“BONDING”

INTRODUCTION
• A maternal bond is the relationship between
a mother and her child. While typically associated
with pregnancy and childbirth, a maternal bond
may also develop in cases where the child is
unrelated, such as an adoption.
• Both physical and emotional factors influence the
mother-child bonding process. In separation
anxiety disorder a child becomes fearful and
nervous when away from a loved one, usually a
parent or other caregiver.
 DEFINITION
• The establishment of a relationship or link
with someone based on shared feelings,
interests, experience between mother and child
• The formation of close relationship between
mother and child especially through
frequentbor constant association
• Maternal infant bonding is the development of
the reciprocal relationship between mother and
child.
 PREGNANCY
• maternal bond between a woman and her
biological child usually begins to develop
during pregnancy. The pregnant female adapts
her lifestyle to suit the needs of the
developing infant. At around 18 to 25 weeks, the
mother begins to feel the fetus moving.
• Similar to seeing her child for the first time in
an ultrasound scan, this experience typically leads
the mother to feel more attached to her child.
• The developing fetus has some awareness of the
mother's heartbeat and voice and has the ability to
respond to touch or movement.
• By the seventh month of pregnancy, two-thirds of
women report a strong maternal bond with their
unborn child.[2]
• Mothers who did not want the pregnancy typically
do not have a close relationship with the
child.[3] They are more likely to suffer from post-
partum depression or other mental health
problems and less likely to breast feed.[3]
 CHILD BIRTH
• Childbirth is an experience that can strengthen the
mother and child bond. Factors such as a
traumatic birth, the mother's childhood, medical
stress, lack of support and the influence of a
spouse or partner can weaken the bond.
• Emotional bonding theory first appeared in the
mid-1970s,[4] and by the 1980s had become an
accepted phenomenon. Soon, the process became
analyzed and scrutinized to the point of creating
another term – poor bonding
 OXYTOCIN
• Production of oxytocin during childbirth
and lactation increases parasympathetic
activity. Thus, anxiety is theoretically reduced.
Maternal oxytocin circulation is said to
predispose women to bond and show bonding
behavior, although this has been disputed.
• Breastfeeding is also strongly believed to
foster the bond, via touch, response and mutual
gazing.
 IMPORTANCE OF BONDING
• A secure attachment bond ensures that the baby
will feel secure, understood, and calm enough to
experience optimal development of his or her
nervous system.This can inhibit emotional,
mental and even physical development, leading to
difficulti in learning and forming relationship in
later life
• Infancy is crucial time for brain development, a
good initial bond, helps to children grow up to
become happy and independent
• Close proximity causes mother to release
endorphins (contentment)
• Emotional- mental synchronization
• Skin to skin contact and breast feeding trigger
release of oxytocin, leading mother to practice
“mothering and bonding
 IMPLICATION OF BONDING
• The development of maternal infant bonding has
tremendous implication
• It is widely accepted that the development of the
first tie between child and mother serve as a
prototype for all future relationship
• In addition, attachement theory suggest that many
form of emotional distress and personality
disturbance in adulthood (such as aggression,
depression and emotional detachment) can all be
explained by the disruption of the bonding
• Klaus and kennell, think thatbprevailing
hospital policies of separating preterm, sick
and even full term healthy infants from their
mothers may affect the maternal-infant
bonding process
 DEVELOPMENTAL SEQUENCE
IN BONDING
• Maternal –infant bonding is the result of a
developmental sequence which occurs in both the
child and mother
• For the child development of a focused
relationship with an adult is a long and continous
process with major milestones in infancy
• In the first step:- the infant develops a sense of
individualisation in response to his own hunger
pains, his sensation of cold and warmth and
visual perception
• In the second step:- the infants develop social
responsiveness so he can descriminate people
from inanimate objects
• In the third step:- the child emits social
response-smiling cooing which then elicit
social response in adult
• In this context the child become familiar with
specific people
• In the fourth step:- the child develop
expectation of a familiar caretaking figure
• With the continuity of eliciting response from
a familiar person the child learns to develop a
sense of trust which is basic to close
interpersonal relationship (6-9 months)
 FACTORS AFFECTING
DEVELOPMENTAL SEQUENCE
• The developmental sequence of bonding is greatly
affected by the child state and the mothers
wellbeing
 how mother will handle to the baby and respond
to her infant , some individual have difficulti in
functioning as parents such as those who r
suffering from schizophrenia, depression and
those who are in sensitive and egocentric may
encounter problem in developing relationship
with their child
Individual who are stressed and anxious because
of problem with finance, poor housing,
malnutrition or unemployment are also likely to
be greatly hindered in their mothering
 clinical experience has also showen us that
deprived mothers are more liable to have deprived
children because the basic skill of parenting,
loving and caring are learned early in childhood
as part of the early reciprocal mother child
relationship.
Adult who have been deprived of love in
childhood find it difficult to love and parent
their own children
Some suggest that deficits in parenting are as a
result of ignorance about children and their
needs
IDENTIFICATION OF BOND RISK
• Understanding the mother infant attachment
process and the variable in both the child and
the mother which influence it. The risk can be
identified at different stage of contact
1) In the family doctors office before
pregnancy:-
THANK YOU
 WARM CHAIN
• A warm chain is a system of keeping a
baby warm immediately after delivery,
wherever it occurs (at a health facility or the
mother's home), during transportation and
while feeding and caring for the baby
• 7.4.4 The warm chain principle in postnatal care
• The mother should understand that keeping the baby warm is not a one-time job; it
is rather a continuous job which means adhering to the warm chain principle.
A warm chain is a system of keeping a baby warm immediately after delivery,
wherever it occurs (at a health facility or the mother’s home), during transportation
and while feeding and caring for the baby. The components of the warm chain are
listed in Box 7.2.
• Box 7.2 Components of the warm chain
• Drying and wrapping the baby immediately at birth.
• Keeping the baby warm during any procedure, including resuscitation.
• Keeping the immediate newborn in skin-to-skin contact with the mother.
• Early initiation of breastfeeding within one hour of the birth; the warm milk and
contact with the mother's body helps to keep the newborn baby warm.
• Postponing bathing the newborn for the first 24 hours.
• Keeping the baby warm during transportation.
• Dressing the baby in appropriate clothing and bedding at all times
• How do newborns lose heat?
• The mechanisms of how the newborn loses
heat are summarised in Figure 7.5, and
described below.
• Figure 7.5 Mechanisms of heat loss from a
newborn baby’s skin