After several months of anticipation, the baby has finally arrived. Are new moms feeling a bit overwhelmed? Even the simple act of holding a newborn baby requires caution, as there is a fear of hurting the baby. Especially for new dads who have had little to no experience with babies before, it can be difficult to know how to properly handle and hold a newborn. Here are some tips on how to hold a newborn baby.
Do not hold the baby upright
A newborn baby's head accounts for about 1/4 of their total body length. When holding a baby upright, all the weight of their head is placed on their neck. Since the neck muscles of a baby are not fully developed at 1 to 2 months old, it is important to prevent incorrect holding positions that can cause damage to the baby's spine. These injuries may not be immediately noticeable, but they could affect the baby's future growth and development. Therefore, it is recommended to hold the baby horizontally rather than vertically.
Communicate with the baby
Parents should talk to the baby, sing to them, make eye contact, gently touch them, and have physical contact with them. This kind of emotional communication can broaden the baby's vision and provide more stimulation from the surrounding environment, which is beneficial for the baby's brain development, mental development, and physical growth. Holding the baby close is the first step in building a bond and is crucial for the baby's overall development.
Correct method of holding a newborn baby
When picking up the baby, try to grab their attention with eye contact or by speaking to them, and slowly lift them up while still engaging with them. There are two common methods of holding a newborn:
Elbow cradle method: Place the baby's head in the crook of your left arm, with your elbow supporting their head. Use your left wrist and hand to support their back and waist, and extend your right forearm to support their legs. Use your right hand to support their bottom and waist. This is a commonly used position.
Hand support method: Use your left hand to support the baby's back, neck, and head, and use your right hand to support their bottom and waist. This method is often used when picking up or laying the baby down on a bed.
Keep the baby close to the mother's left chest
When holding the baby, place their head on the left side of the mother's body, and position their ear close to the mother's heartbeat. This allows the baby to hear the rhythm of the heartbeat. An experiment conducted abroad found that when babies were crying, one group of babies were gently patted on their backs by their parents, while another group listened to their parents' heartbeat. The results showed that the second group of babies calmed down more easily. This is because babies are accustomed to hearing their mother's heartbeat in the womb, and hearing this familiar sound after birth creates a sense of comfort and helps them adapt to the environment, leading to a calm state of mind.
The baby's crying is not necessarily a bad thing
If there are no abnormal symptoms, a newborn baby's crying is beneficial for their body as it is a form of exercise. Therefore, it is not necessary to immediately pick up or feed a crying baby. Parents should pay attention to the pattern of the baby's crying and correctly determine the reason behind it, and respond accordingly. If a baby is always picked up whenever they cry, they may develop a bad habit of needing to be held in order to sleep or waking up and crying as soon as they are put down. In fact, sleeping on an adult's hands is not beneficial for the normal development of the baby's spine. Good sleeping habits should be cultivated from the newborn stage, using a crib or gently rocking and humming a lullaby to help the baby fall asleep, rather than relying on unhealthy sleep habits.
