Are C-Section Moms Less Responsive to Baby?
In an article by Denise Mann from WebMD Health News titled ‘C-Sections Affects Moms’ Response to Baby’ I was happy to hear that having a c-section doesn’t mean you should feel like less of a mother but it did indicate something interesting and that is that moms who deliver naturally may be more responsive to their newborn’s cries than moms who have had a c-section.
This was derived from a study published in the October issue of the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry that used a brain scan called a Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) on new moms following delivery to determine how delivery affected their response to their newborn’s cries
Their research indicated that having a vaginal birth stimulates the release of ‘Oxytocin’ which is called the ‘love hormone’, hmmm, never heard it called that before, but it seems that Oxytocin contributes to mother-child bonding, it also suggests that the lack of Oxytocin may contribute to postpartum depression however none of the women in the study developed postpartum depression.
Now you may be thinking that this alone is a big negative for having a c-section but in fact there’s more to the story. Oxytocin can sometimes take time to build up after having a c-section; also breastfeeding is known to stimulate the release of Oxytocin.
So does this make you a better mother just because you can respond better to your baby’s cries? I think not. There’s a lot more to being a good mom than that, but the plus here is that new studies and findings may help determine if a mom may be predisposed to postpartum depression or develop screening tests for both parents to see if they have brain areas that are less responsive to baby stimuli.
Anyone have any experience with this?
