There is growing evidence that various traumas during pregnancy may well be the root cause of most maladies . If this is so, then isn’t it possible to hypothesize that — even though it sits outside of our ability to remember consciously — many of us (maybe all of us) have had a deep sense of foreboding from the very beginning?

Read more in our first article by IN UTERO Director, Kathleen Gyllenhaal, and Producer, Stephen Gyllenhaal, on Thrive Global.

The timing for Thrive Global could not be more propitious. How many of us have been sleeping badly since the election? How many of us are struggling with living in a culture suddenly demonizing minorities en masse, mocking climate change and diminishing the risk of nuclear weapons?

And these are just three of the more significant, big lies — amplified by pundits, politicians, social media and the soon-to-be White House. Down through history, big lies have ushered in untold horrors to Jews, Armenians, Native Americans, Rwandans, etcetera; decimating ideas, cultures, hope, science, religion, freedom, and whole nations.

Is history repeating itself?

Just the thought is stressful, let alone the likely consequences of these current lies. Add the ramifications of this election to all the other stressors we face today, and you have a prescription for what Thrive Global offers.

But as each of us takes advantage of the products and programs on this site, it also seems important to ask how is it that each of us (perhaps all of us) have gotten to such a stressful place? Why do so many of us feel so traumatized and fearful that we work too hard, need meds, eat too much (or too little), avoid relationships, go sleepless, and so on.

Part of it is, of course, 21st Century life — witness this election. But is contemporary life the only problem? Or does the core problem lie deeper within us?

While interviewing scientists across the globe about pregnancy and trauma — for our documentary, IN UTERO— we began to uncover the degree to which many of us (maybe all of us) have experienced serious stress before we were even born. Over the past few decades, it has become clear that we have all been both nurtured and stressed by our time in the womb.

When nurtured, the process of developing in utero goes well, but when chronically stressed, there can be a multitude of problems which effloresce as we are born and grow up.

There is growing evidence that various traumas during pregnancy may well be the root cause of most maladies — schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, cancer, ADHD, heart attacks, and so on. If this is so, then isn’t it possible to hypothesize that — even though it sits outside of our ability to remember consciously — many of us (maybe all of us) have had a deep sense of foreboding from the very beginning?

Do many of us (perhaps all of us) suffer from some degree of PTSD that stems from our experiences in utero, even as we have also experienced the amazing process of coming into existence within the womb?

When a person with PTSD experiences certain stresses in his/her daily life, it can trigger the original stress. Similarly, fears in adulthood may well trigger those unremembered stressors in utero — a time when we were so tiny, defenseless and profoundly vulnerable.

These traumas are not easily addressed, although there are therapies emerging across the globe that employ this new knowledge to improve pregnancies (nipping the problem in the bud, so to speak), as well as therapies for children, adolescents and adults with psychological and physiological illnesses traceable to in utero trauma.

These are cutting edge discoveries with cutting edge implications, and they well could explain why we all live with more stress than ever before. They also show us how we may at last begin to turn the tide. Over the coming months, we will try to bring all of this to light, in tandem with our documentary, IN UTERO, now available on most major platforms.

We are excited and proud to be a part of the Thrive Global family at its inception. At this crucial juncture in the history of our species, there is nothing more important than the well-being of each of us (and all of us).

As discoveries in all areas of health and illness emerge, it becomes clear that we have the opportunity to lead ourselves away from the fear and stress of simply surviving, replacing it with the creative dynamics of genuine thriving — delivering health, happiness, hope and a future that is beyond anything we can imagine now.