5 REASONS NOT TO LET A BABY CRY
A crying baby is his way of saying he is very hungry, he is wet, he needs a hug, in short, something is wrong. Even though it’s ok, that’s not necessarily a reason to let him cry. Here are 5 good reasons to keep hands on (and dislike when a mother-in-law tells us we’ll throw a tantrum if we cajole it).
- NO IT DOESNT HURT HER LUNGS
Urban legend has it that letting her baby cry will make her “lungs”. Research from the late 70s actually shows that letting him cry dangerously raises his heart rate and lowers his blood oxygen. Worse: without a parent’s response, our child’s brain is invaded by cortisol, the stress hormone, where a comforting hug produces a wave of oxytocin, a happiness hormone.
- THE ANSWER TO HER TEARS
Better: it will keep him from being an anxious adult later on. Yup, nothing but that. Imagine for a second calling our parents because we are not okay. We cry and cry but nobody comes. Day after day, as time goes by, we end up shutting up and telling ourselves that we can’t count on our parents… Not responding to the cries leads to real psychological and physical distress.
- “YOU DON’T LEAVE BABY IN A CORNER”
Can you translate it with an adult: would you let your best friend cry alone and sad in a corner? Really? So why do it with our baby? Even though crying is hard to bear sometimes (often? ), babies don’t have the ability to calm down on their own… They need us !
- SHAVE IT NOW MAKE IT INDEPENDENT LATER
A crying baby who finds comfort in the arms of his parents does not become a bully as one might think or a manipulator. Nope it’ll make it more… independent ! Reassured and emotionally secure, he will be more confident to face life.
- GIVE HIM THE RIGHT TO EXPRESS HIS EMOTIONS
Stopping the baby’s cries, apart from soothing our ears, is not very beneficial. When you hug him to respond to his cries, he may still cry, so he needs to be expressed a little more and fully welcomed. Also, does it feel good to have a good cry even as an adult? No worries then. And patience: a baby who was born before 1 year old will cry less than others at that age.