Fourth trimester: Help your baby adapt to the world

The fourth trimester is a period that holds an extremely important and meaningful role for the development of babies in the first three months. This is the time to help babies change and gradually adapt to the strange world outside the womb.

The fourth trimester is the term used to refer to the period from the first day after the baby is born until the baby turns 3 months old. This is the period when the newborn baby changes and develops the most, and at the same time gets used to and gradually adapts to the world outside the mother's womb.
Children will begin to learn many things to be able to adjust themselves to external environmental conditions, including sounds, lights, scents, sights and extremely new sensations. Therefore, parents should not ignore this seemingly redundant stage, because it will decide as well as promote the development of children in the next stages.
To make it easier for children to adapt to the outside environment, mothers should give them lots of love and care within the first 3 months after birth.

In large part, the change and adaptation to the environment outside the womb of a newborn baby will depend significantly on the care and love brought from the mother.
Right from birth, infants only instinctively control their movements, but sensory development is still limited. This limitation includes vision, or difficulty making sounds out of oneself.
The fourth trimester is the most favorable period for the baby to change and get used to the surrounding environment under the enthusiastic support of parents. At this time, the child's brain and nervous system are on a strong development and can absorb everything quickly. Furthermore, the connections in a child's brain become tighter when the brain is stimulated regularly. This is also the time when the mother notices the most obvious changes in the child.

Crying: mothers will find that this is the time when babies cry the most. This is a normal sign of changes in children when exposed to the outside environment. Normally, babies will tend to cry the most around the first 5-6 weeks after birth, then the frequency of crying will gradually decrease when the baby is 3 months old.
Babies can cry for many different reasons, such as wanting to communicate with their parents, needing help, attention and care from their parents, signaling hunger, feeling uncomfortable, or relieving anxiety. stress. At times like these, parents need to find out why their baby cries a lot and how to reassure and help the child feel more comfortable and comfortable.
Sleep: in the fourth trimester, babies often sleep a lot, especially in the first weeks. At that time, children will have less sense of day compared to night. By 6-8 weeks, babies will gradually sleep less during the day and spend more time sleeping at night, sometimes waking up to feed in the middle of the night.
In fact, when the child sleeps, it is the time for the brain to work and perform the task of processing the information that the child receives from the outside environment while awake. It will take a few weeks to a few months for your baby to be able to adjust his or her sleep to a lot of nighttime sleep.
After the first few weeks, you can start teaching your baby the difference between day and night, then gradually establish a reasonable sleep schedule.

During the day, you should put the baby to sleep in a bright space and no noise around. On the contrary, in the evening, let your child sleep in a dark space or have soft light so that the child can easily fall asleep.
When your baby is one month old, you can establish some bedtime routines for your baby, such as singing, bedtime reading, or simply a goodnight kiss. In fact, singing or reading to children before going to bed is a very useful thing to do. Children may enjoy hearing your voice, and this is also the beginning of acquiring a language.
Breastfeeding: whether you are bottle-feeding or breast-feeding, babies will fill up very quickly (due to their small stomachs) and tend to feed more often in the first few weeks. Over time, babies will feed more frequently at a certain time of day, so subsequent feedings will become less frequent, last longer, and no longer feel as random as before.
Breastfeeding on demand will be the best care for your baby. In addition, breastfeeding also helps to better tailor breast milk to the needs of the baby.
Some signs that your baby is wanting to breastfeed include sucking his thumb, crying, opening his mouth or turning his head. In fact, breastfeeding not only helps children stop hunger, but this is also a good opportunity for mothers to cuddle, make eye contact and pay more attention to their babies.
Flexibility and stronger physical development: at birth, babies are almost completely helpless and less able to control their own body movements. Over time, children begin to have some natural reflexes and can grasp objects. In addition, your baby's neck is also stronger and has more control over his head, while developing other physical skills.

Daily tummy time from the beginning is extremely important to help babies develop muscles that allow them to move in a variety of ways, such as arm push-ups, head-up , roll in both directions, sit up or crawl,... However, tummy time should only happen while the baby is awake. Lying on the back remains the safest position for babies under 12 months of age because it reduces the risk of SIDS in babies.

Every child is born with different innate abilities. Some children from the moment they are born catch up to changes in the external environment more quickly than others. To help your baby get used to the changes in the fourth trimester, parents can do the following:
Skin-to-skin contact : the scent and softness of the human body Mother is the most effective medicine to reassure the child's spirit, helping the child feel more comfortable, safe and comfortable.
Wrap your baby : swaddling your baby securely can give your baby the feeling of being held in the womb.
Massage: most babies enjoy gentle massage and other forms of skin-to-skin contact. Baby massage is also a way for both mother and baby to relax and get closer to each other.
Baby carrier: you can carry your baby on your back or on your chest to create physical closeness between you and your baby, helping to strengthen the bond between you two even while you are doing housework and daily errands.
When a child shows abnormal signs of health, parents can take the child to Vinmec Health system for timely examination and treatment.
As a key area of ​​Vinmec Health System, Pediatrics Department - Vinmec International General Hospital always brings satisfaction to customers and is highly appreciated by industry experts thanks to the following advantages:

Gathering a team of leading doctors and nurses in Pediatrics: including leading experts, highly qualified (professor, associate professor, doctorate, master), experienced, worked in big hospitals like Bach Mai, 108.. The doctors are all well-trained, professional, have a heart - reach, understand young psychology. Besides domestic pediatricians, the Department of Pediatrics also has the participation of foreign experts (Japan, Singapore, Australia, USA) who are always pioneers in applying the latest and most effective treatment regimens. . Comprehensive services: In the field of Pediatrics, Vinmec provides a series of continuous medical examination and treatment services from Newborn to Pediatric and Vaccine,... according to international standards to help parents take care of their baby's health from birth to childhood. from birth to adulthood Specialized techniques: Vinmec has successfully deployed many specialized techniques to make the treatment of difficult diseases in Pediatrics more effective: neurosurgery - skull surgery, stem cell transplantation. blood in cancer treatment. Professional care: In addition to understanding children's psychology, Vinmec also pays special attention to the children's play space, helping them to have fun and get used to the hospital's environment, cooperate in treatment, improve the efficiency of medical treatment.

Reference source: babycenter.com

SEE ALSO:
Essential information for newborn care Caring for a newborn until full month Baby's development in the first 1 month after birth