The first year of a child’s life is full of phases and challenges. During this period, the baby tends to go through 4 developmental crises: at 3, 6, 8 years and 12 months.
These seizures are part of the child’s normal development and are linked to “mental leaps,” meaning moments when the baby’s mind develops rapidly, marked by behavioral changes. In these seizures, babies usually become more difficult, cry more, become more irritated, and become more needy.
- Understand your baby’s seizures during the first year of life and what you can do each year.
- It is important to remember that each family has its own structure.
- Characteristics and possibilities and therefore must adapt to them.
This crisis occurs because until then, for the baby, he and the mother are one person, as if it were a pregnancy outside the womb. This phase can also be described as a second birth, being the first biological, the day of delivery and at 3 months, a psychological birth occurs. At this point, the baby begins to interact more, to look into the eyes, to imitate gestures, to play and to complain.
The 3-month crisis occurs precisely because the child has the perception that he is no longer trapped in his mother, understands that he is not part of it, sees it as one more being and needs to call it to get what he needs, which can generate anxiety in the baby, that can be perceived for more moments of crying. This crisis lasts an average of 15 days and shows eye-catching signs such as:
As this is the moment when the baby begins to discover the world, becomes more active and his vision improves, everything is new and causes agitation and already understands that with crying will cover his needs, generating anxiety and sometimes irritability.
Since this is a completely normal stage of developmental adjustment and very important for growth, parents should try to stay calm and maintain a peaceful environment to help the baby overcome this, because in a few days, the routine will return to normal. The child should not be medicated at this stage.
The mother is advised to insist on breastfeeding because her body can produce the necessary amount of milk the child needs. Therefore, if the baby’s intake is correct and the breasts do not hurt or crack, there is no indication that the baby is feeding poorly and therefore breastfeeding should not be stopped. One point to keep in mind is that, at this point, the child is more easily distracted, so seeking breastfeeding in quiet places can help.
Other methods that can help during this crisis include giving a lot of knees to the baby and applying the kangaroo method, telling stories showing colorful drawings in books, among other actions that show contact and attention. See here what the Kangaroo method is and how to do it.
Between 5 and 6 months the child forms the family triangle and that is when the child realizes that there is a father figure. As much as the father is active from birth, the baby’s relationship does not have the same meaning as it has with the mother, and it is only around six months that this recognition occurs, and then the crisis begins.
Signs of seizures include excessive crying, changes in sleep and mood, the child does not have much appetite and may be more needy and irritable. To confuse a little, the onset of birth of the tooth often occurs during this period and both phases can be confused, as teething also causes discomfort and the child may be more agitated and irritated, as well as causing diarrhea and even fever. See symptoms of the birth of the first teeth.
The 6-month crisis also happens to the mother and often affects her more than the child, who has to deal with the father’s entry into the relationship, and it is often during this period that many women return to work, intensifying their crisis.
It is time for the mother to give space and the father to be present in the child’s life, as well as to support and help the mother. The mother must be monitored so as not to feel guilty or jealous, as she needs to increase the baby’s network of contacts. However, according to some experts, the baby’s adaptation to day care is easier if it is done before 8 months, because in this period parents still do not feel so much. Learn more about 6-month-old baby development.
In some children, this seizure can occur at 6 months or others at 9, but it usually occurs at 8 months and is considered a crisis of separation, anxiety or fear of strangers, where the baby’s personality can change a lot.
This seizure lasts the longest, about 3 to 4 weeks and occurs because the baby begins to separate most often from the mother and, in her head, understands that she will not return, leading to the feeling of abandonment. There is a sudden rupture in the rhythm of sleep in this crisis, the child wakes up all night and wakes up scared and crying intensely. Other signs include restlessness and loss of desire to eat, being more intense than in other seizures. However, because this phase depends on each child’s personality, it is also common for some babies to go through the crisis smoothly.
Many couples take their child to sleep in the same bed with them, but this practice is not ideal because parents do not sleep peacefully for fear of hurting the child and there is this risk, as well as alienating the couple and the child becoming very dependent. about parents, demanding more and more attention. When the child has a crying attack at night, it is better for the mother to calm him down, because when the mother leaves, the child has the thought that she will not return. This helps her understand that the presence of the mother can be followed by absences.
In addition, at this stage the child can adhere to an object defined by himself, which is important because it represents the figure of the mother and helps him realize that, since the object does not disappear, the mother, even if he is absent. , it won’t go away. Another trick is that the mother always kisses the object and then leaves it to the child, so that she can feel the mother and not feel helpless.
As in other phases, it is important to give the child affection and attention to reassure him of his anguish, as well as always saying goodbye to the baby to make him understand that he will return and that he will not be abandoned. A good example of gameplay in this phase is hiding.
This is the phase in which the child begins to take the first steps and therefore wants to discover the world and be more independent. However, she remains dependent and much in need of her parents. The crisis is precisely why.
The main signs of this seizure are irritation and crying, especially when the child wants to reach an object or move somewhere and cannot. It is also common for the baby not to want to eat or unable to sleep properly.
With regard to the beginning of the walking process, parents should encourage the child to move, support, accompany and support, but never force, because the child will begin to walk when he believes he or she can and when the brain and legs collaborate. Still, sometimes the child wants and can’t, which makes him anxious. It is recommended that the environment be healthy, welcoming and quiet, and although this phase can be a little difficult, it is striking and very significant.
In addition, the more support and protection the child receives at this separation stage, the better he tends to cope.