YOUR CHILD’S HEALTH CARE: PSYCHOLOGICAL GROWTH
May 21st, 2009It used to be thought that a baby was incapable of very much interaction with the environment, and that he simply lay there sleeping and feeding until he began to develop more sophisticated capacities from about 6 weeks of age. It was also thought that young babies could not feel pain. Research over recent decades has shown that these theories are simply not correct. From the moment of birth, a baby has a rich and ever-expanding repertoire of physical and social responses to the environment. Far from lying there passively, each baby is capable of initiating and modulating interactions with care-givers. All parents will be aware of their baby being able to make and sustain eye contact, being alert to sounds, and responsive to feeding. He has a rich range of communication skills.
You need to take time to learn how your baby communicates. There is great variation in how babies react to the environment. Some like lots of stimulation — to be held, rocked, talked to — while others are easily overwhelmed and need ’space’ and time to themselves, so that they can self-regulate and readjust after a period of stimulation. Some babies will avert the gaze or become irritable with too much stimulation, and parents can read this as a signal that the baby wants to be left alone for a while (see Colic, p. 93).
You need to be very patient in the first few months as you learn how to ‘connect’ with your baby. Let him dictate the pace.
As the baby grows older, there is a rapid progression in all aspects of development. His capacity for social interaction becomes more sophisticated. There is increased eye contact, smiling, following, and the baby is more alert. He begins to vocalise and engage in reciprocal ‘talking’ with care-givers. Then follow more babbling and eventually, speech. As the baby learns to reach for toys, then pull himself along on the floor, then sit, crawl and walk, he is increasingly able to explore his environment. This is an important part of learning.
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