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Sometimes babies cry simply because they miss the close contact with their mothers that they enjoyed for nine months. A recent U.S. study has shown that babies who were carried in the arms or in a baby carrier for at least three hours every day cried much less than those who were carried less. Carrying gives the baby a sense of physical closeness with the mother (a carry over from the days in the womb) and it may help the mother to tune in better to her baby’s needs.
Respond promptly
Crying is the only way a baby can communicate with the world around her. When you respond immediately to your baby’s cry, you give her a sense of control over her surroundings and a feeling that she is important to you. There will be occasions when you feel that your prompt response has not made any difference. Your baby will continue crying no matter what you do.
Remember that not responding to your baby is not an option as you run the risk of her feeling powerless and worthless over time. Prompt response will eventually reduce crying. Some studies have shown that babies, whose mothers responded to them promptly in infancy, cried less as toddlers. The longer a baby cries, the longer it takes to stop her crying. This is because if the baby’s cries are ignored, she will work herself up into a rage and probably forget what she was crying about in the first place. |
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