Survive 7 developmental leaps and not go crazy.

A child's nervous system matures differently than the body: in leaps and bounds. Changes appear suddenly and are often surprising, and children require (even) more attention during them. They then need closeness - they may be grumpy, tearful, eat more or less, and sleep worse. They usually don't want to be separated from their mothers. Each such jump brings a big change, and when the process is completed, the child has new skills. During jumps, the child may also grow intensively (up to 9 mm in one day!) or gain weight.

Jumping in the first year of life happens so often that parents may have trouble distinguishing it from other problems, such as growing teeth or the child's simply worse mood. American researchers distinguish three signals that, when present simultaneously, mean that the child is going through another "crisis" :

• The child begins to sleep differently - suddenly sleeps through the night or wakes up every now and then.
• The child begins to eat much more or loses his appetite completely.
• The child is grumpy and irritable for no particular reason, even for several days.

Interestingly, when the jump begins - lasting from a week to several weeks - parents often have the impression that the child has suddenly forgotten the skills it acquired earlier. This is because the multitude of stimuli can temporarily "turn off" some functions, but then everything returns to normal. So far, the baby has mainly slept and eaten - newborns sleep most of the time, and the biggest attraction is feeding. After the first developmental leap, this changes.

The first developmental leap.

It usually happens when the baby stops being a newborn, i.e. after the first month of life. Around the 5th week , vision improves, the baby sees more and can focus on the mother's or father's face. It perceives all stimuli very intensely, so it is worth being careful with loud sounds and light. After this first developmental leap, the toddler begins to smile, listen with greater concentration and changes the rhythm of naps and activity. During this time, the digestive system also matures, so it digests better and dries less.

The second developmental leap.

It occurs at the turn of the 2nd and 3rd month of the baby's life. Then you will notice that he recognizes rhythms and rituals, discovers his body and begins to control its movements, especially his limbs, and explores his vocal abilities. During this time, he also learns facial expressions and watches his parents' faces very carefully. He tries to lift his head, waves his arms and legs, reaches out for toys and starts cooing.

Third and fourth developmental leaps.

Around 12 weeks of age, the baby begins to focus on details, has better coordination, can follow the toy with his eyes and puts everything in his mouth. He begins to squeal and hoot, and can also grab a toy with both hands. After the next, fourth jump, the child will try to crawl, transfer toys from one hand to the other, throw them down and respond to his name. This is also the moment when the mirror becomes the best toy. This happens between weeks 14 and 19 .

Fifth, sixth and seventh jumps.

The next surge, between weeks 22 and 26, is characterized by the appearance of separation anxiety - the baby reacts with crying and anxiety when the parents disappear. During this time, he begins to investigate cause and effect relationships and increasingly boldly explore his abilities: he claps his hands and waves goodbye. After the next jump - the penultimate one in this period of life - the child begins to show a sense of humor, recognizes shapes and lets him know what he wants to play and do. This happens between weeks 33 and 37 . The last stage of development in the first year of life is climbing, first steps and imitating all activities that adults do. This happens around 11 months of age .

How to survive this difficult period?

Okay: but how to do it to support the child as best as possible and at the same time not fall into the depths of parental frustration? The answer may be attachment parenting, a model of supporting a child's growth in which closeness, attention and balance are key .

The rules are simple: be close, observe and listen carefully, respond to the baby's signals and cries, which contain a lot of information. Carry, cuddle, sleep together. Don't believe in the golden installments of "baby whisperers" who believe that your baby "needs to cry" or offer sleep training. These methods are very harmful to the child's health, you can read more about it in a separate article . It is difficult for a child during a developmental leap. He doesn't know what's going on, he receives a lot of stimuli that his nervous system cannot cope with, and the last thing he needs is a parent who believes in training.

The oldest methods are the most helpful: carrying, lulling, including slinging - it is worth learning to carry your baby in a sling with a sling consultant. Children like touch as it calms them down. Many babies respond perfectly to gentle massage . Some children are calmed down by "white noise" - the sound of a hummingbird, a hair dryer or even a vacuum cleaner. There are also ready-made “white noise” compilations on YouTube. Some children find it helpful to rock on a large ball or in a stroller to calm down.

What is definitely not worth doing is planning trips, trips or events with many people for these "hot" peak periods. Any additional stimulus will distract the child even more.

Parents will also be supported by wise books : the Polish guide "How to understand a small child" or books by the outstanding Scandinavian educator Jasper Juul.

Bibliography:

1. Lewsley J., “Baby growth spurts.” Babycentre.co.uk, accessed December 23, 2021.
2. Robock K., “3 signs your baby is actually going through a growth spurt.” Todaysparent.com, April 1, 2019
3. Radziszowska A., "The most important developmental leaps in the first year of a child's life." Dziecisawazne.pl, accessed December 23, 2021.