Womb service
Consider life in the weeks leading up to birth. Your baby never experiences hunger, cold, silence, stillness or isolation. They are held increasingly firmly by the strong muscles of the uterus. Their digestive system is still. They are rocked by the gentle movement of their mother, even as she sleeps. Her presence is constant, her heartbeat and other body sounds a rhythmic soundtrack. Light and sound are muted.
It is relatively simple to create a familiar environment for your baby. Pinky McKay, best-selling author of titles including Parenting By Heart and Sleeping Like a Baby, describes the newborn’s needs as “womb service”. The parents’ goal is to replicate those conditions to allow a gentle transition into life. She describes them as the five Ws:
Warmth
Wrapping
Wearing your baby
Water
Womb sounds
White noise
White noise is any constant, sound which masks sudden and unpredictable noises in a space. Many adults and children find listening to white noise helps them relax and fall asleep. Babies often find these sounds remind them of the constant sounds of their mother in the womb. Although you can invest in special machines which play white noise and womb sounds for your baby, there are free or cheap apps available to use on your phone which serve the same purpose! Or you can turn on a fan or other household appliance in the background while you sooth and settle your baby.
Gentle Swaddling
Swaddling is an old word for wrapping an infant in cloth. In many northern hemisphere societies, babies were traditionally tightly swaddled with multiple layers to keep them warm in fiercely cold climates. Some incorporated a cradleboard, a combination of swaddling, crib and baby carrier in one.
In warmer climates, light shawls or thin blankets were wrapped around babies to offer security and replicate the tight embrace of the womb. In some cultures, elaborate techniques were passed from mother to daughter and involved vast lengths of fabric.
In the modern western world, swaddling has come to be associated not only with blankets but also full body suits which replace traditional bedding. Most parents and health professionals now refer to this as “wrapping”
Many families have treasured swaddling shawls and blankets passed down the generations
It is important to follow safety guidelines when wrapping a baby before sleep. You can find current advice at rednose.org.au. Tight wrapping of a baby’s legs and hips is not recommended as it has been associated with conditions like developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). Your midwife or child health nurse can show you safe and comfortable ways to wrap your baby for sleep or settling.
These early weeks of life will see the most rapid development of a child’s life. By three months, your baby looks and behaves in a more mature, coordinated manner. They interact with those around them and are engaged in their world. The baby in those photos from the first week is almost unrecognisable compared to this smiling, rounded little person. They have graduated from the fourth trimester and are ready for the next adventure.
