When you become a new parent, you hear a lot of conflicting information on how to parent and how to handle a newborn overall but that doesn’t mean you should be too overwhelmed. While there is no right or wrong way to do things within reason, at the end of the day you’re the one who gets to decide how you parent.
A lot of people I have noticed throughout the years though believe that letting their babies ‘cry it out’ is the best way to get them to stop crying so much or to be ‘better babies’ and well, that’s a load of horsecrap in my opinion. There is research on both sides of things and honestly, it seems like the research is very much more-so in the favor of actually caring for your kid when he/she is letting those tears flow. Sure, sometimes you might feel like all you do is spend your time trying to comfort your crying infant but there is nothing wrong with that.
Yes, there will be people who try to tell you that rushing to your baby’s side is spoiling him/her but you shouldn’t be quick to believe that. Babies cry for reasons and in going to help them or do things for them, you’re just being a good parent and making sure you’re meeting their needs as best you can. You should be proud of yourself for that.
Sanford Health wrote as follows on their website about how important it can be to respond to your babies cries:
Responding to cries and coos develops a sense of trust in your baby. This sense of safety will carry over to your baby’s toddler years and beyond. The foundation of trust helps give your baby self-confidence to try new things. Your baby will be confident enough to leave your side and engage his or her curiosity. Your child will go explore his or her surroundings knowing you will communicate your connection back to him or her. Additionally, your child wants you to be his or her safety net. Frequent eye contact and physical touch are two ways to build up this sense of trust.
Responding to your crying baby will not create a spoiled baby. It will create the foundation for your baby to feel safe and secure to explore and learn.
Don’t get me wrong, even the best parents need breaks sometimes but that doesn’t mean they should just opt to ignore their offspring. In situations like that, they should perhaps pass the baby off to their partner or the child’s grandparents. Your support system is there for you to lean on during the rough moments of this kind of thing.
The more you let your baby cry the more stressed he/she will become and in the long-run they may face issues with their mental health as they grow up. To learn more about all of this please take a look at the video below. What do you think about all of this? Do you believe in letting your babies cry it out?