Why bonding with your baby is so important

Think back to the last moment when you had a rush of positive emotions as you snuggled and played with your baby. It probably wasn’t long ago. Babies have his knack of eliciting much love — and it works both ways. They feel that rush too!

Remember you are the best toy in the world for your baby and all she actually wants is your time.

Feeling loved and connecting with a human being is the foundation of our social experience. In life, if we have lot of positive early social experiences, it bodes well for the way we see the world, whether we can trust another, how we make friends and ultimately how we connect in society. One could say that this is the most important foundation we could give our children, because it will not only affect their marriage but their work life and parenting ability too. Bonding is linked ultimately to success in all areas.

The good news is that bonding with your baby is not difficult. Here are four principles you can remember:

• Play with your baby. Play is your baby’s work — they learn about their world through games. Play can involve toys or simply be a game like pee-a-boo.
• Touch your little one. Her sense of touch teaches her about the world and positive touch tells her that people are safe.
• Language – both verbal and non-verbal — is a critical element of socialisation and connecting with others. Talking to her, making eye contact and smiling teaches your little one to respond back with language.
• Consistency is key when it comes to forming pictures of the world. When an activity or boundary or relationship is reinforced it builds expectations. For instance, when you consistently say goodbye when you leave and hello when you return, you give her the concept that separations are safe and in time she will become more self contained and confident.

Using these four principles throughout your day will not only bring you and your baby great pleasure but will confirm and reinforce your bond. Set aside time each day to play, touch and talk and make this a habit – make it consistent.

A wonderful way to do this, if you are out of ideas is to sign up for a program that gives you ideas on how and what to play with your little one. The main goal of a program like Nubabi’s Weekly Stimulation Guide may seen to be developmental milestones but truly, the magic is that it actually facilitates bonding in an easy to use way. It takes the stress out of thinking about activates to play and it takes away the expense of toys, that often are not needed.

Remember you are the best toy in the world for your baby and all she actually wants is your time.

Have fun – play, touch and talk and do it every day.