Positive encouragement and commitment to the proper development of children are key for the baby. Parents, from the moment they conceive a baby, have the responsibility to guarantee their good physical and emotional health. Being a father and mother is the most important job in the world, it is about nothing less than caring for another human being. A life that comes into the world totally dependent on its parents, who must ensure that you become a healthy person both physically and emotionally.
Of course, it is not an easy task. But how can you ensure that a fragile baby can grow up to be a successful adult? Positive encouragement and parental commitment are key and will determine that a baby can grow in trust and harmony with the love and care it receives from its parents every day.
What does positive encouragement imply?
The sense of hearing is the most important source in your baby's development. Therefore, speaking with the baby in pleasant tones, with affection and with all the love in the world, will have a great impact on the development of the baby. Although it may seem that they do not understand what you are saying, the reality is that it is of great importance that parents talk with their baby every day. The mother's voice, for example, calms the baby and provides security and emotional comfort.
The way you speak to your children will be your inner voice for the future. Babies recognize the voices of their parents since they are in the womb, in fact, before they are born, the voices of the parents can positively influence the emotional development of the baby. Little ones need to feel love through words. Even saying things like: 'I hope you are a girl' the baby may feel the feeling of rejection from the mother if it is not. Parents are responsible for the baby's self-esteem from before birth.
How do you build self-esteem in a baby?
This is where positive encouragement is key. We are talking about going beyond parenting where the basic needs of the baby are immediately met. Sensitive parenting is based on feelings of love that will enhance the baby's self-esteem. When a baby feels the love again and again from his parents, he will feel loved and valued, essential for self-esteem to begin to develop.
It is necessary that the love that is transmitted to the baby is constant, that is, for it to remain anchored in the baby's neural networks, repetition is the basis of success. Thus, this parenting pattern can be stored in the baby's mind. Each response action also needs a positive verbal stimulus in order to build a proper emotional bond. Actions without words to calm or comfort, encourage or praise the baby are like bricks stacked on top of each other, but without cement: they are useless.
It is necessary to speak with the baby in a positive way, with words of love, taking advantage of every opportunity or situation. Touch the skin, sing to it, whisper comforting words in its ear. A baby who receives this type of stimulation will feel loved, appreciated and valuable. These feelings are established and integrated in your mind and your heart, being able to know that you are a valuable person. These feelings will help you develop positively in early life, in future relationships and situations.
The importance of expressing emotions
Allow your baby to slowly learn to express his emotions, including anger. That when you express them, you also know that your parents are there to help you regulate those intense emotions and they are also there to teach you to regulate them as you get older, to understand them and express them appropriately for and for your emotional well-being.
Babies and toddlers can seem angry when they are just frustrated, because something is upsetting them. Infants and toddlers are unable to verbalize what is bothering them and this leads to frustration and anger. If when a baby or toddler becomes frustrated and is not taught to channel that emotion or is not comforted emotionally, it may suppress the feeling of anger to please the parents. When that happens often, these repressed feelings can manifest in other, more negative ways, and can even make a child sick. For this reason, parents should always choose positive words to address their baby, such as: 'It's okay my baby, mommy is here'. It is necessary to avoid painful words such as: 'Shut up', 'Don't cry' ... It is better to replace it with positive and loving statements.
How to positively stimulate the baby
It is very important that both parents are fully involved with the baby from even before birth. Here are some tips, which should be done by both parents:
- Talk or sing lovingly to the baby every day
- Read to baby every day
- Play with the little one from the moment of birth, with games appropriate to their age
- Babbling with the baby
- Laugh and tickle
- Make skin-to-skin contact while singing a lullaby
- Repeat games, songs and words to the baby
- Have daily routines to provide security and emotional comfort
- Induce the baby to explore situations and objects under supervision and in a positive way
- Be patient and encourage the baby to do things by himself, under supervision and taking into account his abilities
- Give baby a sense of accomplishment, problem solving… To build self-confidence
- Praise the baby when he puts in effort and determination (not just when he gets things done)
- Teaching infants and toddlers that what matters is not the outcome, but rather, not giving up
- Show your baby from before birth your unconditional love for him / her