[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>>Josh, please remind dear Susan about he expected life span of such women?
I was wondering what the expected life span is supposed to be. To the extent
of my knowledge, they easily live into their 70s.
>
>Labor is called labor because it's HARD work.
How true!
I agree that women don't
>need to stay in bed for 10 days after delivery anymore, like my mother did,
>but it's still an entirely draining experience.
I guess you don't need to stay in bed for more than a couple of days, but it
is such a draining experience that you need to be able to rest in bed many
times a day for a couple of months.
>
>I like to think about matriarchal societies and how they work(ed). My
>knowlege is limited, but from what I know, the women live(d) in a large
>community with the children, and the men visit when they aren't out
>hunting. Women are/were the gatherers and men are/were the hunters,
>bringing substantial parts of the kill home to the women and children. The
>idea of having a baby in that setting sounds a little like what Ritu is
>talking about in India -- lots and lots of help with the baby for about six
>weeks. I don't know what current maternal/child bonding studies would say
>about that system, but from a strictly recovering point of view it sounds
>wonderful.
>
Oh, it is similar in other ways too. I loved the fact that I could rest all
I wanted to, but that also meant that John and I didn't share a bedroom till
those 6 weeks were up. I used to sleep in our room with the baby and three
adult women - John was relegated to guest room.
I guess this sounds very strange to most of you, but I was used to the idea.
As for John, well he was just glad that he didn't have to wait 100 days
before getting his bedroom back!
:o)
About the maternal/child bonding studies and their take on this system, I
have no idea. Still, I somehow doubt that the mother-child bonding suffers
just because somebody else diapers and bathes the baby for the first 6
weeks. After all, that means that the mother has enough energy to actually
enjoy the baby for longer periods of time - you tend to get more cuddling
and cooing time if you don't crash to sleep the moment your head touches the
pillow.:o)
Ritu
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