Nothing is more upsetting to parents than a crying baby. After only a few hours after his birthing experience your baby is set to go home with you. This in and of itself is a daunting adventure! Just think about what has just happened in those first few hours of your newborn's life not to mention what you as parents have just gone through. And now you are all getting into a car and going home together. YIKES!!!
For the first few days the baby will undoubtedly sleep, eat, cry and need to be changed. This will take up most of your time and that of your significant other. It is just amazing how a little package can change the pulse of a household.
One of the things that a baby does to communicate with you is cry. It is your job to figure out his cry and what it means. Is he hungry, wet, gassy or is something else bothering him. And then it is your job to try and soothe your baby...many times easier said than done!!!
Harvey Karp, MD and pediatrician writes that "one out of every five babies has repeated bouts of terrible fussiness ---for no apparent reason." The question is will your baby be one of these "fussy" little ones? One thing is for sure that for as many well meaning friends and relatives you have that will be the number of well meaning solutions you will get for dealing with this fussiness. Many parents turn to their pediatrician for advice. Most parents will be sent home from their pediatrician with no more answers than they came into the doctors office with. This is disconcerting...for many the next stop is the baby book advice aisle at the nearest bookstore or their computer. There is a wealth of information in books and on the internet but where does a parent with a "fussy" baby begin.
I particularly like Dr. Harvey Karp's suggestions and recommendations which he bases on his research about how our ancient ancestors intuitively understood how to calm a crying baby when all else fails.
He uses five different characteristics of the in utero environment called the "5 S's" They have to be performed exactly right for them to be effective if not they will not succeed in calming the fussy baby.
He refers to the "calming reflex" and the "Cuddle Cure" This calming reflex is elicited by layering the "5 S's" on top of one another.
Dr. Karp also refers to the "fourth trimester" of pregnancy which is the newborn period. Newborns are neurologically immature when they are born. He says that by mimicking the conditions that they experienced in the uterus it is possible to elicit "the calming reflex" and thus help babies to stop crying and settle down which is the first step towards assisting them in learning the ability to self soothe. This calming reflex is believed to be a neurological response triggered by the "5 S's".
I will be discussing more about the "5 S's" in later blogs. So stay tuned!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Sleep Habits
In the next few weeks I will be posting information to help new mothers with newborns. I will provide suggestions that will help soothe a crying newborn, and assist in establishing a consistent routine for baby.
Consistent and routine will be words that will be used repeatedly when dealing with your infant. They thrive on routine. You will be encouraged to establish a routine and stick to one because the results will be a happier baby and then a happier you.
From time to time when I come upon websites that could be of interest to you as parents or grandparents, I will post them for you to check out and decide whether they could be helpful to you.
In the meantime. Enjoy those babies!
Consistent and routine will be words that will be used repeatedly when dealing with your infant. They thrive on routine. You will be encouraged to establish a routine and stick to one because the results will be a happier baby and then a happier you.
From time to time when I come upon websites that could be of interest to you as parents or grandparents, I will post them for you to check out and decide whether they could be helpful to you.
In the meantime. Enjoy those babies!
Friday, March 19, 2010
Graco Recalls Harmony(tm) High Chairs Due to Fall Hazard
Graco Recalls Harmony(tm) High Chairs Due to Fall Hazard
Check out the details of this warning if you own a Graco high chair.
Check out the details of this warning if you own a Graco high chair.
Parents: Use Extra Caution When Wearing Baby Slings
Parents: Use Extra Caution When Wearing Baby Slings
This is a very important warning to parents and anyone who uses a Baby Sling. Please READ it!!!
Friday, March 12, 2010
Daylight Savings and Baby's Sleep Schedule
Well, it is that time of the year again after a long winter that we get to lose an hour of sleep this Saturday night March 14th as we turn the clocks ahead one hour.
How will this affect your little one? Well if s/he sleeps normally until 7:00 a.m. then you may hear him at around 8:00 a.m.
That may be an okay hour on Sunday but if you want to go back to 7:00 a.m. on a regular basis then you will have to make a one hour adjustment and wake your child at 6:00 a.m. daylight savings time on Sunday morning. During the day on Sunday try to keep the same nap schedule as usual and put your baby to bed at the regular time. This should allow him to make the time adjustment and be somewhat back on schedule on Monday morning.
It will be lighter now longer and so this may cause a little bit of havoc if the babies room has more light coming in earlier or later in the day. Room darkening shades maybe a worthwhile investment.
Have a great weekend!
How will this affect your little one? Well if s/he sleeps normally until 7:00 a.m. then you may hear him at around 8:00 a.m.
That may be an okay hour on Sunday but if you want to go back to 7:00 a.m. on a regular basis then you will have to make a one hour adjustment and wake your child at 6:00 a.m. daylight savings time on Sunday morning. During the day on Sunday try to keep the same nap schedule as usual and put your baby to bed at the regular time. This should allow him to make the time adjustment and be somewhat back on schedule on Monday morning.
It will be lighter now longer and so this may cause a little bit of havoc if the babies room has more light coming in earlier or later in the day. Room darkening shades maybe a worthwhile investment.
Have a great weekend!
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Newborns and Sleep
Babies who are 0 -2 1/2 months old do not differentiate between night and day very well as they do not have enough melatonin in their systems. Infants at this age require frequent feedings since there stomachs are very small and they cannot eat enough to allow them not to get hungry after 3 - 4 hours. The simple fact is that developmentally they are not ready to sleep more than 3 - 4 hours at a time.
Therefore sleep "coaching" or "training" cannot be accomplished until around 3 - 4 months of age when an infant is capable of sleeping through the night. Now there is one other reason a baby may not be sleeping through the night at this age and that is if he is breastfeeding. Why is that? Well, breast milk is actually digested more rapidly than formula so the breastfed baby gets hungry more frequently than the formula fed infant. This is important to keep in mind when trying to coach your infant to sleep through the night. Just because he now is developmentally capable of doing so, if he is hungry he will awaken and need a feeding. I will discuss this night feeding in a later blog.
So sometime during this developmental stage parents can expect that their baby will sleep for longer periods of time and hopefully that will be at night!
Coming next .... how to establish a consistent sleep pattern for your baby!
Therefore sleep "coaching" or "training" cannot be accomplished until around 3 - 4 months of age when an infant is capable of sleeping through the night. Now there is one other reason a baby may not be sleeping through the night at this age and that is if he is breastfeeding. Why is that? Well, breast milk is actually digested more rapidly than formula so the breastfed baby gets hungry more frequently than the formula fed infant. This is important to keep in mind when trying to coach your infant to sleep through the night. Just because he now is developmentally capable of doing so, if he is hungry he will awaken and need a feeding. I will discuss this night feeding in a later blog.
So sometime during this developmental stage parents can expect that their baby will sleep for longer periods of time and hopefully that will be at night!
Coming next .... how to establish a consistent sleep pattern for your baby!
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Helping your Baby to Sleep!
As any new mother knows their newborn sleeps many hours during a 24 hour period. Their wakeful time is somewhat limited to feeding, bathing, changing, being held or in an infant swing or bassinet.
The mom's daytime hours are filled with trying to balance the baby's feeding schedule which is usually a demand feeding schedule...simply meaning that when the baby is hungry and crying he gets fed, with trying to take care of herself, other siblings and all the things that go along with being a mom. This can be an exhausting time particularly when at night the cutest infant can become almost nightmarish.
Night time is a special time for babies and parents and can actually be wonderful if the parents do not have high expectations of having their baby sleep through the night too early on. As the evening approaches the infant may sometimes have a long period of crying...this can also occur during the daytime as well. Many times this happens because infants have no other way to release tension except by crying. When an infant has had enough stimulation from the mother, father, grandparents, siblings or just his surroundings he will divert his eyes and look away signaling that he is done with interacting, he might quietly fall asleep or start howling. This can sometimes be referred to as a colicky baby if this crying lasts for an extended period of time particularly at night.
The term "colic"can be somewhat confusing because it is associated with several mixed definitions. It can be associated with a baby who is experiencing gas, who may actually need a change of formula or perhaps a baby who is experiencing reflux after a feeding and needs a sleeping wedge in his bassinet or crib to keep the reflux under control. These are questions for his pediatrician to answer and offer advice.
During the first few weeks after birth the newborn and parents are getting to know each other. The mom and dad and other caregivers are getting to know the different newborn signals that let you know when he is tired and needs to be put down to rest and hopefully sleep. This is an exceptionally important time to become "tuned" in to him and how he "talks" to you and expresses his needs.
Enjoying this time as a "getting to know you phase is so important. It will help parents learn to look forward to the hours that they spend with their child tending to his many needs as he grows and develops before their eyes.
This is not the time for "sleep training". It is too early for baby! But it is a good time to learn his signals so that sleep habits will be easier to establish when he is ready.
The mom's daytime hours are filled with trying to balance the baby's feeding schedule which is usually a demand feeding schedule...simply meaning that when the baby is hungry and crying he gets fed, with trying to take care of herself, other siblings and all the things that go along with being a mom. This can be an exhausting time particularly when at night the cutest infant can become almost nightmarish.
Night time is a special time for babies and parents and can actually be wonderful if the parents do not have high expectations of having their baby sleep through the night too early on. As the evening approaches the infant may sometimes have a long period of crying...this can also occur during the daytime as well. Many times this happens because infants have no other way to release tension except by crying. When an infant has had enough stimulation from the mother, father, grandparents, siblings or just his surroundings he will divert his eyes and look away signaling that he is done with interacting, he might quietly fall asleep or start howling. This can sometimes be referred to as a colicky baby if this crying lasts for an extended period of time particularly at night.
The term "colic"can be somewhat confusing because it is associated with several mixed definitions. It can be associated with a baby who is experiencing gas, who may actually need a change of formula or perhaps a baby who is experiencing reflux after a feeding and needs a sleeping wedge in his bassinet or crib to keep the reflux under control. These are questions for his pediatrician to answer and offer advice.
During the first few weeks after birth the newborn and parents are getting to know each other. The mom and dad and other caregivers are getting to know the different newborn signals that let you know when he is tired and needs to be put down to rest and hopefully sleep. This is an exceptionally important time to become "tuned" in to him and how he "talks" to you and expresses his needs.
Enjoying this time as a "getting to know you phase is so important. It will help parents learn to look forward to the hours that they spend with their child tending to his many needs as he grows and develops before their eyes.
This is not the time for "sleep training". It is too early for baby! But it is a good time to learn his signals so that sleep habits will be easier to establish when he is ready.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Welcome to Sleepy Baby Sleepy Mom
Sleepy Baby will discuss various sleep help tips for infants and children that parents can use to promote healthy sleep habits for their babies. There are many methods available to parents. At Sleepy Baby parents will get information that hopefully will help them decide on the method that works for their particular family and their baby!
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