Newborn babies are helpless. They depend on you and all the other carers in their life 100 per cent for their survival. So what they are ready to understand is what is going to make them safe. They understand soft voices, they understand the smell of mother’s milk.
They are completely geared for faces, they want to see your face. So that’s what baby needs most, lots of looking at your baby, holding your baby close so baby can smell you. Lots of calm, rhythmic talk or singing, warm atmosphere – that’s what baby needs.
Babies can tell the difference between different people but they don’t do it visually like we think. They do it by the sound, by the voice.
A lot of mums, and dads, early on get worried when their baby cries. But you’ve got to remember that baby only has one way of letting you know that something needs attention and that’s crying. They can gesticulate and move around but you might not see that – you’ll certainly hear them cry. Parents are geared up to hear their baby cry.
Sometimes a door will slam or there will be a loud noise and your baby will start to cry or jump or startle. And I know that’s very worrying to some mums, but actually it’s a good sign your baby is hearing well and your baby is reacting to a big change in the environment. Remember, your baby needs safety and a big change means ‘oh-oh, I better be on alert’. So don’t worry, but soothe your baby.
- 26 views
