Researcher Ludwig Janus takes us on a journey through the many ways in which our prenatal and birth experiences may continue to affect our lives. He shows how our two dramatically different experiences of life, one in the womb and one in the world, radically influence our sense of who we are. Dr Janus demonstrates the meaning of many folk stories from different cultures that tell of the effect of the mother's emotional experience on her unborn child, and gives a new understanding to the idea that humans have always possessed the concept of the present world and of a world beyond. With numerous examples, Dr Janus illustrates the lifelong effects of premature and difficult birth experiences and their relationship to psychological problems such as phobias and depression. This book shows how prenatal psychology offers us a new way to understand ourselves, our culture and our relationship to the world.