Bonding with baby

MANY pregnant women eagerly anticipate the day they will meet the precious humans they are nurturing in their wombs, so that they can continue the bonding process that would have started during pregnancy. But bonding is not limited to gentle rocking or breastfeeding, and includes a whole gamut of experiences that will ensure the child’s wholesome development.

We asked a few seasoned mothers to share some tips on how new mothers can bond with their babies, and their suggestions are below:

Katherine, mother of three:

Well, breastfeeding is key, of course, once you can, and I always looked into my child’s eyes when I did it. There is a real connection; trust me, you will feel it. I would also do things like sing them little songs that are appropriate that I like and it would make them smile and, over time, they would be rocking. Actually, I will tell you that my children after a while didn’t even have to hear the songs, all they needed was the tune or the little accompanying rhythm to get excited, and it was fun for us.

Aiesha, mother of two:

Honestly, at first I didn’t know what to do except feed her and do the other things to care for her. Very soon, when she was getting fussy, I’d turned on the TV. This happened for about a month or so after she was born. So I basically turned over my responsibilities to the gadgets. With my second child I wasn’t going to make the same mistake. I read more and I learned about things like kangaroo care, which is basically skin-to-skin contact with the baby and she loved it. I also read to her, yes, from as early as the day after she was born, and you know in general kept her engaged in talks as though she was much older, even though she couldn’t really respond to me. I enjoyed it and she was so keen and would look into my eyes lovingly like she understood everything that I was saying.

Palzy, mother of one:

From the moment the doctor told me I was having a boy I basically, from he was inside the womb, said “okay, daddy’s responsibility”. I felt like I wouldn’t know how to make him happy or anything because I consider myself a boring person. Anyway, he was a quiet baby when he was born. My sister who came by to help always wondered why I made him stay in the crib all the time and when I told her how I felt she was so compassionate, and she taught me a few things. One was that babies like massages. I did a little research and you couldn’t imagine his little face, and it gave me so much joy. I also started making silly faces with him, which I got better at over time, and he really looked forward to it. And I talked to him. When I did this he would knit his brows and pretend as though he understood every word. I can’t remember everything now, but even holding him more made me feel closer to him.

Natalie, mother of three:

Have you ever rushed to pick up your crying baby and somebody keeps saying “don’t pick her up, don’t spoil her”? Ignore them! Babies need to feel loved, nurtured and protected. Your baby’s cry means something and they need to know you are there for them. One thing I liked doing with my kids was to play dress up, even just at a few months old, and then I would show them the pictures and they would light up, so that was fun. Also, once you are strong enough you should take your baby out for walks, you know, to the parks and so on. Go for less-crowded places but don’t just keep the child stuck in the house.

Sheen, mother of twins:

Having two children at the same time was tough, especially with feeding and attention and so on, so I had to find ways that would help me to bond with both at the same time. One way was with stuffed toys, and so I had to create storylines and make faces and become a theatre director, but I enjoyed it because it was fun for them. I also played music for them and when my husband was around, he would hold one and I the other and we would dance with them. I think this was one of the things they looked forward to most. Oh, and on my extended maternity leave they were very good company — they listened mostly, and at times gave me some coos and some goo-goo ga-gas.

Anne, mother of two:

My suggestion would be instead of playing games on your phone and taking pictures of the child and being obsessed with social media, take the time to actually interact with the child. I almost got soaked in too because it is nice catching all the memories, but just put the phone away and spend quality time.