Health Care for Children

Your Little One’s Worries
 

Sure, your little one’s not worried about her plummeting 401(k) or a too-long to-do list, but the ordeals of daily life can have the same physiological effect on her that stress has on you, flooding her with hormones like cortisol and speeding up her heart rate. That can turn her into a cranky crybaby who flails her limbs, fusses, and furrows her brow.

“Babies need to learn how to cope with stress,” says Cathi Propper, Ph.D., a research scientist at the University of North Carolina’s Center for Developmental Science, in Chapel Hill. “With your support, your child will pick up soothing strategies over the first year so that she can start to do it on her own.” Until then, we’ve got advice on helping your little one through five scenarios that ratchet up the tension in her life.

Shopping In a Crowded Store
 
Lights! Noise! Strangers cooing at him! All that sensory input can cause an overload. To shut it out, he may start howling.

Soothing Solution: Stop for a moment and take a cuddle break, as Amy Pitzen, of Aurora, Illinois, did when 6-monthold Tim began wailing in the mall. “I started to head back to the car, but he was so upset that I ended up finding a quiet corner and nursing. The only thing that soothed him was skin-to-skin contact and the sound of my heartbeat.” Can’t pause to snuggle? Tuck one of your scarves or blankets from home in next to him. A study from Gettysburg College, in Pennsylvania, found that familiar scents help worked-up babies calm down faster.

Not Having Your Full Attention
 
Why does your baby fuss the second you get on the phone? Because she’s used to having your instant response to her smiles, coos, and cries of frustration — and few situations stress her out as much as feeling ignored (even temporarily).

Soothing Solution: Let her know you hear her. In one study, babies who were genetically predisposed to be unable to regulate their heart rate under stress learned to calm themselves as effectively as other babies by 12 months. The key? Having attentive, sensitive caregivers who responded quickly to their cries and paid attention when they needed it, says Cathi Propper, Ph.D., a research scientist at the University of North Carolina’s Center for Developmental Science, in Chapel Hill. “Some infants have the form of a gene that has been linked to excitability, but positive parenting can override its negative effect.” That doesn’t mean you have to give up talking on the phone, but if your baby seems upset, smile or dangle a rattle to let her know you haven’t forgotten her.