This blog was produced by Caroline du center Le Capp , a multidisciplinary center for holistic support of women and families. The capp is a group of professionals who offer face-to-face and virtual support and activities to prioritize your physical and mental health as well as your well-being.
Free motor skills: It is the fact of letting the baby do it, not making him do what he does not know how to do himself.
The baby goes naturally, for the most part, through different stages such as the rollover then the pivot on the belly, the crawl, the 4 legs then stands up.
He can do this, without help from outside, if he is in good health, without side preference, a normal tone and especially if he has an environment favorable to his good development.
A favorable environment is an environment that will not limit its movements.
How can I create an environment conducive to the good motor development of my baby?
First of all, care must be taken not to hinder the baby's movements, this is the case for many childcare equipment such as the cocoona baby, deckchair, swing, anti-flat head cushion, shell seat (cosy), soft awakening mat..ect)
All the childcare equipment above limits your baby's movements , it's a bit the same idea as if you, an adult, were in these big cushions (full of polystyrene beads) in which you can't even not get up alone. It's very enveloping, as an adult we like it, it makes us feel safer, of course this can be the case for the baby because it also reminds him of in-utero life, but if your baby was born at term, or premature but he is out of the maternity ward is that he is mature enough to be on a flat, firm surface.
In any case, they should be avoided as much as possible and perhaps for some people use them occasionally for meals (30min) or for car journeys (cosy, but not walks) etc.
Another thing, when you sit in the car, you adult, with a hoodie or a bun ladies, isn't it unpleasant to have something on your back?
Try lying down with a hood on your back… not very pleasant! Well, so are your babies!
"And if I put the hood on her, she won't get in the way anymore?" » : No, it's true, it no longer bothers my back but if my baby turns his head in his sleep, it can obstruct the airways.
Yes but I was offered a superb outfit with small jeans, too cute!! Tell yourself that your baby is always in sports, the slightest movement, he will do it with his whole body.
He needs to experiment with movements, to feel surfaces with his whole body.
If you put on non-flexible jeans, it's like taking a yoga or stretching class with jeans one size smaller… Not very pleasant!
So we keep the beautiful outfits for the 10 min of photos and we put baby back in a comfortable and flexible outfit without belt, hood, shoes… etc.
You can even remove the socks when the baby is awake and on the carpet, because he can scratch the fabric with his hands AND his feet, a new sensory discovery.
All this to tell you that your baby has a very underdeveloped sensory system, although this begins during in-utero life and if you allow him at every moment of his life to take advantage of environmental stimulation, without physical barriers ( clothes, deckchair, doomoo, reducer, etc.), with no sensory barrier (arches, mobiles, screen, etc. = all of this fixes your baby's gaze and therefore limits his movements), he will be able to develop naturally in a favorable environment!
Ps: this will also limit cranial deformities such as plagiocephaly, brachycephaly which may be due to the limitation of movements.