We'll start with motor development. Motor development occurs like this...rolling from stomach to back, then back to stomach, pivoting on stomach, belly crawling, rocking on hands and knees, crawling on hands and knees, pulling to knees, pulling to standing, cruising on furniture, standing unsupported then finally taking those first steps. ALL of these skills are best developed when a baby is horizontal (on the floor) and free to move their bodies, strengthen their muscles and start to move. With so many baby containers available, babies are rarely on their tummies anymore, and of course they are sleeping on their backs due to the Back to Sleep Program. So what we see is babies skipping some of these important steps and moving straight to higher level skills like walking. This creates problems later because essentially the child has holes in the foundation of their development, and each skill isn't as refined and coordinated as it should be. (I promise I'll discuss tummy time more in a future post)
In addition, babies are developing Plagiocephally and Tortocollis because their bodies are in the same position all the time. These fancy terms simply mean a flat spot on the head, and tight neck muscles that don't allow the baby to turn their head easily.
When a baby is upright they get a lot of stimulation, more so than their little brains are prepared for. They become dependent on this stimulation and always want to be upright. This is when parents tell me "they hate tummy time."
So what do we do...
First rule is that car seats are for cars!! If this is too hard for you, you can do what my husband and I did, buy a convertible car seat rather than an infant carrier car seat. This insured that our daughter was in our arms more than in a container. We then both had our baby slings which kept our daughter against our bodies, in a tight, warm space--a lot like the space she had been in for the nine months before she was born! She still loves her sling eight months later, and we use them all the time.
Second rule is don't buy swings, walkers, excersaucers, Bumbo chairs, etc. It might seem crazy to you, but trust me, it's not that hard, and your baby will thank you later when their foundational motor skills are intact since they have had all that very important time on their tummies. We did get a very simple bouncer chair (the Svan Bouncer) which we only used right after our daughter ate and needed to be upright for a moment due to her reflux.
Third rule is to get your baby on their tummy to play. Right now we are saying as soon as the first week after they are born. This doesn't have to be for long periods of time, just often, all throughout the day.
For parents of older infants and toddlers that have containers or used containers, don't get down on yourself. You were doing what you were told was best. Now you can get back down on the floor with your child and play on your tummies. Do lots of big muscle movement activities, like building with big blocks, throwing big balls (think about using items that require two hands), etc. Your child still has a lot more development ahead of them!
See, it's easy to get rid of your containers. It's healthy for your baby, all the space in your house isn't taken up, and you aren't spending a lot of money.
If you would like to read up more on this topic and sensory motor development I would encourage you to get the book Building Babies Better by Physical Therapist Roxanne Small. It's available on Amazon.
Coming Soon: Behaviors that Challenge Us
Melissa - I loved yout last post about baby toys (can't count the number of times I bought and expensive toy just to discover that they were more interested in the box!) However, I was not as excited about this post. Your ideas are great (I have a Child Development degree and 8 years as a Child Development Specialist as well...so I get the theories behind everything) but not exactly practical. I learned a LONG time ago that what you learn in a textbook and the realisms of every day motherhood are very, very different. Both of my kids often went on the shopping cart in their infant car seats - especially when #2 came around and I already had a toddler to tend to. Obviously we used our slings or carried them whenever possible - but if he was asleep, I wasn't about to wake him up just to drag him around the store while trying to load produce in my cart with one arm. Both of my kids also loved their swing. My children got PLENTY of tummy time, active interaction, and love from both of us. And both were crawling at 6 months and walking well before a year old... so no effect on motor skills. Obviously there are extremes of "container babies" and I understand the need to get the message out there, but guilting parents into thinking that their weekly grocery store trips or buying your child a bumbo seat is going to result in serious motor delays, is taking it a little too far.
ReplyDeleteI had actually started out with a much harsher response to your post, but then I realized... in my first year of motherhood, I thought I was perfect too. I did all the right things, said all the rights things... and couldn't help but judging just a little when my friends weren't up to par. I remember going to grocery stores and seeing a toddler throwing a tantrum in the middle of the aisle and thinking to myself "if only I could teach that mom about positive parenting!" And then... two years later - it was MY child screaming over the candy at the checkout stand and ME who was trying to keep my cool, all the while wondering where on earth I went wrong. Have you ever noticed that about half the parenting books out there come from NON parents? Or that most parenting blogs out there come from moms with infants?? It's quite simple really... those of us who have been in the game long enough realize that no matter how many things we do right - there is no such thing as a perfect parent. I think we can ALL use more tips on how to become a better mom, but without the implications that doing something different makes you a bad parent. I know this was not your intent, and I do look forward to reading your other posts (in this one - I thought the ideas for toddler movement activities were great!)... just thought I'd put this out there.
Anonymous-
ReplyDeleteFirst of all thank you for your comment. I knew this post would be a "hot" topic! Of course, it was not my intention to make any parent feel guilty. I work with many parents of young children and I have never met a parent who has ever done anything for their child that they felt would cause negative effects. This topic is a difficult one because it's something parents most likely haven't heard before and it's something many parents have come to learn as the norm for parenting an infant now. This is in no way their fault, and as I mentioned in the blog their children still have much learning and development ahead of them and they can add this information to their parenting "toolbox" to make future decisions. I completely understand the reality that most, almost all, babies spend time in car seats out of the car, and that they spend time in swings, and that they still grow and develop. Actually many of these babies are speeding through their motor development, and walking very quickly. I assume you know this isn't always good. It's better that children work on each milestone, master it and refine it, then move to the next. I can guarantee parents though that placing a baby in a swing, a car seat or any other container is "zero developmental" time. There are absolutely no benefits to promoting their development. It was my hope that parents get the information to make informed decisions about what they choose to buy for their child. The complete truth is that many children are developing flat heads and tight necks, just ask the physical therapists I work with--they have been VERY busy lately. Children are also upright the majority of the time at a young age which is stimulating their visual cortex, and making it very difficult to get them back down and on their tummies.
I realize that I am the parent of an infant, nothing I addressed in this post said otherwise, although toddlers bring about my very favorite stage of development! I have gone 8 months without any swing, bouncer, exersaucer, infant car seat, and it has not been difficult. I currently know a mother of triplets (now toddlers) that has done the same thing. In both accredited early learning centers I have worked in I have cared for groups of infants and young toddlers with no swings, etc. There of course are times when babies have to be in their car seats (when they are in the car), or in a stroller because you are going somewhere. The point is that they don't and shouldn't be in containers any more than they have to be. Trust me, I have many opinions on parenting, but I won't be sharing them in this blog. I will only share factual information about what we know about how children grow, learn and develop.
Every parent will make the choice about what is right for their child--this is what being a parent is all about. I am just providing information that isn't readily available to parents, so that they are able to make as informed choices as possible.
Again, thanks for reading, and feel free to comment anytime. We all learn best when we do it interactively.