations.
The Nursing Period
Many physicians, who formerly endorsed the artificial feeding of children, are now rapidly becoming convinced that it is far from the proper method and that, for many reasons, breast-feeding is far more desirable, from both a purely physical and a psychological standpoint. (The consensus was just beginning to change during Dr. Clymer's lifetime. Nowadays every few weeks seems to bring new evidence of the importance of breast-feeding. It will be interesting to see how long it will take for "scientific" research into all the matters to demonstrate the wonders of Prenatal Culture.
"If the mother-to-be is to be capable of perfect lactation-with a plentiful supply of milk carrying all the elements of nutrition-she MUST PREPARE FOR THIS DURING HER ENTIRE PERIOD OF PREGNANCY. This is done in part by eating a plentiful supply of good and properly selected and combined foods; but, in addition to this, there is another necessity, one not at all difficult to obtain.
"This agent is both a natural and a legendary one. We would not make so bold as to claim it to be a recognized scientific formula. (Except among physicians of the Naturopathic School.) However, many physicians who have used it during years of practice claim for it two things: EASY CHILDBIRTH and generally a plentiful supply of milk.
"This remedy is actually as old as man-not only the white man-but the red man in America. It was a remedy well known and universally used by the red man; in fact, it was his only remedy for these two very important purposes and it has universally proven itself in our hands."
Mitchella Repens, or Squaw Vine for
Normal, Easy Childbirth and Lactation"It is most generally known, especially to the country folk to whom the obstetricians and baby specialists are unknown, as partridgeberry; squaw vine (an Indian term); squawberry (also an Indian name), checkerberry, deerberry, and oneberry. It is found in the woods of most states in America. Its present-day use is based upon the traditions and practice of the American Indians and later upon the practice by Botanic, Physio-Medical, Eclectic and Naturopathic physicians.
"Its influence is specifically upon the reproductive organs of the female. This influence is desirable during the entire period of pregnancy and nursing. Under its influence, it is possible to eliminate many of the frequently experienced erratic pains and unsatisfactory desires from which pregnant women so frequently suffer.
"The nervous system becomes tranquil in place of emotional; reflex symptoms are removed. The urinary function becomes normal, and the bowels become more regular. With the regular use of Mitchella repens, labor is approached without the appearance of the usual irritating, aggravating symptoms; dilation becomes completed more rapidly; the expulsive contractions strong and effectual; involution is rapid, and, in most instances, there are no subsequent complications to contend with; childbirth is comparatively easy and nursing the child becomes a normal and simple matter.
"Mitchella repens or Squaw vine should be taken regularly beginning with the third month of pregnancy and continued until nursing is finished. It is most satisfactory in its results if taken three times a day. The usual dose of the tincture of Mitchella repens is 5 to 30 drops three times a day. If the tincture is unobtainable an infusion may be made of the cut and sifted herb. The mother-to-be is to drink three to four cups of this tea a day for the period indicated above."*
*This and other herbs are available directly from the Healing Research Centers. Mitchella repens and other nontoxic herbs have been combined into a special formula called "Mother's Cordial" by this Center. You may call 1-800-300-5168 for more information on this and other herbal remedies.
Threatened Miscarriage
"Many women labor under a constant fear of miscarriage during the entire period of pregnancy, more especially those living in districts where the service of a physician is not readily obtainable. If Mitchella repens is taken throughout the entire period of pregnancy, then, barring accidents, placental diseases, syphilis or acute infection of the mother, there is little need of fear as far as miscarriage is concerned, especially if the mother-to-be fortifies herself with natural vitamin E and K."
It is rare today for any American woman not to have medical care readily available, nor to be without a nearby telephone. There are many reasons for a miscarriage. Often the egg did not implant in the uterus properly and this is Nature's way of removing a poor implantation so that a better one can be made at a later time. While, in my experience, Mitchella repens has, indeed, prevented many miscarriages, at the first sign of trouble on this front the mother-to-be should call her physician or the Healing Research Centers as soon as possible. If the implantation is good, many things can be done to save the fetus from premature expulsion.
Possible Complications of Delivery
Let us assume the mother and father have done everything they know how to do to create the perfect baby up to the time of delivery. While we would like to be able to tell them that they are now "home free," this is not the truth. Many difficulties that can develop during even a so-called natural delivery.
The first premise, to be considered concerning childbirth is that it is not a medical condition, it is a natural physiologic event. Like all such events in the body (digesting food and moving one's bowels), little outside invasive effort is required by the normal mother. This was well recognized by the early practitioners who coined the name "obstetrician" which means "one who stands before," not "one who interferes."
Like the other bodily physiological functions, childbirth is a series of events all designed by nature and God to bring into the world a healthy and mentally normal child. Only in this way can Nature best assure a perpetuation of the species. In general, except in emergencies to be mentioned later, the more the doctor or the midwife interferes with this procedure, the more likely there is to be damage to the newborn child and this perfect creation of the mother may be less than she had imagined or planned for.
If the mother-to-be has followed the instructions in this work (and those books recommended herein) she should be all prepared for an "easy" delivery. "Easy" is in quotes because there is a difference between a painless birth and one that requires "labor." The word "labor" is well chosen for the process of giving birth, because this process is usually just that -"labor" (hard work). The mother, who is properly prepared by both preconception care and prenatal culture, is so busy working during labor that she has little time to think about whether or not she is experiencing pain. The natural process releases endorphins into her blood stream at this time unless she is drugged. These substances then flow via the placenta and umbilical cord into the child, so that it too will not experience the pain that might otherwise occur during its normal passage through the birth canal.
"Pain Killers"
All of the known medical methods of relieving pain during childbirth tend to adversely affect either mother or child or, more commonly, both. More than their toxic effect, many of these drugs also inhibit the normal and natural flow of the neurological and hormonal factors that should be a normal part of the birth process. By this inhibition, they tend to prevent the normal activities of the body and may cause a more difficult birth than if they had not been used. The natural birth process is a very intricate process and such attempts to alter this mechanism are often like throwing sand into the works of a delicate piece of machinery.
X-Rays, Ultrasound and Amniocentesis
When I first started medical practice, it was considered mandatory to take X-rays of the mother-to-be to ascertain the position of the baby. We now know that this was dangerous to both mother and child, but mostly to the child. Today, any doctor who takes such X-rays on a routine basis would be considered negligent and may be liable for a law suit.
Recently, the diagnostic ultrasound has taken the place of the X-ray of years past. The books all tell us that this device is truly safe (Just as they did about X-rays a few decades ago), but recent research has shown this machine to also be suspect of creating possible injury to the fetus. Our own recommendation is to use diagnostic ultrasound only if there is good reason to suspect some form of difficulty regarding the birth that is so serious that it exceeds the dangers of an ultrasound.
Amniocentesis is a procedure to check the composition of the amniotic fluid (the fluid surrounding the fetus in the womb) of the mother-to-be to see if there might be some possible defect in the child. Modern science is able to sometimes detect such abnormalities by an examination of this fluid. In my own experience, the results often have been doubtful and the major result is to add a new worry to the mother-to-be. This is not likely to help her with her prenatal visualization.
We rarely recommend amniocentesis since its major advantage is to help the parents decide if they are going to abort the child or not. Since, in the vast majority of the mothers-to-be we serve, abortion is not an option, about the only effect of this procedure is to enrich the physician and create anxiety in the mother- and father-to-be.
The Choice of a Physician
If at all possible the mother-to-be should seek the aid of a physician or certified midwife who practices natural childbirth. While this is a good beginning, this alone does not insure a damage-free delivery. Both the mother- and father-to-be need to inquire about the nature of the physician's practice and just how he or she plans to conduct the prenatal care and the delivery itself.
A knowledgeable practitioner will ascertain that the child is in the proper position for a normal delivery. There is such a thing as a normal position and while babies in other positions may be delivered without obvious damage, the odds of a truly "safe" birth are higher from this normal position.
There can be several reasons for a child to present incorrectly. Some of these are due to the activity of the mother during pregnancy. If your physician is well trained in his field he or she will tell you the things you individually need to avoid during your term so that you will not encourage an improper position. If your doctor determines that your child is not presenting correctly, he may well be able to "turn" the baby into the more desirable position if there are no unusual reasons that this is not possible.
In talking with your doctor or midwife be certain to ask them their philosophy regarding the delivery process itself. In particular, question them regarding the birth of the head after it has "crowned" and the method they use in the delivery of the shoulders and body. The crowning of the head is when the head has stretched the vaginal opening as far as it will go easily. As one looks at the mother, one sees a good portion of the baby's head protruding from the thin tissues on the edge of the vaginal opening. It is at this time that a good doctor will slow things down by not requesting the mother to "push hard" with every contraction. Such hard labor at this time is likely to tear the vaginal wall toward the anus. In older mothers who are having their first child, this tear may even extend into the anal muscles themselves if care is not exercised at this time.
The proper technique is for the doctor to slowly help the vaginal tissues to manage the final stretch over the baby's head and face without much effort from the mother. Some doctors use an oil like vitamin E oil or virgin olive oil to massage the head at this time to make the process easier. In our younger days we used tincture of green soap for the same reason. The green soap had the dual advantages of being both very slippery and antiseptic at the same time.
This part of the birthing process will take a little time and patience on the parts of both the doctor and mother, but it is time well spent for both mother and child. In the normal delivery, there is no reason to hurry at this point. As long as the baby is still connected to the umbilical cord it will be just fine.
The classical phrase for this method of delivering the head is "millimeter pro millimeter" (millimeter by millimeter). Unfortunately, such carefulness is rare today and a mother-to-be will find it well worth her effort to find a doctor or midwife who is in harmony with this style of delivery.
The Delivery of the Head and Episiotomy
As the doctor advances with the delivery of the head there comes a moment of truth. He must decide if the head can be delivered without the tearing of the vaginal tissue or not. This can usually be determined by the thinness and degree of blanching of the vaginal tissue surrounding the crowned head. With a little experience, the doctor can determine if the tissue will tear, despite his best efforts, before the head and face can be delivered. Once he determines that tearing will occur, he must decide if he wants to cut the tissues (episiotomy) and if so, where, or should he just let the tissues tear. The conventional knowledge is to cut and to cut at about 4 o'clock-so that the cut will not extend into the anal area.
While this procedure makes good sense, it is not always the best in the long run. The main difficulty with it is the fact that this side cut is difficult to suture properly and many women who have this procedure have problems with future intercourse and later childbirth. About the only time that we use the "4 o'clock cut" is in an older first pregnancy patient who is likely to extend down to the anus if we use a "6 o'clock cut."
We generally recommend a "6 o'clock" cut (that is from the vagina toward the rectum) if we need only a little extra room and the patient is young. Older mothers who already have other children rarely need to be cut and don't usually tear.
Sometimes the doctor will be in doubt as to whether there will be tearing or not. Here it is usually safe to deliver without episiotomy. Small tears that may follow such a birth are usually at 6 o'clock and can be quickly and easily sutured.
No matter which form of episiotomy is chosen, it is very important to the welfare of the mother and the emotional stability of the father to be certain that the suturing of the episiotomy is not done too tightly, since there is a tendency for the tissues to form a scar which will contract as it heals. If the mother is sewed up to look as she did before delivery, there is a strong possibility that the contracting scar will create a contracted vaginal opening. Such an opening almost always causes distress to the mother during future intercourse. All this can be avoided if the doctor will only sew up the cut or torn vaginal tissue loosely following the birth.
Birth of Shoulders and Body
Once the head has fully emerged, the body of the child must turn in the birth canal so that the shoulders can be delivered. This is not the time to hurry the birth unless some sort of emergency has developed. If all is normal, it is best to let nature take her course.
The largest diameter of the birth canal at the opening is from back to front (AP). It is for this reason that (ideally) the crown of the head comes out first with the face looking down and away from the attending physician. Once the head is delivered, the baby needs to turn its body 90 degrees so that the shoulders can be born naturally. This turning is a natural result of the birth process and except in very special circumstances does not require the help of the physician. Many schools of obstetrics and midwifery teach that the physician should take the head of the child just after it emerges from the birth canal and twist it in such a manner as to cause the shoulders to make the necessary turn within the birth canal. This procedure is almost never required (the body will make the turn all by itself, thank you) and frequently is the cause of displacement to the bones of the skull and/or injury to the nerves and dural membranes of the head and neck. The degree of injury caused by this usually unnecessary procedure is difficult to access, but those who work with such children tell me that the incidence is much higher than we might be willing to believe.
With this in mind we feel that you should not be afraid to discuss this matter with your attending doctor. If you get vague or evasive answers, it might be well to look for a new doctor who is more interested in you and your child than in his golf game. (One of the main reasons for the "pull them out by the neck" method is that saves a lot of time.)
Nursing and the Umbilical Cord
Once the child is delivered, the mucus should be removed from its mouth with a rubber suction bulb and the child given to the mother to suckle. While there is not much for it eat at this time, the placing of the child on the breast serves two important uses. First, it stimulates the uterus to contract and thereby helps to expel the placenta (afterbirth) without drugs or other invasive procedures. (It is helpful to have someone check on the uterus at this time and keep it in a contracted form by gently massaging it as if one were attempting to knead a croquet ball.) The second important reason for placing the new infant directly on the breast is that it helps the molded bones of the head to assume their more normal state. This is accomplished by the effect of the sucking reflex on the dura mater (membrane attached to the bones of the head).
One last thing before we leave the mother and father to enjoy their new infant. The child receives its nutrition through the umbilical cord while it is in the mother's womb and this supply will continue for a while even after the birth of the head and body. A good physician will not cut the umbilical cord until he is certain that it has stopped pulsating, since these pulsations indicate that the child is still receiving vital blood from the mother. Even after the cord stops beating, the knowledgeable physician will strip the blood from the cord into the child before cutting it. The new citizen is in an alien environment and every little bit of blood and help he can get is to his advantage.
It is surprising how much careful prenatal care can be negated by a sloppy delivery. Your birth attendant must be chosen as carefully as you would select your food and drink during pregnancy. A few seconds of poor care in the delivery of your child can leave you with a lifetime of sorrow. All the nerve, muscle and connective tissue components around the head and neck of your newborn are extremely delicate and rough treatment during delivery, even though it may be condoned by the orthodox medical community, may cause serious injury to these tissues and lead to expensive treatments or even a child with permanent damage.*
*We are indebted to Dr. Carol J. Phillips of Eagan, MN, for her research into damage that can be caused to a newborn's cranial bones and nerves by accepted obstetrical procedures. She has also worked long and hard to correct many of the children with such injuries. If we have angels among us, Dr. Phillips is certainly one of these.
Breast-Feeding Alone Is Normal and Natural
"Before the birth of a child, its character, temperament and physique are conveyed to, or formed by, the pregnant woman's blood, her desires (thought vibrations) and mode of life. After birth, the milk of her breasts and her general behavior continue this process. It is our contention that, psychologically, if both mother and child are to be normal, breast-feeding is essential.
"The mother should continue to think, desire and live during the nursing period, exactly as she did during pregnancy. Every globule of her milk is saturated with the character, the feelings and the mentality of the mother who ingests the food and alchemically turns it into milk-the life for her child.
"ONE THING NEITHER THE PREGNANT NOR THE NURSING MOTHER SHOULD FORGET FOR A MOMENT is the fact that it is now scientifically proven that every passion such as fear, worry, anger, hate and jealousy actually manufactures a specific poison, and this poison becomes part of the blood and affects the unborn child as it does the child being nursed by its mother.
"On the other hand, every desire, every lofty emotion, likewise creates what might be rightly termed an elixir of life which has a constructive, elevating effect. Let us cite this example: Here are two pieces of paper identical in every respect. One of them is worth a few pennies, the other a thousand dollars. What makes the difference? JUST A SIMPLE IMPRESSION. One of these pieces of practically worthless paper is a blank, on the other the Government has stamped, printed or impressed the words and symbols making it a thousand-dollar negotiable note. To accomplish this there had to be a desire and an activity.
"The child in embryo is such a blank paper; the desires, the efforts and the activities of the pregnant mother do the stamping, the impressing, the printing. The original paper material-the seed germs received from the father-has as much to do with this process as has the later activity, exactly as in the making of a good bank note.
"The mother who is capable of breast-feeding her child and refuses to do so commits a crime against herself, her child and the race. Today we understand the pressures placed upon women in the workplace but there are such things as priorities. There are always those who can take the place of a worker; no one can take the place of a nursing mother. She and she alone can infuse her child with the substances, vibrations and spiritual qualities inherent in the nursing process.
"During the entire period of nursing, as during pregnancy, the marital rite should be engaged in only when desirable and agreeable to the mother and this should be in moderation. Such moderation is usually more or less dictated by the time taken up by the new duties of both the wife and the husband.
"Who does not admire the mother animal patiently nursing its young? The nursing mother is intended by both Nature and God to be contented, filled with health and vigor to convey to her child, the bright eyes and pink cheeks expressing fullness of life; in short, an expression of general happiness and beauty. Unfortunately, all too many mothers are unhappy, drawn of face, dull of eyes, figure emaciated and generally listless. This is usually attributed to nursing. This is utterly in error; the cause lies far deeper and the same condition, possibly worse, would be present if she did not nurse her child. MATERNITY IS THE CENTRAL FACT IN THE LIFE OF ALL TRUE WOMEN. Childbearing, as child-nursing, is an entirely natural phenomenon. Nature ever rejoices in her period of reproduction. She arranges for special hormonal support for all women who follow the natural course of childbearing and nursing. The difficulties arise only when the human race attempts to sidestep or augment this natural course for purposes of its own. To do so is to court the problems that have become the lot of so many."
Alcohol a Great Danger
"Many women during pregnancy develop a desire for alcoholic drinks. Alcohol, during pregnancy, especially, should be recognized as an actual poison both to the pregnant woman and her child. Alcohol in any form is fattening to the woman with child. It is a fiery, liquid fuel that will set her already sensitive nerves on fire. It is irritating to the mentality. It stimulates the appetite. It arouses the emotions that are already unbalanced: It is a corroding poison to the brain cells forming in the child, those cells that most guide the child on the path of life. If these brain cells become poisoned or are made abnormal in any manner before birth, it is almost certain that they will continue so throughout life.
"The woman who is given to partaking of alcoholics, irrespective of how temperately, and who seeks to become a mother, should discontinue their use entirely during the months before she conceives, so that no effects will remain when she does conceive."
These words, written by Dr. Clymer almost fifty years ago, are truer today than in his time. We now know much more about the damaging effects of alcohol on both the mother and the child. Today we have even a more serious problem, however, and that is the effects on the mother and the child of drugs-both street and prescribed. The effects of crack cocaine on children has been well documented but the similar effects occur with almost all similar drugs. One can only imagine what Dr. Clymer would have to say about the present situation were he alive today. There is no argument in the scientific community about the fact that, through the action of mothers using such drugs during pregnancy, we have spawned a generation of lost souls who may well bankrupt our nation in its attempts to care for and mollify them. That is, if they don't kill us in our beds first.
The Dangers of Tobacco
"The use of tobacco in its effects upon the pregnant woman and her unborn child is second only to alcohol. Tobacco contains, as all physicians and those who have investigated know, an active poison, so active that at its first use the partaker may, and frequently does, become 'deadly ill.' It is only by continued use that the natural resistance of the body is overcome and nicotine becomes the master.*
*We now have much evidence to show that the level of this drug in cigarettes is carefully controlled by the manufacturers to "keep the customer hooked." This is true whether that customer is a child, a pregnant or a nursing mother. When one understands the importance of healthy normal children to our nation and the destructive effects of nicotine (and the other 700 plus chemicals in cigarettes) to the fetus and newborn child, one can but wonder how the powers-that-be will be able create a hell that is a truly "fit" punishment for those who produce and foster this destructive "product."
"Tobacco has a direct influence on the generative system, especially the ovarian and uterine system of the woman and on the nervous system and the brain. Like alcohol, it may first activate the brain and then be followed by weakness or inertia.
"Irrespective of what we may wish to believe, tobacco has an ill effect, on both man's nervous and his mental system. Man's system, however, is not nearly so finely sensitive or delicate as that of woman and more readily adjusts itself. Moreover, the nervous system of man does not readily affect his emotions, because he is governed by his reason rather than his emotions (That is, by his MCD. But, of course, at times, he may well be influenced by his PSI; at this time his reason often flies out the window)
"Woman is governed by her emotions and these emotions are in turn greatly influenced by the state of her nerves. During pregnancy these nerves are 'on edge' as it were (supersensitive) and are readily affected. Whatever affects woman's nerves and, especially, her emotions, directly affects the child being fashioned in her inner laboratory.
"The woman desiring, and preparing, to become a mother, should give up smoking as she should alcohol, months before pregnancy is to occur, especially if she has in mind giving to the world an exceptional child.
"In all of these matters it is well to constantly bear in mind two powerful Laws of God and Nature:
1. Self-preservation-that is, preserving one's self from all that is harmful and undesirable and not conveying anything of a like nature to others. In a mother-to-be this Law of self- preservation should also extend to her child, since it is, in truth, a part of her.
2. Self-respect-refraining from those things that may degrade or harm ourselves or others will go a long way toward freeing the world from much evil. Is this not the innate desire of the woman seeking to give to the world a perfect child? Since she alone can do so, is it not her highest achievement and an obligation she owes to the human race?
"In the hands of women-not in the acts of legislative bodies-is found the means for the salvation of the human race. It is she who molds humanity for good or ill. She is God's handmaiden in the work of creation. The sooner this fact is fully recognized the better for humanity.
"The subject of procreation and regeneration is at once both simple and difficult. Plain terms may seem to confuse, but should never be the cause of shame. The things that God in His wisdom and the depth of His Love has created should not bring a blush to the cheek of any man or woman to read, discuss or investigate. Only the prude can be shocked, and he only because he has a guilty conscience.
"The knowledge of sex in all its normal, natural and Spiritual functions-and it has a Spiritual function-being so essential to the well-being of mankind, cannot by any stretch of the imagination, be in any manner destructive or degrading to moral purity. Maternity is the creative office made use of by Divinity according to His own design and is sacred as humanity may become Divine, Holy as God is Holy. THE INTENT AND EFFORT GRACIOUSLY EXECUTED HOLD THE KEY TO THIS ACHIEVEMENT."
Summary
1. A new dispensation has come and this new age calls for a new human race. To accomplish this desirable goal requires the creating and raising of superior offspring through consciously directed efforts of improving desirable qualities and eliminating undesirable qualities. In the animal world this is called stirpiculture and consists of a systematic attempt at improving a stock or species by selection, suitable environment and attention to the laws of breeding. The same or better results can be accomplished in the human family by preconception and prenatal culture.
2. In man this requires following a healthy, natural and normal life and the active employment of the pregnant woman's power to mentally impress upon her forming child the qualities she desires it to have.
3. A child's training must already begin before birth, if it is to attain to its highest degree of mental, physical and spiritual development. Proper preparation for conception and care during gestation is far more important than any possible after education.
4. Parents are responsible for properly preparing themselves for parenthood: living properly as regards rest, food, exercise, and especially mental and emotional stresses, and recognizing the fact that impressions they give to the forming child during pregnancy shape the doom or fortune of their offspring.
5. The destiny of the individual, hence of the nation and of the race itself, depends upon the mothers of the world and the prenatal conditions arranged for their children. Salvation from extinction lies in propagation undertaken knowingly and understandingly. Parents working harmoniously in conjunction can do more toward true social reforms than all the temperance, vice and corrective societies of the world. A child desirably conceived, wisely nourished in the womb of the mother-to-be and guarded by the love between father and mother will never go wrong and cannot be led astray.
6. The secret of a mother's ability to transmit to her children any desired quality, goodness, greatness, talent, potentiality and possibility-even though she may not possess it herself-is the greatest of all the mystical phenomena in the universe and is based in her desire and love for what she is creating. Any mother can produce offspring that shall be superior to either (or both) parent, if she so wills, by dwelling only on that which is true, beautiful and good during the time she is "with child."
7. Heredity foreordains that offspring shall be in the likeness of one or the other parent (or, more likely, a mixture of the two). This is true throughout the animal world where there is no modifying influence, or applicable law to retard or advance the traits, shapes or tempers of the progenitors. In the human race, both prenatalism and heredity fix the natural bend or tendency of the child-to-be. The will, feeling, desire and active effort on the part of the mother-to-be may completely reverse the effects of heredity.
8. The period of transmittable influences may be divided into three divisions:
(1.) The Preparatory Period
(2.) The Gestatory Period
(3.) The Nursing Period.
9. The preparatory cycle begins with a preconception period when the prospective parents should train and fit themselves mentally, physically and spiritually for their future responsibility. This to be followed or preceded by a thorough medical examination of each to be certain that both are free of infectious disease or any other condition, physical or mental, prohibiting or limiting parenthood. During this preparatory period every mode of life that is undesirable should be eliminated, including alcoholic drinks, tobacco, devitalized foods and every form of profane thinking or acting.
Everything that is weakening to the body or degrading to the mind and the finer sensitivities must be abolished. Only clean and elevating thoughts should be entertained. Every effort should be made to cultivate neatness, system and order, as well as cheerfulness, gentleness and graciousness. If these qualities are not already a part of the parents, they must be built into the ego by Will and desire at this time so that they may become a part of the future offspring. If a mother-to-be wants her child to be a great musician or artist, or excel in any profession, even though she herself is not such, she can do so by constantly thinking about it and fervently desiring it for the child. This is the vital secret for the creation of superior children.*
*This last suggestion must always be considered with the caveat that we do not know the sex of the child at this time and a rather "irregular" person might be engendered if the mother selects a profession that was not apropos for the sex of the newborn. With this in mind it is usually best for both the mother- and father-to-be to concentrate on bringing into the world a great and loving soul and leave the profession up to the desires and talents of the child itself.
10. The strongest force, greatest mental power, and creative ability in the domain of art, science, philosophy, literature and leadership is invariably manifested by those who have been conceived, nurtured, and born in the affection of their mother. It is in the presence or absence of love and affection wherein is found the key to the production of supermen or superdevils; murderous egomaniacs like Attila, Nero, Hitler and Stalin, or a Christ, St. John, Buddha or Confucius.
11. The preconception medical examination for detection of infectious or inheritable disease, or any condition, mentally or physically, that would indicate this couple should not have a child, should also ascertain that the wife is not suffering from anemia; neither high nor low blood pressure; that her heart, lungs and kidneys are in good condition; the bony pelvis not too small, deformed or obstructed and, equally important, no form of emotional instability exists. (Most of these latter conditions can be helped by proper medical treatment and therefore should not deter the couple from becoming parents once the condition[s] is corrected.)
12. As soon as a woman realizes she is pregnant she should, if at all possible, at once report to her physician and have him begin a series of monthly checks to make certain no complications develop, or detect them in inception when they can still be taken care of. Each visit must include a urinalysis and blood pressure determination to discover the earliest onset of a possible impending uremia (eclampsia).
13. The mother-to-be should closely watch her diet. She should beware of candy or white sugar and its seductive by-products. She should use only natural undenatured sweets such as honey and those generously found in dates, figs, raisins and other such foods. Beware also of white flour and its culinary enticements. Use only stone-ground organic whole grain products. The diet for the mother-to-be is of the utmost importance. She cannot give her baby any building material she does not possess herself. Subsisting on highly denatured or grossly adulterated foods the modern potential mother is herself already greatly undernourished, so it becomes imperative that from now on her selection of menus should be a wise one. There must be an abundance of proteins, which are the building blocks of the body, a plentiful supply of vegetables, both raw and properly cooked, because these together with fruits contain the essential minerals and vitamins and also neutralize the acids and toxins in the proteins. There must also be the proper proportion of natural starches and fats to make a balanced meal.*
*See The Basic Health Maintenance Diet in the book,
It's Only Natural. This book is available from the Philosophical Publishing Company, P.O. Box 220, Quakertown, PA 18951.14. Among the mineral requirements of the pregnant woman calcium ranks highest.* Most women do not have enough to furnish a sufficient amount for the bony structure of the child being developed. Next in importance come phosphorus, iodine and iron. Because of the poor mineral contents of our depleted soil it may be necessary to make up the mineral deficiency of our common foods with so-called supplementary mineral preparation feeding, such as bone meal tablets for calcium and phosphorus. Another excellent source of organic calcium is the shell of eggs. Seafoods, both animal and vegetable, are rich in iodine which is essential to the thyroid gland and mental balance.
*It used to be said, "For each child one tooth lost." The reason for this dictum was because the body would draw calcium from the mother's bones and teeth to supply the child. If the mother-to-be is properly supplied with a good assimilable form of calcium, and the other nutrients to utilize it, this old saw need to be true no more.
15. Alcohol is a great danger and an actual poison both to the pregnant woman and her child. The woman who is given to partaking of alcohol, and who seeks to become a mother, should discontinue its use entirely during the months before she conceives and most assuredly afterward. The use of tobacco in its poisonous effects upon the pregnant woman and her unborn child is second only to alcohol and should likewise be discontinued along with any other social drugs.
16. Physicians who formerly endorsed artificial feeding of children are rapidly becoming convinced that breast-feeding is far more desirable both from a physical and psychological standpoint and alone is natural. However, if the mother-to-be is to be capable of perfect lactation-with a plentiful supply of milk, containing all the necessary elements of nutrition-she must prepare for this during her entire term of child creation-beginning with the preconception period-by eating an abundant supply of good and carefully selected and combined foods.
17. As far as easy and natural labor and lactation are concerned there is a most effective agent, both a natural and legendary one, to help the mother and mother-to-be. This is the universally used remedy of the aboriginal red race of America-their only remedy for easy childbirth and a plentiful supply of milk. It is the herb Mitchella repens, or the Indian name, squaw vine or squawberry. It is found in the woods of most states of America and its present use is based on the tradition and practice of the American Indians and later the Botanical and Naturopathic physicians. It is not a generally recognized modern scientific formula but the mothers of such great men as the patriotic Pontiac and the noble and dignified Tecumseh did very well with it.
18. An important thing the pregnant or nursing mother should never forget is that as the mother's character and desires are conveyed to the unborn child through the maternal blood so it is also transmitted through the milk of her breasts. She should continue to think, desire and live during the nursing period exactly as she did during pregnancy. It is now scientifically proven that every passion, such as fear, worry, anger, hate and jealousy, actually manufactures a specific poison, and this poison becomes part of the blood and affects both the mother and the nursing child.
Conclusion
We realize that many of you who are reading this book may not be interested, for various reasons, in the art of Prenatal Culture (age is one good one), but you may have a daughter or friend in whom you are interested who could benefit from the information imparted here. Why not share your new knowledge with them? Such sharing could bring you many present and future blessings.
If you, yourself, do desire to give birth to superior children, it IS within your power to do so, but you should not, for one moment, consider the methods herein advocated as being new or untried. Much of this knowledge has been known for centuries. Even the Biblical writers were well versed in at least some of these methods, as is proven by the quotation from Genesis, which you find in this book.
The actual fact is, this system has been taught for nearly ninety years, by Dr. Clymer and his successors, to women all over the world. Where the procedures suggested have been followed, the results have been uniformly beneficial. Prenatal culture is as scientific as any process in chemistry or physics. It is based on the Law of Cause and Effect, just as are these two sciences. If you are able, give it a try. You will not be disappointed. After all, what have you to lose?