Healing Birth Trauma

“Research has proven that babies born without trauma enjoy an intact capacity to love and trust”, says midwife Robin Lim. The way a baby is born can create physical and emotional patterns that may affect him for the rest of his life in both positive andnegative ways. The way each baby is born gives us a wonderful opportunity to create a better world. But sadly the way most babies arrive in the world today is not optimal, as birth is often turned from a natural occurrence into an unnatural medical event. But with the relatively recent work of professionals such as Dr William Emerson and Dr Aletha Solter in the USA, much can be done to help these babies from the very beginning.

On a cellular level, babies are conscious from conception. As the foetus matures and the brain and central nervous system develop, the baby begins to experience the relationship with his mother. He is affected not only by the food she eats and whether or not she breathes clean air, but also by her state of mind and emotions. Stress hormones are passed to the baby via the placenta, and likewise, ‘feel good’ hormones reach the baby when the mother is relaxed and happy. So he will tend to feel what the mother feels and experience her emotional states as his own.

By the time the baby is born, he has 9 months of life experience and learning behind him. But birth is such a huge transition, that it becomes the source of very important programming and imprinting, teaching him what to expect from the world he is entering, and creating ‘life-scripts’.

Labour can be a time of hard but shared work, culminating in the reward of a successful birth, or it can be an experience of exhausting struggle, inside a drugged mother, with the baby having to be ‘rescued’ at the end. It can also be an elective caesarean section where the baby experiences being pulled out of his mother’s body without warning

If he is taken away from the mother after birth (experienced by the baby as ‘abandonment’) more trauma is added. Healthy newborns, full-term or premature, should never be separated from their mothers.

LIFE SCRIPTS LEARNED WHEN THERE ARE COMPLICATIONS

Children who have needed ‘assisted deliveries’ (forceps, vacuum extraction, caesarean section) often find it easy to begin things but tend to become easily discouraged later, just as they were able to begin, but not complete their birth experience. So they may need help and encouragement in order to complete tasks.

Babies born by elective caesarean section (sometimes necessary) may have some of the following life scripts: “Life is something that happens to me” (passivity) or “I don’t like things happening suddenly when I am not ready”. These babies have also missed out on the important stimulation of the birth contractions.

In a difficult labour, if help comes as soon as the baby goes into distress, he will learn, “When things go wrong, someone helps me”. If rescue takes a long time to arrive, the baby learns, “Survival is hard and I have to struggle all by myself to stay alive”, or “I need help or I shall die”.

The babies most affected are those who do nearly die and need to be resuscitated. Such difficult births can lead to lives dominated by feelings of helplessness and depression, especially if there is no contact with or comfort from the mother straight after birth. But these babies can be helped with sensitive parenting and extra therapy if needed.

HELPING THE CHILD IF BIRTH HAS BEEN DIFFICULT

If the baby has had a difficult birth, the most helpful thing the parents can do is to hold and comfort him. This will teach him that even when life seems hard or painful, there will be love and comfort afterwards.

A baby born by elective caesarean section misses out on the stimulation of the labour contractions which can lead to physical and emotional problems. Daily massage, starting as soon as possible, can help.

If a baby has been separated from the mother after birth, he will need a great deal of loving touch and closeness throughout infancy and childhood. Doing Kangaroo Mother Care, wearing the baby in a sling in the day time, and co-sleeping with the baby at night are all helpful.

If a child has been rendered passive or helpless by a birth experience where being non-assertive was life-saving, it helps to create new, more assertive patterns early on. Always encourage a child who is having difficulty starting or completing things. Consistently acknowledge hard work with warm appreciation

THE WORK OF DR SOLTER AND DR EMERSON

The work of Drs William Emerson and Aletha Solter is unique, as they begin the healing work with babies. Therapy from a professional is valuable if the trauma was severe, but Dr Solter also teaches parents how to support babies who have undergone early trauma. She points out that there are two reasons why babies cry – one is that they have a need in the present. They may be hungry, ill, in pain or needing more love and holding. But if taking care of these needs doesn’t help, the baby may in fact be spontaneously reliving earlier trauma and should not be stopped from crying, but rather be ‘facilitated’.

FOLLOWING THE BABY’S CUES

During her workshop in Cape Town in May 2007 I had the privilege of watching Dr Solter do this work with a baby of about 2 months old (though Dr Solter didn’t say it was birth the baby was reliving, it seemed clear to me.) The baby, who was with his mother in the audience, was ‘niggling’ and though the mother was trying to calm him, nothing she did helped. Dr Solter asked the mother if she would like to bring him forward. It was established that the baby had recently been fed and wasn’t hungry. But he had been through a very long second-stage of labour, and the mother had to push for many hours, before he was born.

With the mother sitting beside her, Dr Solter held the baby gently and made eye contact with him. Then she very gently cupped her hand over his head. He began to cry more loudly, and I recognized this cry as ‘birth crying’ from my own experience of working with these issues in therapy (both my own, and facilitating other people). He also started pushing very hard with his legs, so Dr Solter put her hands under his feet to give him something to push against. (It is very important when doing this work to follow the cues that the baby gives). The baby cried very hard for about 15 minutes and then he became calm, and was handed back to his mother, relaxed and peaceful.

THE THERAPY PROCESS

In Dr Emerson’s work, babies who have been through birth trauma are brought to him for a series of therapy sessions. Therapy includes not only the reliving of the original trauma, but also an experience of how an optimal birth would have been, called ‘repatterning’. For example, if the baby was stuck in the birth canal or missed out on this part of labour, a new ‘birth canal’ may be created (e.g. using his mother’s legs, or a tunnel made of pillows). As his therapy progresses, he will be assisted to push himself through it, and be ‘delivered’ at the other end. Dr Emerson feels that this part of the therapy is important, and that catharsis alone is not enough. (In Aletha Solter’s method, re-empowering the baby would be included in “Attachment Play”).

In therapy the baby will give body cues to indicate how and where trauma is stored. That part of the body may then be gently touched to reactivate the memory of the trauma. For example, if the baby was delivered by forceps, the head will be very sensitive. A baby born with the cord tightly wound around his neck might be helped by gentle touch on the neck area. The baby is also allowed to engage in the process, or to choose not to. He is always treated very respectfully, and allowed to ‘take the lead’ in where his therapy is going. Babies will often indicate very clearly to the therapist through their body language and movements which parts of their bodies have been traumatised and where help is needed.

Alternative Family Law Children

Parental Responsibility

Parental responsibility is defined as “all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which by law a parent of a child has”. It is hard to imagine a more circular definition. In practice is means that someone with parental responsibility has a right to take part in major decisions in the child’s life, such as schooling and whether the child should move abroad etc. In addition, parental responsibility is defined as “rights of custody” for the purposes of the Hague Convention on Child Abduction, which applies in all European Union, many Western and some other countries. This means that someone can only take the child permanently out of England and Wales with permission of all other people with parental responsibility or with permission of the court.

Before considering parental responsibility, you need to be clear about who the legal parents of the child areaccording to English law, which is not necessarily obvious in cases where a child is born to same-sex couples or through surrogacy.

Mothers

The mother always has parental responsibility, provided she is the legal mother of the child.

Co-mothers (Non-birth Mothers - “Other Parents”)

In English law a woman who is not the biological mother of the child can be legally the other parent of a child if she is the mother’s same-sex partner in a lesbian relationship (see legal paternity after sperm donation). Such a woman has parental responsibility in a very similar way as a legal father. This does not apply to an adoptive mother or a woman who is the mother of a child after a parental order made after surrogacy. Such a mother always has parental responsibility, whatever the gender of the other parent.

Child Arrangements Orders and Parental Responsibility

If the court makes a child arrangements order in favour of a person or persons providing the child lives with them(what used to be a residence order), they automatically have parental responsibility while that order is in force, even if they do not otherwise have parental responsibility. This is one of the two ways that a stepparent who is not married or the civil partner of the parent with whom the child lives could get parental responsibility.

Stepparents

Stepparents, i.e. the spouse or the civil partner of the father or the mother, can get parental responsibility by a similar parental responsibility agreement or by court order. This only works for spouses and same-sex civil partners and not for cohabitants. All parents who already have parental responsibility must sign the agreement. Therefore if the father already has parental responsibility and he refuses to sign, the mother’s spouse or civil partner would need to apply to the court for a parental responsibility order. The father’s (and the “second parent’s“) spouse or civil partner can of course also get parental responsibility in the same way.

If you and your partner are not married or civil partners and do not plan to change that, the only way for both to get parental responsibility is if the court makes a child arrangements order providing that the child shall live with both of you (what used to be a joint residence order).

Child Arrangements Orders and Parental Responsibility

If the court makes a child arrangements order in favour of a person or persons providing the child lives with them(what used to be a residence order), they automatically have parental responsibility while that order is in force, even if they do not otherwise have parental responsibility. This is one of the two ways that a stepparent who is not married or the civil partner of the parent with whom the child lives could get parental responsibility.

Stepparents, i.e. the spouse or the civil partner of the father or the mother, can get parental responsibility by a similar parental responsibility agreement or by court order. This only works for spouses and same-sex civil partners and not for cohabitants. All parents who already have parental responsibility must sign the agreement. Therefore if the father already has parental responsibility and he refuses to sign, the mother’s spouse or civil partner would need to apply to the court for a parental responsibility order. The father’s (and the “second parent’s“) spouse or civil partner can of course also get parental responsibility in the same way.

If you and your partner are not married or civil partners and do not plan to change that, the only way for both to get parental responsibility is if the court makes a child arrangements order providing that the child shall live with both of you (what used to be a joint residence order).

Parental Responsibility

Parental responsibility (PR) in family law is a legal status derived from the Children Act 1989. You may be quite rightly regarded as a ‘responsible’ parent by a host of organisations, even singly responsible for your child’s daily care, but at the same time not have the formal status of a parent with parental responsibility. Generally this page will be concerned with a child’s parents and their parental responsibility. However, others, besides parents, can have parental responsibility for a child; for example, a local authority for children in its care, a child’s guardian, a child’s stepfather and perhaps a child’s grandparents or other relatives will be able acquire parental responsibility in certain circumstances.

In some instances explained elsewhere on this webpage, unless you have parental responsibility you will not be considered to be a ‘parent’ of the child since the definition of parent in some instances only includes parents with parental responsibility.

What is Parental Responsibility

Parental responsibility was a legal concept first defined in the Children Act 1989 (s3) as, “all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which by law a parent of a child has in relation to the child and his property. “ Detailed and explicit definition as to what this encompasses was deliberately avoided. Over the years a number of Court of Appeal judgments have given flesh to the bones of the bare definition provided in the statute. The 1989 Act emphasised parental responsibilities over parental rights but in many instances a parent must exercise his rights in order to perform his responsibilities. For example, in order to fulfill your parental responsibility to see that your child attends school and is educated properly a parent must be accorded certain rights with regard to the education system. Parental responsibility, unless discharged, runs until the child reaches the age of 18, though its importance and impact on the child will diminish as the child grows older and his own views and wishes carry more weight.
Parental responsibility also confers status on a parent. This status is important for:
(a) the father and the mother: unless both parents have parental responsibility the parent with care (PWC) (and the non-resident parent (NRP) themselves) may view the NRP as a ‘second-class’ parent, rather than as an equal parent. A NRP perceiving himself as a second class parent may be less inclined to involve themselves with their child, be more inclined to walk away; a PWC, regarding the NRP as a second-class parent may ignore the NRP and make all important decisions about the child without any reference to them.
There is no difference in law between the powers of mothers and fathers.

(b) the child: though in most instances the child will not be made aware of parental responsibility, in separated families the child needs to have a positive image of the parent he no longer lives with in order to bolster his own self-esteem. Lord Justice Ward’s words from the 1995 judgment Re S (Parental Responsibility) are frequently quoted to emphasise this aspect.
(c) public authorities; all are more willing to fully engage with a parent who has formal parental responsibility and to treat him as an equal parent, than a parent who does not.

Do parents with parental responsibility need to share decision making?

s2(7) of the Children Act 1989 states:
Where more than one person has parental responsibility for a child, each of them may act alone and without the other (or others) in meeting that responsibility;
However case-law has established that in certain circumstances parents are under a legal duty to consult, meaning that where parents are separated, the resident parent is not always entitled to act without first consulting her ex-partner. Back in 1998 the Court of Appeal (Re H (Parental Responsibility) said that a father with parental responsibility would have to be consulted on “schooling, serious medical problems and other important occurrences in the child's life'.
Parental responsibility is not concerned with the day-to-day care of the child, does not permit either (separated) parent to interfere with how the other parent cares for the child when the child is in their care. In A v A (Shared Residence) [2004] EWHC142 at paragraph 118 Mr Justice Wall remarked:
‘It is a basic principle that, post separation, each parent with parental responsibility retains an equal and independent right and responsibility to be informed and make appropriate decisions about their children. However, where children are being looked after by one parent, that parent needs to be in a position to take the day-to-day decisions that have to be taken while that parent is caring for the children. Parents should not be seeking to interfere with one another in matters which are taking place while they do not have the care of their children. Subject to any questions which are regulated by court order, the object of the exercise should be to maintain flexible and practical arrangements whenever possible.’
The parents in the case above had, with the help of NYAS, agreed a ‘Schedule of Items in Relation to their Exercise of Parental Responsibility’, a schedule which Mr Justice Wall chose to endorse by appending it to the end of his judgment. The schedule differentiated between 3 sorts of decisions:
(a) Decisions that could be taken independently and without any consultation or notification to the other parent
(b) Decisions where one parent would always need to inform the other parent of the decision, but did not need to consult or take the other parent’s views into account
(c) Decisions that you would need to both inform and consult the other parent
Though there is no absolute agreement, the rule of thumb is that the following matters require the consent of all those who have parental responsibility for the child:
Change of surname (even where there is no residence order)
Removing the child from the jurisdiction (i.e. England and Wales) for more than one month
Committing to a serious and irreversible operation (except in an emergency)
Change of school

Who automatically has parental responsibility for a child?

Many parents will have parental responsibility without being aware that they do.

All mothers, whether married or unmarried, automatically have parental responsibility for any child born to them. [Children Act 1989 s2(1) & s2(2)(a)]

Fathers who were married to the mother of the child when the child was born also automatically have parental responsibility. [CA 1989 s2(1)]

How can an 'unmarried father' obtain parental responsibility?

Unmarried Fathers can acquire parental responsibility in any of the following ways:
(a) By jointly registering the child’s birth with the mother (for births registered after 1 December 2003) you will automatically gain parental responsibility (i.e. there will be no separate official document stating that you have PR) [CA 1989 s4(1)(a)]. It is the date of registration, not the date of birth which is important in determining whether the father has parental responsibility.
(b) By re-registering the birth for pre December 2003 registrations, to add the father’s details, you will automatically gain parental responsibility [CA 1989 s4(1)(a)].You would either need the mother to attend with you or provide a formal declaration of agreement that your name is to be added to the birth record.NB: the birth can only be re-registered if the father’s name was omitted from the original registration. If it is already there, you cannot re-register, and therefore you cannot gain parental responsibility by this means.
(c) By subsequently marrying the mother of the child you automatically gain PR [CA 1989 s2(3)Family Law Reform Act 1987 s(1)]
(d) By obtaining a residence order from the court (PR is a ‘by-product’ of the residence order) you will automatically acquire parental responsibility [CA 1989 s12(1)], although in this form PR will terminate when the resident order ends (usually age 16).
(e) A birth parent can sign a parental responsibility agreement on form C(PRA1) according to the Children Act 1989. This document itself will signify that you have parental responsibility for the child) [CA 1989 s4(1)(2)].

(f) A step-parent's PR agreement can ne made by consent with all those already having PR for the child on form C(PRA2) according to the Children & Adoption Act 2002.
(g) By obtaining a parental responsibility order from the court. The order will specifically state that the court has granted you parental responsibility. [CA 1989 s4(1)(3)]
(h) By obtaining an adoption order from the court.

Only with (d), (e), (f), (g) and (h) will you obtain a document that explicitly states that the father has parental responsibility for the child. With the other means of obtaining parental responsibility there will be no separate documentation confirming parental responsibility, the documentation of the status acquired (marriage, child’s birth certificate, etc.) being themselves evidence of parental responsibility.

Breaking Up Is Hard to Do: Separation Anxiety, Your Kid and You

If you ever doubt whether you're a super-important person, try walking away from your toddler when she appears engrossed in dot art markers. What seemed to be a carefree child will immediately morph into a howling, anxiety-filled kiddo wholly dependent on you for safety, companionship, and a general purpose in life.

Honestly, this is often nice, especially if you're haunted by existential questions like what am I doing with my rapidly diminishing youth and does Evangeline love her mom more than my kid loves me because Evangeline's mom lets her decorate cupcakes? (No, by the way.) Having a person you adore completely fall apart at the possibility of your going to the bathroom alone—well, it kind of feels good. You feel special.

It's inconvenient and—dare I say—annoying

Yes, using these words to describe attachment sounds a little bit horrible; but really, how would you characterize the feverish screams accompanying your attempt to move 10 feet away from your kid

It causes guilt

It could be work; it could be preschool drop-off; it could be finally peeing after you've held it for three hours. But eventually, you're going to walk away from your kid; he is going to freak; and you're going to feel terrible. Of course, parenting is all about guilt, and of course, you're making all kinds of horrific mistakes sure to doom your kid to therapy later in life, but feeling guilty for going to the bathroom just in time to prevent another bladder infection is a bit extreme.

It hurts your kid

Not to minimize your inconvenience and guilt—that totally sucks—but the panic your kid is enduring is worse. Imagine that you're scuba diving and your oxygen tank keeps walking away. This is life for your kid.

So yeah, separation anxiety is pretty tough. But, it's also a normal, appropriate part of your kid's development, so she deserves your accommodation as you both get through it. Accommodation, however, is not the same as encouragement. The ultimate goal is to show your kid that she's safe without you, not establish a dynamic where your kid controls your every movement.

I acknowledge that this sentiment is not universally shared. Please refrain from sending me whatever Buzzfeed link you're ruminating about; I am already aware that many babies reportedly lead happy lives literally attached to their devoted mothers, and that you may wish to recreate this world for your own offspring. If that sounds like a good plan to you, I wish you luck and warn you that you might not really like this article.

But please do consider whether this will truly prove an ideal life. Yes, your kid's attachment is of vital importance but have some faith in that attachment. It's not going to break if you get your kid out of your hair every now and then. And as important as attachment is, other things are important, too: things like learning to trust that people can leave and come back and there's more than one person who can keep you safe.

You can impart the lesson that people go away and come back in many ways, such as peek-a-boo, stories about separating and reuniting, and phrases like "Mommy always comes back!" If these suggestions leave you ravenous for more activities of this type, your pediatrician will have additional ideas.

All of this, however, is just prologue; the real action comes when it's time to say goodbye to your screaming kid. I'm assuming you've screened whoever is staying with her and that you've made sure they click, since that's pretty basic. But these tips will help, too:

The Best Parenting Advice I Ever Got

Moms and dads in 2013 have an ever-expanding network of family, friends, Facebook friends, friends-of-kinda-sorta-friends and total strangers to crowd-source ideas for getting through your latest dilemma. While this can be a recipe for information overload, sometimes you get that laser-focused advice or perfectly timed Facebook message that puts things into perspective. So we asked experts, celebrities and (of course) you to send us the best piece of advice you ever got. You're gonna want to hit the share button on these.

Potty Training

When they say “I'm a big girl” or “I don't want to wear diapers anymore,” stop what you're doing and head right to the store to let them pick out new underwear. If you wait, the moment will have passed. —Kim Graham-Nye, co-founder, gDiapers

Take them to the bathroom every 30 minutes, and go straight to undies. —Kristina B., via Facebook

In the bathroom, we put up a colorful “Potty I Did It!” chart with stickers that they picked out. When they went in the potty, they placed a sticker on the chart. If they got four stickers, they could choose either a trip to Menchie's yogurt, a book from Barnes & Noble, or a trip to the mall's indoor playground (their fave). It was hit and miss at first, and then highly effective. —Tori Spelling, actress and author

Sleeping

Midnight isn't a good time to attempt a new approach to your baby's latest waking. You're better off to continue with your current method, rather than try something new out of desperation. Make a plan during the day when you can think clearly. —Suzanne Hansen, baby sleep coach, Plan2Sleep.com

Around 6 p.m., I start yawning in front of my 5-year-old and telling her how late it is. She can't tell time, so I capitalize on this to get her into bed at an appropriate hour. —Kendra Robins, founder, Project Night Night, which donates care packages to homeless kids

Children don't understand time, but they do understand sleep. So if my kids were going to see Grandma in two days, I would tell them we'll be visiting her in two sleeps. They understood that they needed to go to bed to make it happen. —Molly H., via Facebook

Breastfeeding

If you want to introduce your breastfeeding baby to a bottle, Mom should leave the room or even the house. For many babies, if she's around, the bottle won't be an option. —Alan Greene, M.D., pediatrician
Breastfeeding is a lifestyle choice. Know this going in, and you will better adjust to what your baby needs, instead of trying to fit feeding into your own routine and getting frustrated. —Katie Parsons, reader
I put glasses of water everywhere so no matter where I sat to nurse, I could always rehydrate. —Jessica C., via Facebook
When you see your newborn sucking her fingers or fist, or rooting around, it's time for a feeding. A crying baby can be difficult to latch, so watching for these early cues can make breastfeeding go much more smoothly. —Amy West, certified lactation counselor

12 of the Best Parents Ever

23-year old Xiao Feng doesn't want to get a job. He'd rather spend his time playing video games. To discourage this activity, Feng's father hired players to hunt down and slay his son's characters.

Unhappy with his son not finding a job, Feng decided to hire players in his son's favorite online games to hunt down Xiao Feng. It is unknown where or how Feng found the in-game assassins—every one of the players he hired were stronger and higher leveled than Xiao Feng. Feng's idea was that his son would get bored with playing games if he was killed every time he logged on, and that he would start putting more effort into getting a job.

The Chinese millionaire who works as a street cleaner to set a good example for her kids

The father who hired in-game assassins to kill his lazy son's video game characters

23-year old Xiao Feng doesn't want to get a job. He'd rather spend his time playing video games. To discourage this activity, Feng's father hired players to hunt down and slay his son's characters.

Unhappy with his son not finding a job, Feng decided to hire players in his son's favorite online games to hunt down Xiao Feng. It is unknown where or how Feng found the in-game assassins—every one of the players he hired were stronger and higher leveled than Xiao Feng. Feng's idea was that his son would get bored with playing games if he was killed every time he logged on, and that he would start putting more effort into getting a job.

Now that's creative parenting! (Via)

There probably aren't many millionaires willingly volunteering to work in sanitation for about $228 a month. However, 53-year-old Chinese real estate mogul Yu Youzhen gladly wakes up at 3 a.m. six days a week to sweep almost two miles of roadway for one major reason: to set a good example for her children.

Yu, who amassed her fortune as the result of hard work and real-estate, has been cleaning streets since 1998. Although she owns 17 properties valued at roughly $1.5 million, Yu refuses to give up the contract job with the Wuchang District Chengguan Bureau Cleaning Team she acquired 15 years ago.

After witnessing what great fortune and a bad attitude can do to a person, Yo Youzheng became determined to keep her family on the right track. She's already warned her son and daughter, “If you don't work, I'll donate the apartments to the country.” It seems to have worked, since her son now works as a driver in the Donghu Scenic Area, making over 2,000 yuan a month, and her daughter is an office worker, with a 3,000 yuan salary

The father who runs triathlons while carrying his daughter, who suffers from cerebral palsy

For the past four years, Rick van Beek has run his local triathlon with his daughter who has cerebral palsy. She can neither walk nor talk, and her dad says he isn't even sure that she can see. However, he knows that she loves the outdoors, and he loves her, so he swims while pulling her in a kayak, bikes with her in a cart behind him, then finally runs while pushing her in a wheelchair so she can feel the breeze on her face. Is someone cutting onions in here?

How To Cure Constipation In Babies

The main reasons behind constipation in children are excessive milk consumption, lack of fibre in the diet, low intake of liquids or postponing nature's calls due to any reason. What are the signs? If you observe your baby struggling to pass the stools or if your baby doesn't pass stools for more than a day then constipation could be the reason. Also, the texture of the stool could also help you know whether your baby is constipated. Once you have identified that your little one is suffering from constipation, follow some of the below tips.

Offer More Fluids Make your baby drink some water on regular intervals. Even if your baby sips small quantities of water, it can help. Check the colour of the urine. If the colour is dark, it means your baby needs more water.

 

Offer Fruits Your baby needs some fibre. Offer fruits, whole grain bread and cooked vegetables. Fibre can ease bowel movements.

 

 

Stop Constipating Foods Try to avoid yoghurt, cheese, bananas, carrots and rice when your baby is constipated.

Activity Allow your baby to play. The body should move, jump, run and stay active to digest the food and get rid of constipation.

 

 

Optimise Milk consumption Too much of milk could cause constipation. Give small quantities of milk (not more than 3 ounces per day).

 

Schedule Potty Time Try to regularise the potty timings of your baby. This can reduce the chances of suffering constipation.

Does A Mom’s Voice Activate A Kid’s Brain

A new study claims that a mother's voice and interaction with her baby plays a major role inactivating certain areas of the child's brain. This study says that a mother's voice is more significant than others' voices around.

 

Certain areas in the child's brain respond more to a mother's voice. The areas of the brain related to social functions, emotions and reward processing tend to get activated when a mother talks to her baby.

 Also, this study further claims that the kid's communication skills with the world around may depend upon the connections formed in the brain at early stages with the help of the mother's voice.

 

It is a fact that most of us learnt a lot only by listening and communicating with mother at the early stages of life. So, this is why a mother's voice plays a crucial role in the brain activity of a kid.

 

Till now, most of us knew very little about the way a child's brain organises itself. But this study confirms that a mother's voice can bring about faster changes in the kid's brain. This is the reason why the role of a mother is considered as very crucial in every child's life. 

Facts About A Baby’s Weight 

 

 The weight of a new born baby tends to fluctuate a bit during the first few days of birth. In fact, the weight may dip by 5% which is considered normal. The baby gradually puts the weight again in a span of 15-20 days.

 

 In the first few months, a baby should at least weigh 115-220 grams. After 6 months, weight may increase drastically.

 After a year, a baby weighs more than double of the birth-weight. If the weight is more than that, then it is better to consult a doctor.

 

For optimal weight, health experts recommend breast feeding every couple of hours (nearly 7-12 times a day). In some cases, when the baby gains weight too fast, mothers may worry whether it could cause obesity. As breast milk isn't an unhealthy source of calories, mothers don't need to worry.

 

 The weight of a baby fed with other substitutes may vary from the weight of a baby who is fed solely with breast milk.

How to know whether a baby gets enough milk? Well, it is better to observe whether the baby feels satisfied after consuming the milk. Also, a baby tends to sleep after feeling satisfied.

7 Important Tips For Parents With A Dyslexic Child

"What it's like to be a parent: It's one of the hardest things you'll ever do but in exchange it teaches you the meaning of unconditional love." - this is a famous quote which makes a lot of sense. Parenting is not an easy task. Right from the moment a child comes into this world, parents have to make a lot of sacrifices and commitments that last for a lifetime!

However, parenthood is synonymous to unconditional love and parents are willing to do anything to see their children happy and healthy. As hard as it is to admit, parenting becomes all the more challenging when the kids are born with certain ailments. It means that the parents have to put in more effort than usual to try and make their child's life as easy as possible.

Dyslexia is one such learning disorder that can take a toll on the parents of the affected child.

Dyslexia is a learning disorder in which in the child has difficulty in reading, writing, interpreting and understanding certain things that may hamper his/her progress at school and other everyday activities. So, here are some useful tips that can be followed by parents with a dyslexic child, to help make their lives and their child's life easier.

Tip #1 Patience is the key when it comes to dealing with a dyslexic child. Children with dyslexia take a longer time to do regular learning tasks compared to their peers. The parents need to be patient and support their children emotionally.

Tip #2 When giving instructions to your child, it is important to be firm. Make them understand that carrying out certain tasks or doing their homeworks is very important, in a tone that is firm yet encouraging.

Tip #3 Be forgiving towards yourself and your child. Having a child with dyslexia can weaken the parents emotionally and they may often blame themselves or their children. But, doing that can only make matters worse.

Tip #4 Ensure that you take your children out to places they like such as theme parks, museums, gaming arcades, etc, at least a couple of times in a month. Just like any other child, dyslexic children too need to unwind and have some fun!

Tip #5 Be flexible and accepting, when it comes to their school work. The learning skills of dyslexic children is very different from their peers, so the parents must understand their child's capabilities and limitations.

Tip #6 If they are studying in a regular school, ensure that you speak to the teachers and let them know about your child's problems. Keep in touch with the teachers regularly and pay a close attention to your child's progress.

Tip #7 Often, children with dyslexia are bullied and teased at school by other pupils, for being "slow" and different. If you suspect that your child is being bullied, make sure that you talk to the teachers and help your child get out of that situation.

7 Bad Habits Of Parents That Affect Their Children

As parents, we may often feel that we know what is best for our children and do not pay much attention to how the kids feel when they look at us behaving in a certain way or following certain habits.

It is a fact that parents are the very first and the most important role models to their children, as kids usually tend to learn most habits by watching their parents, during the initial stages of their growth.

One of the founding-father's of psychological theories on social learning has brought out a theory called the imitation theory, in which he says that children learn most of their social skills by imitating their parents.

So, it is very essential for the parents to be good role models to their children, in order to help them grow up to be model citizens.

Many a times, as parents, we tend to get caught up with life and forget to take all the necessary steps to be better role models to our children.

We follow certain practices and habits that may affect our children negatively, when they watch us indulge in those habits.

So, here is a list of habits that you can avoid, in order to keep your children from being affected negatively.

1. Self-Criticism

Many a times, we tend to criticise ourselves regarding our looks, careers, etc. This habit leads to your child developing unrealistic standards of beauty and success, which may later on cause physiological issues like depression and eating disorders in them.

2. Over Use Of Gadgets

Most modern parents indulge in texting, e-mailing, talking on the phone for long hours, etc, in front of their children. Kids will look at their parents doing that and they too will want to own cell phones and tablets right from a young age, which may affect their studies.

3. Setting Gender Roles

Some parents impose stereotyped gender roles on their kids. For example, girls should not involve themselves in sports, boys should not show emotions, etc. This habit can hamper their social lives extremely, especially in this progressive era.

4. Drinking And Smoking

Indulging in vices, such as excessive drinking and smoking, in front of your children may make them feel that it is alright to develop such habits. They may start drinking and smoking from a very young age, leading to health complications later on.

5. Being Over-competitive

Comparing your kid's achievement with that of other kids, insulting them about their school grades in front of their friends, thinking that it might encourage them to do better the next time can often be a blow to the child's self-esteem and it may affect his/her psychology 

6. Constant Arguing

If you are getting into constant arguments and fights with your family members, when your kid is around, your child may try to imitate that behaviour with his/her friends, making him/her more prone to an aggressive behaviour, right from an early age.

7. Physical Abuse

Hitting your kids even for a small mistake and "punishing" them often by psychically abusing them can have serious repercussions and may either make them extremely rebellious or very weak emotionally.

Facts About Schizophrenia In Kids

Schizophrenia is a persistent psychiatric disease. If your kid is suffering from this chronic disease, it can deform the thinking capacity of your child, which can result in various hallucinations and delusions.

However, you will be surprised and happy to know that these are the positive signs. Sadly, when there are positive signs, you have to be ready for the negative ones too. Social isolation, emotionless and violent behavior are a few negative symptoms of Child Schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a very rare condition in children and it is extremely difficult to identify the symptoms in the early phases of the disease. The reason is, children are still maturing both physically and mentally.

In the early childhood days, your kid may start thinking that somebody is trying to control his/her beliefs or someone might be guessing what he/she is thinking.

In the school, your child may throw tantrums with an aggressive behavior, which his/her teacher might think as a behavioural issue. All these symptoms are part of suspicious illusions caused by this horrible disease.

Causes Of Child Schizophrenia

 
According to the researchers, Schizophrenia happens in children the same way it stems in the adults.

However, studies are still going on to find out why some individuals get it so early, while others don't. There cannot be a single cause of Schizophrenia; it is a very difficult interaction between the environment and genetics of your children.

1) Genetics: Genetics plays a very important role in the development of Schizophrenia in children. If you have a schizophrenic sibling or a parent, then you have 10% likelihood to get Schizophrenia. Now again, it is not necessary that if you have Schizophrenia, your child will also have it. So, the genetics can be a cause of Schizophrenia, but it can't determine the illness.

2) Brain Structure: If your child has an abnormal brain structure, he/she is likely to have Schizophrenia. This can also be one of the causes of the disease.

3) Environment: Sometimes environmental factors can also play an important role for causing this chronic psychiatric disease. According to a few researches, it was found that pregnant women with high stress levels can lead to Schizophrenia in their offsprings. Some other environmental situations that trigger Schizophrenia are viral infection in the womb, loss of a parent in childhood, child physical abuse, the child inflicted with viral infection as a baby, low oxygen level during labor and delivery.

Symptoms Of Schizophrenia

The symptoms of Schizophrenia usually begin in the mid-twenties to late twenties. The early symptoms can be seen even before 18 years of age. Symptoms may differ in nature and severity with the passage of time. They can deteriorate and sometimes, they may also lessen with time.

1) Early Symptoms: These include developmental issues like late crawling, delay in talking, arm flapping, rocking, delay in walking, etc
 2) Teenage Symptoms: A decline in school performance, trouble in sleeping, weird behaviour, depression, bad temper, feeling de-motivated, etc.

3) Late Symptoms: As the kids suffering from the disease grow older, they start showing more typical symptoms of the disease. Hallucinations, negative signs, delusions, disorganized behaviour, weird postures, excessive movements, irresponsiveness, etc., are some symptoms that appear later in the grown-up kids.

When Should You Consult A Doctor?

You must talk to a doctor if your kid shows weird eating habits, doesn't socialize, is paranoid, is lagging behind in educational performance, has strange fears and bizarre ideas, takes the dreams as reality or has a very aggressive nature.

If you see these symptoms in your child, you must seek out medical advice and medical care as soon as possible. If this serious disease is left untreated in childhood, it can lead to severe behavioural, emotional and a myriad of other health issues.

 

5 Expert Tips To Make Your Kids Stay Fit And Healthy

 

Most adults, these days, give a lot of importance to fitness. More and more people are making fitness routine a part of their day, in order to stay healthy with a toned body. However, many a times, parents tend to ignore the fact that even children need to stay fit, in order to remain healthy and strong. Parents tend to focus more on their kid's school work and extracurricular activities and so, fitness often takes the back seat.

Most modern day kids tend to lead unhealthy lifestyles - thanks to all those video games, access to phones and computers right from a young age, a whole variety of junk food, etc. The above-mentioned habits practiced by the kids can cause a lot of health issues such as childhood obesity, a weakened immune system, constant viral infections and stomach issues, stunted growth, etc. So, it is very crucial for the kids to maintain a regular fitness routine, in order to stay healthy and avoid a number of unnecessary health problems. If you want to know how to help your kids get fit and healthy, have a look below! 

 

Tip #1 Make it a point to ensure that your child gets involved in a regular fitness routine at least a few days in a week. Experiment with different ideas like karate, swimming, sports, junior gyms, etc, to see what works for them, so that they are motivated to continue. 

 

 Tip #2 Parents can spend some time every day involving themselves in playing sports with their kids, be it cricket, basketball, running, etc. This helps the kids to get fit as well as allow the parents to spend some quality time with their kids.

Tip #3 Set rules for your kids on how much time they can spend with their gadgets. You can tell them that if they spend an hour playing video games, they need to spend an hour playing an outdoor sport. Tip #4 You can try and talk to the parents of your child's friend and see if they can join the same fitness routine class. If a friend goes along, chances are that your children also will be more than happy to join the class.

Tip #5 You can try talking to your kids and educating them about the importance of being fit and the hazards of spending too much time in front of the computer or let them know how unhealthy junk food can be.