Through touch, babies also become more aware of their surroundings. They were in a warm and cozy tummy with fluid surrounding them for an entire pregnancy. Then they pop out into a room with bright lights and a bunch of doctors and nurses with masks on their faces. Give them a hug and cuddle with them after an experience like that!
This week, I’m going to give some tender, soft ways to have fun with touch with a little newborn in the first few weeks and next week we’ll get a little sillier!
- Stroke your hand on baby’s cheek and watch her turn towards you—this is called the rooting reflex—nature’s way to get baby to respond to touch thinking it’s a breast.
- If you have a breast (aka—this one’s for moms), use it. This applies for moms who are nursing or not nursing—and for moms who adopt children (We’re going to address this in a special blog post later on). Regardless of whether you plan to nurse, you can rest baby’s soft amazing head on your breast.
- Although sleeping with blankets or soft toys is not safe, you can use a soft silky blanket or toy to engage in touch play while baby is awake.
One Sassy Doctor recommends:
