Child development: 5-6 weeks

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March 4, 2017

What a baby should be able to do at 1 month of age: development, skills and the first growth spurt. How to be a mother and how to help your child.

Week 5: new sensations - new world!

Around the fifth week, when it finally seems to the young mother that everything has more or less worked out and life has entered into a certain, albeit completely new, rhythm, something incomprehensible begins to happen to the child. He screams for no reason, is capricious and literally does not want to “get away with it.” In fact, everything is explained very simply - the baby is experiencing the first leap in his life associated with the active development of his senses.

Leitmotif: back to the familiar

One day, your child wakes up and realizes that the world has become completely different. It is very difficult for him to accept him this way and, naturally, his main desire is for everything to become the same as before. The only constant for the baby at this moment is his mother. He cannot talk about it, cannot reach out and hug the main, most necessary person. But it can demand attention and physical intimacy by screaming. During the first developmental spurt, children experience not only whims and causeless crying, but also worsening sleep. The baby, although previously it was impossible to even force him to do this, increasingly lies on his stomach of his own free will; for many during this period, this position becomes a favorite. From a psychological point of view, it gives a feeling of protection from the hostile world around us.

How to be a mother and how to help your child

Whims and constant crying for no reason make the mother think - what’s wrong with the child? Check the diaper, take the temperature, feed, check for a rash... all these actions turn out to be ineffective and some simply become desperate and even decide to see a doctor.

In fact, the best thing a mother can do for her child is to pull herself together, calm down and just be with him. Physical and psychological intimacy will give a feeling of security and reassure both. So, what else needs to be done to make it easier for the baby to survive the transition to a completely new level of development?

Calm and only calm!
Whims during the next developmental leap are a completely normal phenomenon and it is tedious to treat them calmly, as if for granted. Many people begin to worry that they do not have enough milk. In fact, it is just apparent. It’s just that during feeding, the baby receives that very desired closeness and calms down. And when he is taken away from the chest, he again begins to get nervous and worried. Suspending breastfeeding due to some concerns during this period is not recommended, it is prohibited!
How to calm a child.
Here, in fact, everything is simple - it’s tedious to carry it in your arms more often. There is no need to be afraid that he will be spoiled - at this age children do not yet react to the so-called “weakness” of Lice. Physical contact gives the baby that same feeling of protection from the outside world and the problems that befall him. In addition, remember that your baby has begun to perceive the world in a much more diverse way. Therefore, you can talk to him, sing a song, or even come up with some kind of game.
Step back from your plans.
Even if you adhere to strict feeding and sleeping schedules, it is best to deviate from them during the developmental spurt in the fifth week. Firstly, the baby is much more awake than before. Secondly, he himself will tell you when and what needs to be done - better than any clock or alarm clock.
Sleep is the best medicine.
During sleep, the child rests not only physically, but also emotionally. Therefore, it is extremely important that he sleeps regularly and for quite a long time. The problem of how to put your baby to bed can be dealt with in several ways. For example, rock him in your arms or ride him in a stroller. By the way, some people notice that any car trip, even a short one, works real miracles.

The joys and sorrows of the fifth week

Around the fifth week, sometimes as early as the fourth, the first leap in your baby's development occurs.
His sense organs begin to develop rapidly. The child notices that something new and unfamiliar is happening in his world. He is confused, screams and wants to go back to the thing he trusts most - his mother. At this age, all children seek more physical contact and attention than usual. Therefore, it is normal that you notice that your child also “demands” this from you. These increased demands on mom can last one day or a whole week. Leitmotif of the jump: back to mom
Your child feels that something has happened, but cannot tell you anything, cannot turn to you, cannot reach out to you with his little hands. But he may well scream at the top of his lungs and become more restless than in normal life. For such a young child, this is a kind of way of letting you know that he is “out of line.” He drives the whole house crazy with his whining, screaming and squealing. The cry gives the child hope that his mother will come to him now and will not leave again.

The child sleeps worse. At least when he lies alone in his crib. Sometimes a child wants to lie on his stomach, although he could not stand it before. This seems to give him the feeling of belly-to-belly contact and security he needs right now.

Screaming makes moms insecure

All mothers diligently search for the causes of these screaming attacks. They check to see if the child is hungry, watch to see if anything is pulling or pressing, and wash him. They try to calm their child and quickly notice that this cry is not pampering.

In addition, you will notice that the child, once calmed, very quickly falls back into an unnerving cry. For most mothers, sudden changes in a child's behavior are new and unpleasant. She worries, feels insecure, and has many fears.

Often mothers are afraid that their child is missing something, something hurts, something is wrong in his little body. Others are afraid that they do not have enough milk - the baby constantly demands the breast and seems to be constantly hungry. Some of the mothers we interviewed even took their children to the doctor - the children turned out to be completely healthy.

Mom's closeness relieves stress

Since the child feels that something has changed, he needs a feeling of security. Give him as much of it as you can. Everything matters - your smell, your warmth and voice, the way you hold the child to which he is accustomed. He gets better with you. You give your child a feeling of confidence, warmth and security during these difficult times.

What is important to know

It is completely normal for a baby to crave the breast more often when he or she is experiencing a developmental leap. When you breastfeed him, everything is fine. Your child is confused, he is looking for affection and consolation. Many mothers don't know this. Many people turn to feeding specialists when a difficult period drags on. Mothers would like to continue breastfeeding, but doubt that they have enough milk. Expert advice: be sure to continue feeding these days. In addition to the sixth week, mothers also often turn to feeding specialists in the third and sixth months. It is noteworthy that it is at this age that children experience leaps in development.

Carry your baby as much as possible

Almost every mother will note that crying calms down while the child has physical contact with her. He calms down better and faster if he is held in his arms.

Tips for calming your child

If you want to calm your baby, rhythm and warmth are important. Hold the child close to you, his butt on one hand, and with the other hold his head, which lies on your elbow. This will allow your baby to hear the soothing beating of your heart. Then: - stroke and caress him - rock him back and forth - walk calmly with him - sing him a song - lightly pat his bottom Always remember that the child will calm down better from what you do with him when he is in a good mood .

Mothers who constantly carry their children talk about them as extremely attached. Such a child feels best when he is comfortably held in his arms and stroked. And his mother quickly finds out that although the baby often falls asleep in her arms, he immediately begins to cry when he is put into bed.

Moms who stick to a strict meal and sleep schedule also find that their baby falls asleep while eating. Some people ask themselves if their child is too tired from constant crying and poor sleep to eat at the designated time. And this statement seems quite logical. In fact, he calms down and falls asleep as soon as he gets what he wants.

Tips for putting your baby to sleep

In your arms, the child is more likely to doze than sleep deeply. Warmth, movement and quiet sounds have a calming effect on him. He will fall asleep easier: - during feeding - if he is carried in a sling - if he is rolled in a stroller

A short car ride also works wonders.

The leap is in full swing

There are many indications that around 4-5 weeks, babies are undergoing a process of rapid maturation, starting with metabolism, affecting the internal organs and reaching the senses. This is how babies at this age cope with digestive problems that they previously had. On the other hand, another “functional problem” that existed before, but is now becoming more noticeable, may become more pronounced. If a child has pylorus stenosis(?) (Pylorusstenose - German), then this means the following: the connecting opening between the stomach and intestines, which is already quite narrow from the very beginning, can finally close. Because of this, the child cannot hold down food. Every time he

(emphasized by me in bold, since from time to time such regurgitation is typical for this phase, but does not indicate a disease, being precisely a property of this developmental leap. lane
)
regurgitates food along a large trajectory. A small surgical intervention, fortunately, helps solve this problem.

The child's metabolism also changes at this age. Tears appear much more often, sometimes for the first time in my life. In addition, mothers notice that their baby is more awake. Everything indicates that the senses are developing very quickly. Children are noticeably more interested in the world around them. Not surprisingly, he can now focus his eyes over a greater distance. Immediately after birth, he could clearly see objects at a distance of no more than 20 centimeters. For a child, these are new impressions, a new experience. He wants new experiences, and therefore is more demanding of external stimuli.

At the age of 5-6 weeks, the child will happily “try” to diversify his impressions. In one laboratory experiment, children were shown a color film of a mother playing with her baby, during which they suckled. As soon as they stopped sucking, the picture disappeared. Since it is difficult for children at this age to watch and suck at the same time, they were only able to watch a small fragment of the film each time. And when the experiment was done the other way around, i.e. In order for the film to be shown, the children had to stop sucking, then they “preferred” to watch the film.

Working with your head

Around 3-4 weeks, the volume of your baby's head sharply increases and glucose metabolism changes. The rapid development of sensory organs does not mean that the child has new capabilities. He cannot process impressions from his senses the same way adults do. Even more, he loses a certain part of the information. The innate love to follow a schematically drawn face with your eyes disappears. Turning the head towards the sound and imitation of facial movements also disappear. This indicates that these primitive reflexes were controlled by subordinate areas of the brain and are only now being reassigned to control areas of the brain.

What's new in your child's behavior?

The child shows more attention to his surroundings: - looks at something longer and more often - listens more often and more attentively - reacts more clearly to touch - reacts more clearly to smells - smiles for the first time (or simply much more often) - makes more joyful sounds - shows that he likes something or is bored - more often it becomes noticeable that he knows what is happening - he stays awake and active longer

Physical changes

He breathes more evenly, he gets scared and flinches less often. For the first time (or more often than before) tears appear when he cries. Most abdominal pain goes away. It happens less often that he chokes. Farts less.

Does your child have a favorite feeling?

All children develop their senses quickly. He becomes more attentive to what is happening around him. But all children show this in their own way. Some are drawn by what they see around them. Others love to listen. On the contrary, others would lie there all day long to be petted. Some people like everything equally. All children are different, not one is like the other.

Your approach to horse racing

First of all, the child needs support and protection. This leap does not affect the area of understanding, and is predominantly of a physiological nature. At this age, you can't spoil your baby, so comfort him every time he cries.

For both the child and the mother, a leap is a radical and stressful event. For both, the stress may be too much. Both can be exhausted if they worry too much and get too little sleep as a result.

- The child is confused and screams - Crying makes the mother unsure of herself and often frightens her. The stress can be so great that the mother cannot cope with it. — The child feels super stressed and screams even more than before.

The child and mother can get rid of this overstrain. Namely, support and sympathy.

— The child calms down with physical contact and attention. This way he can better and faster process the changes that happen to him. This kind of support gives you self-confidence. The child knows that when he needs help, he will be helped. - Mom should support instead of criticize. This will give her the extraordinarily necessary self-confidence that will help her cope with the next, more difficult phases.

Developing senses allows your child to discover new things. Give your child the opportunity to enjoy his feelings. Find out what he likes best and let him enjoy it.

How to determine what he likes

Your child smiles if you please him. This can happen if he sees, hears, smells or tastes something he likes. And as his senses become more receptive, he smiles more often. As a mom, you can use this and do exactly what makes your baby smile.

“When we dance together, we always spin, and when I stop later, he laughs” (Ian, 6 weeks)

What your child is looking at, what you can do

Your child looks at something that captivates him. For the most part, these are colored things. The more contrasting the object, the more he likes it. Lines and angles also attract his attention. And your face.

When you carry a child in your arms, you yourself can notice what he looks at more readily. Give him the opportunity and time to consider this in detail. Don't forget that your child can see clearly no further than 30 cm. Some children like to constantly look at familiar things. Others, on the contrary, quickly lose interest. If you notice that your child is bored, show him a different but similar object.

“She is very receptive to everything she sees.

She especially likes the bed frame against the white wall, the books on the shelf, our floor with large white stripes and narrow black ones, and the black and white pen drawing that hangs on the wall.

In the evenings, the most attractive thing is to have the lamp on.”

(Anna, 5 weeks)

What does your child listen to, what can you do?
All children listen carefully to sounds. It doesn’t matter what it is - buzzing, whistling, ringing or gurgling. Human voices are becoming more interesting. I like the high (female) voice more. And my absolute favorite is mom’s voice.

When your baby is 4-5 weeks old, you can already have a nice conversation with him. Sit comfortably and bring your face closer to the baby's face. Tell him about jobs around the house, gardening and kitchen, or anything else that comes to your mind. Let your child “answer” you, let him speak out too.

“She answers sometimes when I chat with her. The sounds she makes have become longer. She really seems to be unraveling something. Very nice! Yesterday she “talked” in the crib with her rabbit and her rattle” (Suzanne, 5 weeks)

Conversations: Show your baby that you understand him.
Your baby now uses various sounds of joy and frustration much more often. Each sound corresponds to a specific situation. He cries pitifully when he wants to sleep. Other crying may indicate that something is wrong. The child also makes sounds of joy. Usually when looking at or listening to something. Many mothers understand their babies very well. If this is the case for you too, show it to him. Your child is very receptive to compliments.

How does the baby feel? How do you react to this?

All children are very sensitive to touch. At this age, children laugh for the first time in response to tickling. But not all children like it. It's easy to overdo it with tickling.

“She laughed loudly, burst into laughter when her brother tickled her. Everyone was scared. There was dead silence" (Anna, 5 weeks)

Remember that at this age your child may have an overabundance of sensations.
Stop as soon as you notice that the child has had enough. Your baby's senses are very sensitive, so any stimulation may be too much. When you play with your child, caress him, show him something, talk, you must not forget that you must watch the child, and not vice versa.

Your child cannot concentrate for long periods of time. He constantly needs a break to calm down. It may seem to you that he is no longer in the mood. But wait, after a short pause he is ready to continue again.

End of the jump

In the sixth week, the calm phase begins again. The child is more cheerful, more alert, listens and observes more. The eyes become “clearer,” as many mothers believe. Children show more clearly what they like and what they don’t. Everything becomes more certain than before.

“We have more contact with him, the hours he is awake have become more interesting” (Dirk, 6 weeks)

Tags: baby growth crisis whims

What's new in physical development and behavior

The first thing that almost every mother notices is that at 4-5 weeks the colic subsides, gas formation and the babies become much less abundant, but quite profuse regurgitation appears, almost every time after eating. It’s worth noting right away that there is no cause for concern - this is completely normal and is due to the fact that the opening connecting the intestines and stomach is closing. Another physical change that accompanies the 5 week growth spurt is the appearance of tears. If before this the baby just screamed, now he can really cry.

There are many more changes in emotional development during this period. The baby begins to notice and perceive much of what surrounds him.

Skills. Now he:

carefully examines objects in the field of view;
listens to sounds;
actively responds to touch;
begins to show reactions in relation to odors;
smiles;
demonstrates preferences;
begins to pronounce various sounds;
understands what is happening around him, albeit at his own level.

New sensations - new world!

Along with new sensations, the child also develops his own preferences. Some people respond better to sounds, others, on the contrary, prefer to look at pictures, while others are delighted by touches.

The mother’s task at this stage is to help the baby develop and discover the world comprehensively

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but at the same time without suppressing his individuality.

Help you see.
So, at the age of five weeks, the child begins to show interest in a variety of things, primarily colored ones. The mother’s task at this stage is to help him look at them, moreover, it should certainly be taken into account that for some it only takes a few minutes and their interest is already focused on another object, while for others they will “hold” their attention for quite a long time. Do not forget that the radius of visibility at this age is no more than 30 centimeters. In addition to things, the child begins to look at his mother’s face. Be sure to help him with this.
Help to hear.
At 5 weeks, the baby clearly begins to distinguish voices and sounds. The murmur of water, the sound of the sea and wind, the rustling of leaves - you can already begin to familiarize him with all this. But the most important thing at this stage is to talk with the baby. The sound of his mother’s voice is the most pleasant and desirable for him, it is not so important what kind of information he will convey - a story or a “report” about what has been done that day.
Help you feel it.
During his first jump, the baby begins not only to see and hear, but also to feel touch. Moreover, he likes some of them, and some not. To determine preferences, you need to play tactile games more often.

After the first developmental spurt is completed, the baby again becomes cheerful and friendly. Only now he looks much more consciously and understands much more than before, which certainly contributes to the establishment of even greater closeness between mother and baby.

Whims, poor sleep and tantrums up to a year: all about growth spurts

Baby 2 months: development and growth spurt

How to develop a child from 0 to 3 months. Activities and exercises

In the development of a child in the first months of life, the ability to hold his head is of no small importance. Many babies cannot do this even by 2 months. In this regard, you should regularly perform exercises that help develop this skill.

The baby lies calmly on his stomach, mom (or dad) should place one hand under his chin and hold both feet with the other at the same time. The child begins to push off with his legs, thereby trying to move forward.
The baby is in an upright position, the mother should try to keep him suspended in a sitting position. Balance must be maintained so that the child can understand and feel what balance is and how to find it.
The baby, lying on the table (naturally, on his back), needs to be taken by the arms and pulled towards you. This must be done very carefully, movements should be soft and smooth.

The exercises should be repeated 10-15 times, in total the duration of such gymnastics should be no more than 10 minutes.

Exercises to develop a child’s visual perception.

You need to take a bright rattle and place it at arm's length in front of the child, he will begin to watch it. Now we move the toy around so that the child follows it with his eyes. We move the toy away, then bring it closer again. The duration of such visual gymnastics should be 2-3 minutes.

Development of auditory activity.

Surely in every home where there is a baby, there are children's rattle toys. They need to be hung above the bed, and each one should be tapped in turn, thereby attracting the child’s attention. When the child's gaze stops at the toy, he opens his eyes wide, then calms down, listening to the sound, and then joyfully throws up his arms and kicks his legs.

Development of the child’s speech sphere.

It is necessary to repeat after the child the words that he begins to pronounce. It wouldn’t hurt to teach him new sounds by saying “ma”, “pa”, “ba” and so on.

Emotional and intellectual development

A child’s first smile is an important step in mental development that will continue continuously throughout childhood. A passive newborn turns into an active observer imitating facial expressions, gestures, sounds and, finally, the behavior of the people around him - both negative and positive. Remember, the child’s emotional state depends entirely on you; maintain a calm and warm environment in the house. Show your love more often; nothing improves the development of a little person more than the feeling that he is loved and accepted.