It’s You and Me Baby

It didn’t take me too long (maybe a few days) to figure out that my first son did not like to sleep.  He’d fall asleep in my arms.  I’d hold him for a few minutes.  I’d put him down in his crib or bassinet.  Five minutes later he’d be up.  Sound familiar?  I hear the same scenario from alot of moms.  I was so happy when my lactation consultant sold me my first baby sling carrier.  My son would sleep in it for hours.  It freed up my hands to do things like eat! It allowed me to hold him and be close to him.  And he got the sleep he needed.  I learned to accept that he didn’t like to sleep and this is how we often worked around it.  Babywearing was a great answer for my son’s sleep struggles.

There was a recent warning that young infants should not be carried in a fetal position in a baby sling (referred to in reports from the consumer products safety commission as the curved or “C” position).  If the baby’s chin is tucked into his chest it can make it difficult for him to maintain an open airway.  So safe ways to carry a young infant in a sling are pictured here.  Baby worn chest to chest, head up but resting on mom or dad’s chest is a safe position.  It is achievable in many different carriers.  For example, the carriers pictured here from left to right are the following:  Kangaroo Korner Adjstable Pouch, Action Baby Carrier (a buckle carrier), Mei Tai, Sleepy Wrap, and the Baby K’tan (light blue)  This position is an excellent position for many reasons.  Not only is it safe but also it allows for skin-to-skin contact  which is a powerful stimulant for regulation of temperature stability and breathing regulation.  Babies know their parents’ scents which helps them feel secure and bonded.  Parents are better in tune with their baby’s needs so they respond to baby more quickly.  This helps baby feel secure and loved–again helping with bonding.  So fortunately one of the safest positions for babywearing  provides many benefits.

A mother’s touch can improve cognitive function and provides resilience to stress.  For an infant, a mother’s touch provides a feeling of security, comfort and love.  In fact, research at UC Irvine is showing that it does much more. Caressing and other sensory input triggers activity in a baby’s developing brain that improves cognitive function and builds resilience to stress. “What’s noteworthy about this study is that it reveals that brain structure is influenced by the environment early in life, and especially by maternal care,” says researchers.  When you think about it that’s pretty powerful.  Infant massage is a great way to increase your touch time with your baby as well as babywearing–the practice of holding or wearing your baby in a fabric baby sling carrier. 

 Holding or wearing your baby in an upright position, chest to chest, in a fabric

baby carrier is a great way to help with stomach reflux.  Babies who suffer from reflux are often quite symptomatic as young babies because they are often in a recumbent position or are flat on their backs.  Carrying or wearing your baby in a fabric baby sling or wrap in an upright chest to chest position (which is the safest position for young infants) allows gravity to help keep babies’ food in his stomach.  This reduces acid reflux and acid injury to the esophagus.  One more great reason to wear your baby.

Well, when it comes to bonding with your child especially your baby touch is an extremely important form of communicating your love to your child.  Holding is touching and this helps your child feel safe and secure.   One way to maximize your time available for holding is to wear your child in a baby sling carrier or baby wrap.  Something that keeps your baby or child up against your body, feeling your warmth, the rhythm of your breathing, and your heart beat.  It’s a wonderful way of communicating your love as the bond between you and baby grows.

The benefits of babywearing and the use of baby slings for nurturing your baby have become increasing well-known.  However, slings can pose two different types of suffocation hazards to babies. In the first few months of life, babies cannot control their heads because of weak neck muscles and their heads are proportionally bigger.  This is even more of a problem for babies who are premature or have been born with a low birth weight.  If worn incorrectly the sling’s fabric can press against an infant’s nose and mouth, blocking the baby’s breathing and rapidly suffocating a baby within a minute or two.  Additionally, when a sling keeps the infant in a curled or fetal position bending the chin toward the chest, the airways can be restricted, limiting the oxygen supply. The baby may not be able to cry for help and can slowly suffocate.  The youngest and smallest babies are at greatest risk.

There are ways to avoid harm.  Putting young infants in a vertical position with their heads up high on mom’s or dad’s chest, they are positioned chest to chest and their heads are turned to the side so that their noses and mouths are clear of any obstruction is one way to keep them safe.  The makers of baby sling carriers have many safety tips and instructions on their websites.  So even if you buy a sling second-hand go to the manufacturers websites and review their safety information and instructions.  

By carrying your child in a baby carrying sling or wrap you can enjoy the following benefits: 

 

Did you know there is actually a therapy for colic?  Something you can do for your baby that has been tested?

  A study was published in the medical journal Pediatrics back in 1991.  The title of the article is “Carrying as colic ‘therapy’: a randomized controlled trial.”  The study concluded that “In healthy infants, crying behavior is reduced significantly by ’supplemental’ carrying; that is, increased carrying throughout the day in addition to that which occurs during feeding and in response to crying.” Parents can feel overwhelmed by a colicky baby.  This is where a baby carrying sling can be extremely helpful.  When a baby is colicky and crying more than average extra carrying can help. Parents in this situation would probably want to do anything to help.  Increase the amount of time you carry your baby by wearing your baby in a baby sling, wrap or pouch.  By reducing your baby’s crying and making carrying easier on your body baby slings do a lot to solve this age old problem.