Know that you are doing a fantastic job responding to your baby's needs. Carrying your baby will not make them clingy. You are responding to your child's normal infant needs with love, support and a secure attachment.
Yes, incorrect positioning may interfere with hip development in some infants. As noted by the International Hip Dysplasia Institute, there is ample evidence showing that holding a baby's legs together for long periods of time during early infancy can cause hip dysplasia or even lead to hip dislocations.
Babies and toddlers often get clingy and cry if you or their other carers leave them, even for a short time. Separation anxiety and fear of strangers is common in young children between the ages of 6 months and 3 years, but it's a normal part of your child's development and they usually grow out of it.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends babywearing as a way to prevent crying and promote closeness and attachment.
While most parents won't need to consider wearing their babies in direct skin contact, or 24/7, this should offer some reassurance that wearing a baby can be safe and beneficial, even during a long daytime nap.
As long as you both want. If baby is in a carrier that supports healthy positioning, you can continue to wear her for as long during the day as you are both comfortable, and up until baby hits the weight limit (which is often around 40 lb!).
Babywearing Counts As Tummy-Time!
It's a serious workout! Wearing your baby in the Baby K'tan or other infant sling carriers and wraps will allow your baby to exercise his neck, head and back muscles. You can also hang a small toy from the side of the carrier to help your little one develop his motor skills.
A lot of babies and toddlers go through a clingy stage. It mostly happens when they are between 10 and 18 months but it can start as early as six months old.
18 Months to 4 Years
At this age, when children begin to walk on their own, parents often assume that it's time to put the sling away. But there are actually no developmental reasons to stop carrying. Children at this age usually love to be independent.
Babies who are worn in a baby carrier are more easily soothed, more likely to be calm, and less likely to cry because they are with a familiar adult. Don't forget that crying, clinging, and screaming are normal! They are an infant's only means of communication to seek needed proximity, comfort, and food.
Dr Chilton adds that baby boys need more emotional support from their mother, and for a longer period than baby girls. “Male babies on average have greater difficulty self-regulating their emotional state and therefore have a greater reliance on emotional support, especially from their mother1,” he says.
Babies recognize their mother's scent even before they are born. Your baby is biologically and genetically programmed to connect to you through your unique smell. The process of development of olfactory cells (cells responsible for the sense of smell) begins as soon as the first trimester of pregnancy.
Napping in a carrier may even help your baby go to sleep easier at night and get on a good sleep schedule. This is because the close contact with mom helps them stay calm and get more peaceful rest during the day.
ii. Baby wearing can be another helpful practice. Baby wearing is practiced in many other cultures where a baby is constantly clinging to its caretaker in an infant carrier or sling. By keeping your child upright constantly in a baby carrier, you'll help pass gas and smooth the digestive process.
You can start using a baby carrier from day one.
Some parents think they can't use a baby carrier until their baby is 6 weeks old or older, or they choose to wait until then. But you can take a baby carrier with you to the hospital and use it the day your baby is born, as long as they weigh at least seven (7) pounds.
Any baby carrier that forces the baby's legs together and in a straight position for long periods of time could cause hip dysplasia. Make sure that your baby is in a carrier that is acknowledged by The International Hip Dysplasia Institute (IHDI) as a ""hip-healthy"" product.
This is one of the most important reasons many people start baby wearing. Studies have shown that babies who are carried cry less. Carrying a baby for at least 3 hours per day has been shown to reduce crying. When fussiness is at its peak at around 6 weeks, babies who were held more cried 43% less during the day.
Babies are notoriously messy, and you might need to change their outfits 2-4 times a day just because they spat and got their onesie dirty again. Factor in the outfit needed for their 'outside' time, and you'll quickly come to learn you might need a few outfit changes throughout the day.
There are many reasons why babies may show a strong preference for one caregiver over another. Sometimes it's about proximity, routine, or familiarity. Sometimes it's linked to life events and developmental milestones. And other times, these preferences just come and go for no particular reason.
As a newborn, babies have no sense of themselves as individuals. Your baby thinks that the two of you are one and doesn't realize that the tiny hands and feet waving before them are their own.
For many babies, separation anxiety starts at around 8 months of age, but you may start seeing indications of separation anxiety in your baby as early as 4 months. That's because between 4 and 7 months babies begin to realize that people and objects exist even when they can't see them.
You can easily exercise when baby-wearing (walking, bush walking, kanga training, personal training) and lose any extra weight you may have put on during pregnancy.
Babies that don't get enough tummy time might take longer to develop some motor skills. For example, they might be slower to develop core strength, coordination and balance, and take longer to build related skills like reaching and crawling.
Good for you: Not only does babywearing using a supportive and well-fitting carrier support and protect your spine, abdominal and pelvic floor muscles (essential for a post-natal mother), but it'll also provide you with low-impact and gradually increasing core strength training.