There are clearly different forms and degrees of contact with unborn children. Experiences can differ considerably from one another in terms of atmosphere, depth and effect. Short daily chats can be very valuable moments. More extensive contact comes mostly when we make time for it and open up the non-rational, intuitive part of our spirit to an encounter.(...)
You can seek contact by dreaming about your child, by trying to visualise him or her. Sometimes people see the baby there in front of them, or they experience him talking to them, or they just feel that he is with them. Using the power of your imagination, you can gain access to another one of your qualities, your intuition, and often we know far more intuitively than we think.

There are different ways of activating our intuition: relaxing our body, seeking out the calm of nature, dancing, meditating, writing, painting, you name it. What many take to is visualising, or conjuring up images. In fact it is a purposeful, consciously managed form of daydreaming, a guided flight of the imagination. In a visualisation your intuitive abilities are drawn on, you open yourself up to images or other ??messages'. In a visualisation you can try to pick up the energy of your baby, you can ask it to show itself, or to let you know something. With Karen this went as follows.

Karen has an appointment for an extra scan. The midwife happens to think the baby is a touch on the small side and would like a sonographer to have a look at it. Karen is not keen on scans. She feels that these sound waves are a considerable violation of the protected position of an unborn child, but owing to the midwife's doubts she has become rather uncertain. She turns inward, tunes herself in to the baby and begins to talk to her: ??Hi little one. As you know the midwife is having her doubts about your growth. I'm not, not really. But is that burying my head in the sand or reliable female intuition? I don't have to do anything... Are you saying something, sweetheart...?' Then Karen sees the baby's little face in front of her, and she sees her smile reassuringly... Karen says: ??It looks like you want to say "everything's fine with me", yet I don't dare to trust that completely... and actually I wouldn't mind some proof that you're doing fine... So we'll go for a scan... Don't get scared by those sound waves... I'll be with you... I'll protect you as we're lying there... OK... this feels good.'
Thus Karen prepares herself and her child for what is to come. The contact she feels clarifies things and is reassuring for her. Reasonably relaxed, they leave for the obstetric centre. The scan confirms Karen's hunch and the baby's message: it has grown sufficiently and is doing great.

SPONTANEOUS CONTACT

Contact with your unborn child can also take you by surprise, as my own story shows. The vision that I got during the conception of our ??little one' caught me completely unawares. I am not clairvoyant, but this seemed a lot like it!

Nine months before this I'd had an ectopic pregnancy. As a result of this I was eligible - if I still wanted to get pregnant - for IVF (in vitro fertilization). A spontaneous pregnancy was, given the condition of my Fallopian tubes, highly unlikely. We weighed up the pros and cons and decided we didn't want to engage in any tricks to finally get pregnant. That evening we made love. It was really enjoyable and harmonious. There promptly appeared in my mind's eye a baby with a beautiful round face, it kind of floated in the corner of the bedroom. ??Oh my,' I sighed to myself, ??I thought I had let it go... We make love and I instantly start fantasising about having a child again. Obviously I'm by no means finished with the idea.' Indeed, but neither did I have to be... I was late with my period, took a test and turned out to be pregnant!

IMAGINATION OR REALITY?

How on earth do we know whether we are truly encountering the essence of our child or just a product of our imagination? Well, who can say...? Ultimately I think this question is immaterial. We open our heart if we are seeking contact with our unborn children. That is what's important!

From: An encounter with your unborn child; a visualisation
(...) The child is already with you... your developing child... If you like, you can invite it now to an encounter... Get yourself quietly prepared for this... Permit the desire that your child become visible on the connection between you both... and trust in what you see or feel... It could be that you sense a baby... but it could also be an image of a toddler or even a grown-up that you get... It could well be that you don't perceive any clear image, but nevertheless do experience the presence of your child... Try to allow what is happening now that you are opening yourself up to an encounter with the essence of your unborn child... Greet your baby, make contact... Maybe a name will surface that you would like to call him or her... a pet name that you use during the pregnancy... or a ??real' name... Who knows, a name may surface spontaneously...
If there is something you want to say to your child, go for it... If you have questions about your child, now is the time to put them to him... or to her (...)

This article is an extract from Pregnant with Heart and Soul by Riet van Rooij. This inspiring book for mothers and fathers-to-be also includes practical exercises and visualisations on CD. Available now in bookstores.