9 months in, then 9 months out

The only world your baby knows until it’s born is one made up of your body movements, rhythms, and sounds.  When you baby is born, these are still the things that are most comforting.  Babies crave touch and holding more than anything the first 9 months.  Thus the term “9 months in, 9 months out.”

We discovered the hard way that the first two weeks of the baby’s life is referred to by doctors as the “honeymoon” period.  The baby mostly sleeps.  Afterwards, the baby becomes more alert and vocal of its needs.  Luckily its needs are basic: eat, sleep, “make product”, and get attention – physical attention.

Skin-to-skin, or tummy-to-tummy, time is amazingly calming.  Note the Grey’s Anatomy scene where Karev pulls off his shirt and cuddles a very premature baby into a sleepy trance.

Giving babies the comfort of your warmth and heartbeat enables them to attain a quiet calm state, the behavioral state where babies most learn about their environment.  Dr. Sears, on askdrsears.com, describes many benefits of baby wearing for both the caregiver and the parent.

Making the 9 months happier for the baby will make them easier for you.  While the baby is comforted in your sling, you are less distracted, less stressed, and have the freedom to move about more than if the baby were screaming for attention.  It doesn’t work only for the mother either, the father or any caregiver can wear the baby and provide this comfort.