BabyGym with Chantal

Emotional milestones... in conclusion

In terms of the kind of stimulation you should give your baby to help them learn these precious emotional milestones, Dr Melodie de Jager advises you “Put the phone down! Connect with your baby. Make eye contact. Talk to your baby. Demonstrate the loving behaviour you would like to see them exhibit.”

You should also keep in mind that it is possible to “over-do” it and over-stimulate a baby. You can tell this is happening if your baby exhibits what Dr de Jager calls “avoidance behaviour”, which is turning away, crying with their fingers splayed (to show STOP), as well as hyperactivity and poor sleeping. When this happens, give your baby some peace and quiet, perhaps in a darkened room, to help them to calm down.

Emotional Milestones continued...

5. When can you expect babys' first kiss?
The first kiss that your baby gives you will depend a lot on you, says Dr Melodie de Jager – as their primary role model, if you kiss your baby often, and they enjoy the experience, they are likely to start emulating your kisses from around five months. However it will only be by around 16 to 18 months that they will start giving you kisses spontaneously.

Emotional milestones continued...

4. When can you expect baby's first hug?
Hugs are another soft, warm gift you can look forward to. Dr Melodie de Jager says you will start to receive these from the moment your child starts reaching their arms out for mom and dad to pick them up. Opening their arms to be lifted naturally transitions into opening their arms for a hug. Says Dr de Jager, “An intentional love-hug requires social awareness and motor control, and will generally happen at around 10 – 12 months.”

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Emotional Milestones continued...

3. If a baby is not smiling, does that mean that she is sad?

"If a baby is tube fed or cup fed, and the facial muscles haven’t had opportunity to develop, a baby may seem sad because they are not smiling,” says Dr Melodie de Jager. "“And if a baby is suffering from sensory overload, or is under-stimulated, their face may also appear to lack expression.”

By about four to five months, your baby’s smiles should progress into a delightful baby laugh.

THE VESTIBULAR SYSTEM - MOTION AND BALANCE
Part 2
By Dr Jo-Marie vdM Bothma

Ear infections and blockages do not always present obvious signs and symptoms. Parents should then be on the lookout for subtle symptoms in their babies such as:

-Delaying to learn to sit, crawl, stand or walk
-Motion sickness
-Prolonged poor sleeping patterns
-Passive or very quiet babies
-Fuzzy or unhappy babies
-Babies constantly breathing through their mouths / stuffy nose or snoring
-Babies being slow to feed
-Crying when movement is initiated (for example: bouncing on a ball or trampoline, swinging, unexpected changes in movement etc.)
-Lack of babbling noises

https://www.babygym.co.za/articles/Article_The%20Vestibular%20System_Motion%20&%20Balance%202%20of%202.pdf

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THE VESTIBULAR SYSTEM - MOTION AND BALANCE
Part 1
By Dr Jo-Marie vdM Bothma

De Jager (2011:75) is of opinion that every single movement of a pregnant mother registers with the baby’s vestibular system and is in fact a brain developmental boost for the baby. She adds that once that baby is born, he needs to move around unhamperdly in order to fight the pull of gravity and learn to control his head, as head movement leads all physical development. Maturing vestibular function in children can be associated firstly, to general motor development (especially pertaining to posture) and secondly, the ability to stabilize vision during head movements (Nandi & Luxon, 2008).

https://www.babygym.co.za/articles/Article_The%20Vestibular%20System_Motion%20&%20Balance%201%20of%202.pdf

A prosperous new year to each and every person on our page.
We thank you for 10 000 likes in 2015 and hope to continue to glorify mothers with our theme for 2016:
The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world

May 2016 be a blessed and wonderful year. 🌻Many parents asks about milestones, this is a nice guideline but each child develops on there own pace. Book your BabyGym class today.*

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