As a new mama, I want to be sure the answers I find to my questions and concerns are evidence and research based. I also want to have a ton of fun with my baby girl while helping her learn in fun, messy and creative ways!
Below you'll find some of my favorite resources and materials to keep our little one growing strong in all areas.
Resources
Social-Emotional Resources
Health Resources
Click a link to find out more information.
Postpartum Care
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Bringing home a newborn is a little stressful, especially when it's time for them to sleep.
For information on safe sleep practices, check out the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development
Safe to Sleep
Health Resources
The Safe to Sleep Campaign has been credited with reducing the number of SIDS cases each year. However, with more infants sleeping on their back, the number of infants presenting with plagiocephaly (flat head) has increased. Find out more by visiting the Johns Hopkins Medicine site on Deformational Plagiocephaly.
Plagiocephaly
The Apgar score, aptly named for Virginia Apgar who devised the test, occurs 1 minute and 5 minutes after a baby is born. At the 1 minute mark, the test determines how well the baby tolerated the birthing process. At the 5 minute mark, the test determines how well the baby is doing outside the mother's womb. For more information, check out Apgar Score.
Apgar Score
Meconium is the first stool of a newborn. Meconium Aspiration occurs when a newborn breathes in meconium and amniotic fluid around the time of delivery. Meconium Aspiration typically occurs when the fetus is stressed or past their due date. For more information, head on over to Meconium Aspiration Syndrome.
Meconium Aspiration
Since the Safe to Sleep Campaign launched, the importance of daily and frequent tummy time is bigger than before.
Tummy time helps an infant build strength in their head, neck, shoulder and back muscles; paving the way for bigger gross motor movements and milestones.
Tummy time also helps to develop an infant's visual, proprioceptive, balance, hearing and social emotional abilities.
Tummy time is also important when considering the shape of an infant's head. With the Safe to Sleep Campaign and infant's spending a large number of hours on their backs, tummy time helps to take pressure off of a baby's head in an attempt to prevent or decrease the chance of plagiocephaly.
Read more here and here
Tummy Time
Click the photo to see it larger.
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31-62% of women experience Carpal Tunnel Syndrome during their pregnancy; most reporting to feel the effects of CTS around 30 weeks gestation.
Why? Well in pregnancy, our blood volume doubles. This increase in fluid puts pressure on the blood vessels in our body. Our wrist has 9 tendons and 1 nerve; with the added pressure, some women experience CTS.
Some symptoms include: a numbness or tingling, a burning sensation and pain in the wrist of hand.
Managing CTS: Conservative options include wearing a wrist brace or applying ice and trying to elevate and rest the wrist as much as possible. More intensive treatments include Occupational Therapy and Medication.
When will it go away? Many women experience relief from CTS (with no lingering symptoms) soon after their baby is born. Others report feeling CTS for the first year of their babies life.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
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(as a pregnancy symptom)
Self-Regulation is the foundation for lifelong functioning; more important in determining "kindergarten readiness" than knowing the ABCs or rote counting and it sets the stage for managing stressful, distracting, challenging, life situations in any stage of development.
Self-Regulation by definition is the ability to manage one's thoughts and feelings to enable goal-directed actions. Essentially, by gaining control of our thoughts and feelings/motivations, we can make the most beneficial, thought out decision in any situation; regardless of the difficulty level.
This is a HUGE topic and I am only skimming the surface with these links. Stay tuned, there's more to come.
Self-Regulation
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Myopia aka Nearsightedness is when objects near to the individual appear clear and objects further away appear blurry.
Myopia is a refractive issue in which light is focused in front of the retina (due to an elongated eye shape) instead of the back of the retina.
Myopia is generally diagnosed in school-age children and adults when demands require them to read the board or see further distances.
When myopia is diagnosed in toddlers, studies show that increasing outdoor time may slow down the progression of myopia as the child ages.
Additional medical interventions include administering low-atropine drops (to slow myopic progression), peripheral defocus lenses (to slow myopic progression) and orthokeratology lenses (to flatten the cornea).
Myopia
I love to get messy...the messier, the better and I enjoy exploring different, developmentally appropriate sensory activities with our baby girl. Some of these you can make yourself (so fun!) with products you may already have at home. Some of them you can purchase through the Shop so be sure to head on over there for links!
Play & Sensory Ideas
Click through for some ideas
This site was my favorite for sensory ideas when I was teaching. I am so thrilled they have a special section for babies!
Click through for more ideas
Sensory Ideas
Our favorite toy/activity this week is the Baby Einstein We Grow Around walker and activity table.
It is perfect for our baby girl who is happier when she's moving. I love it because it's interactive and safe for her to stand in and begin to practice her gross motor movements.
This walker is great because it can change as our baby girl grows. The seat on wheels can come off completely leaving behind a perfect sized table for our baby girl to stand and play or pull up a chair and get cozy with her toys. In addition, all 4 tabletop pieces can come off and I can replace them with the 4 white pieces that came with the set.
Find the Baby Einstein We Grow Around in the Shop or by visiting Amazon here!