Your baby is speaking to you

While every baby comes with a different instruction manual, they do have quite an advanced form of non verbal communication which they use.  We just need to spend a little time figuring out what that is.

Newborns are used to being in the womb and having a constant food supply.  Getting used to being outside the womb and feeling hungry is a whole new experience and is initially quite frightening and stressful for them.  The speed of your response to their feeding cues reduces their stress levels and reassures them that their needs are being met.

Baby cues are those little non verbal cues your baby uses to communicate with you. Catch them and you can respond quickly meeting babies need and all is right in the world. If you miss the cue, baby can become more distressed and will start to fuss and cry. for example the feeding cue is normal them poking their tongue out, it looks a little like this video clip.

Babies are extremely clever and learn very quickly but can easily get sensory overload and will alert you to this by turning away or arching their back and shifting away from you. This is their subtle way of saying they need a little break or that something is wrong and needs to be changed like a wet nappy.

Baby massage classes are a good way of honing your baby communication skills, during class and when practicing at home you tune into your baby.  So that time spent with baby becomes a shared learning experience not just about feeding or changing nappies.