Attachment parenting is a theory of parenting that helps promote secure and close attachments between child and parent. There are seven techniques that are also known as Baby B’s that help promote this style of parenting. Below is a list of all seven and brief explanation of how to incorporate it into your parenting.
1.Birth bonding-Attachment parenting holds the theories that the way baby and parents get started with one another helps the early attachment unfold. The days and weeks after birth are a sensitive period in which mothers and babies are uniquely programmed to want to be close to one another. Attachment theory proponents feel that a close attachment after birth and beyond allows the natural, biological attachment-promoting behaviors of the infant and the intuitive, biological, care giving qualities of the mother to come together. When this happens both members of this biological pair get off to the right start at a time when the infant is most needy and the mother is most ready to nurture. Yet some parents may ask, “What if something happens to prevent our immediate bonding?” Sometimes medical complications can keep mother and baby apart for a while, but then catch-up bonding is what happens, starting as soon as possible. Keep in mind that birth bonding is not a “now or never” concept nor is it like instant glue that cements the mother-child relationship together forever. Bonding is a series of steps.
2.Breastfeeding-Attachment parenting proponents feel that breastfeeding helps you read your baby’s cues and her body language, which is the first step in getting to know your baby. Studies show that breast milk contains unique brain-building nutrients that cannot be manufactured or bought. Breastfeeding also promotes the right chemistry between mother and baby by stimulating her body to produce prolactin and oxytocin, hormones that give mothering a boost.
3.Baby wearing- It is felt that a baby learns a lot in the arms of a busy caregiver. Attachment parents feel that carried babies fuss less and spend more time in the state of quiet alertness, the behavior state in which babies learn most about their environment. It is also felt that ‘Baby wearing’ improves the sensitivity of the parents.
4.Bedding close to baby-While Attachment parents feel that bedding close to your baby is best, it is clearly understood that wherever all family members get the best night’s sleep is the right arrangement for your individual family. The method of Attachment parenting states that co-sleeping adds a nighttime touch that helps busy daytime parents reconnect with their infant at night. It is felt that since nighttime is scary time for little people, sleeping within close touching and nursing distance minimizes nighttime separation anxiety and helps baby learn that sleep is a pleasant state to enter and a fearless state to remain in.
5.Belief in the language value of your baby’s cry-A baby’s cry is a signal that is designed for the survival of the baby and the development of the parents. Attachment parents feel that responding sensitively to your baby’s cries builds trust. When responding to your baby’s cry, babies come to trust that their caregivers will be responsive to their needs and parents gradually learn to trust in their ability to appropriately meet their baby’s needs.
6.Beware of baby trainers-Attachment parenting teaches you how to be discerning of advice. This is especially true for those rigid and extreme parenting styles that teach you to watch a clock or a schedule instead of your baby. It is felt that these more restrained styles of parenting create a distance between you and your baby and keep you from becoming an expert on your child.
7.Balance-New parents in their zeal to give so much to their baby may find it easy to neglect the needs of themselves and your marriage. Attachment parents find the key to putting balance in your parenting is being appropriately responsive to your baby; that is, knowing when to say “yes” and when to say “no,” and having the wisdom to say “yes” to yourself when you need help.
Parenting viewpoints from parents in the trenches, because parenting doesn’t come with a manual. In addition to