[The sleep-wake rhythm of the fetus]

Abstract

Our work refers to a body of studies carried out by Sonargram observation, which allowed us to study fetal movements in real time. These fetuses were studied not only as parameters of correct neurobiological maturity but also from the psychological interest which looks for the beginning of thinking based on the question: When and how does the thought process begin in biological matter? The study comparing the movement of fetuses and new-born babies to psychoanalytical research (which have been described in other works) led us to formulate the following hypothesis: motor and sense experiences can only become "mental" after separation from the mother; it can only come about by birth which effectively forces a confrontation on biological grounds: it prepares the thinking process without yet having it. There is a debate between these positions and psychoanalytical schools of thought in which thinking could precede the birth of the human fetus; there might be a stage of sleep (REM) that corresponds to adult dreaming.