The 5 S’s for Baby: A Guide for Soothing Your Little One (2023)

FAQs

What is the first strategy for soothing an infant? ›

Retreat with your baby to cuddle quietly, away from people and noise. Sucking on a pacifier also soothes, or you can try swaddling her in a light blanket so she feels safe and snug. Hot — or cold. Layers work well when dressing your baby, but too few or too many can leave her uncomfortable and in tears.

Similar to the knee reflex, triggered by a precise whack of a hammer, the calming reflex kicks in with very specific actions. And when it does kick in, it acts as an off-switch for crying. [Read more: Baby Reflexes]

Gently rub her back. If your baby goes to sleep, remember to always lay her down in her crib on her back. Turn on a calming sound. Sounds that remind babies of being inside the womb may be calming, such as a white noise device, the humming sound of a fan, or the recording of a heartbeat.

It is also helpful to remember what we have called the first and second principles of soothing: Some soothing behaviors work some of the time, but nothing works all of the time; Soothing can work preventively if the soothing activities are applied when the infant is not crying rather than just in response to crying.

Many families use some form of the CIO or extinction method to encourage babies to self-soothe. This involves putting babies in their crib while awake and letting them cry for a certain amount of time until soothing them, or avoiding soothing entirely until they fall asleep unassisted.

-First, fold the baby's arms across the chest. -Secure the arms and hold the chin with one hand, while using your dominant hand to hold the baby's bottom. -Then gently rock the baby at a 45-degree angle for some instant calm. Every move is meant to be very gentle.

Pediatrician reveals magic touch to calm crying baby in seconds

It's thought by some that gentle, repetitive tapping on the bum is said to mimic the sound and rhythm of a mother's heart beat in the womb. If your baby was head-down-bum-up like most are in the third trimester, their wee bottom's are what was closest to Mom's heart in utero.

What age are babies most fussy? ›

Most babies will have a period of increased fussiness starting at around 2 weeks of age and usually peaking between 6-8 weeks of age. Although, this is a normal developmental stage for infants it can be very stressful for parents and caregivers.

During this stage, infants have a calming reflex and respond well to imitations of the womb. Therefore, parents can use some calming womb-like sensations, often referred to as the 5 S's: Swaddle, Side-Stomach Position, Shush, Swing, and Suck.

Babies Know When You're Sad Even if You Don't Show It, Study Finds. If you're the type to keep a blank face when things go wrong, baby can see right through you — and even empathize with you — a new study published in the journal Infant Behavior and Development reveals.

There has been no clear, long term research that we can find to support the notion that swaddling, in and of itself, causes Sensory Processing Disorder. If your baby doesn't respond well to a swaddle, then don't use it.

There is something called 'the period of PURPLE crying' which refers to a time period when some babies begin crying more and may be hard to settle. This usually starts at about 2 weeks of age and peaks at 8 weeks. It usually ends by 12 weeks of age. Parents may feel guilty and angry if they can't soothe their baby.

Why do dads (guys) sometimes have more trouble with Purple Crying than other people? Fathers are used to “fixing” things and that often doesn't work with babies. Babies are not machines that respond in a predictable way to attempts to “fix” the problem.

While this might appear alarming, rest assured that it is normal for infants to twitch and move throughout the night. Your baby's kicking is likely related to sleep phases and patterns, bedtime routines, and restlessness or discomfort.

Oftentimes you'll notice your baby is beginning to develop self-soothing behaviors when they start to fall asleep on their own at night, or you'll see signs such as moving their head back and forth, playing with feet/sucking on hands, sucking in general (with or without a pacifier), re-positioning/rolling around, or ...

Babies love to be held, touched and reassured that you're there, so settling in a cot on their own can often be difficult for them. Your baby's missing your touch and attention, and they're letting you know about it (NHS, 2019). From their very first hours of life, babies will cry when separated from their mothers.

Can you hold a baby too much? ›

Contrary to popular myth, it's impossible for parents to hold or respond to a baby too much, child development experts say. Infants need constant attention to give them the foundation to grow emotionally, physically and intellectually.

“Graduated” basically means that parents are encouraged to put baby to bed when they're drowsy but still awake. Then, you're to let your baby cry for 5 minutes before responding the first time. After that, you may extend the time between responses by 5- (or fewer) minute increments.

Validate her feelings, but remove the attention from crying. Focus instead on redirecting her behavior towards the goal, and ignore additional outbursts. Lavish praise for attempting or accomplishing the goal. Don't do this: Say, “I'll go to the store and buy the cereal bars you want,” and ignore her upset feelings.

Excessive infant crying doubles the risk of behavioral, hyperactivity, and mood problems at the age of 5–6, as reported by their mother. Maternal burden of infant care partially mediates the association between excessive crying and behavioral and mood problems.

Babies cry a lot because it is a method of communication for them. When baby first begins to stay asleep throughout the night, it is because they are learning to self-soothe. Babies typically learn to self-soothe around 6 months.

Pediatrician reveals magic touch to calm crying baby in seconds

Self-soothing is when your baby can calm down and go to sleep again by themselves. Babies who can self-soothe sleep for longer periods and have longer total sleep times at night. If you put your baby to bed drowsy but awake, they might take a little while to go to sleep. They might even grizzle. This is OK.

If a parent is seeing self-soothing behaviors around bedtime, step in and be their outside regulator. Parents can do this by rocking their child, snuggling, bottle feeding, swaddling, rubbing their back or even massaging their feet.

While this might appear alarming, rest assured that it is normal for infants to twitch and move throughout the night. Your baby's kicking is likely related to sleep phases and patterns, bedtime routines, and restlessness or discomfort.

Although "crying it out" as a sleep training tactic is not recommended for newborns, if you're about to start crying hysterically, it's OK to put baby down in a safe space for a few minutes to give yourself a break.

Should I remove pacifier when baby is sleeping? ›

Can You Leave The Pacifier While Your Baby Sleeps? Yes. There's no reason why you should remove the pacifier from your sleeping baby unless you're trying to wean them. But if the pacifier falls off your baby's mouth, you don't have to return it.

It just so happens that there is one bundle of tricks known as the “5 S's.” Pediatrician Harvey Karp pioneered this method when he brought together five techniques that mothers have often used and organized them into this easy mnemonic: swaddle, side-stomach position, shush, swing, and suck.

It's thought by some that gentle, repetitive tapping on the bum is said to mimic the sound and rhythm of a mother's heart beat in the womb. If your baby was head-down-bum-up like most are in the third trimester, their wee bottom's are what was closest to Mom's heart in utero.

-First, fold the baby's arms across the chest. -Secure the arms and hold the chin with one hand, while using your dominant hand to hold the baby's bottom. -Then gently rock the baby at a 45-degree angle for some instant calm. Every move is meant to be very gentle.

Oftentimes you'll notice your baby is beginning to develop self-soothing behaviors when they start to fall asleep on their own at night, or you'll see signs such as moving their head back and forth, playing with feet/sucking on hands, sucking in general (with or without a pacifier), re-positioning/rolling around, or ...

Developing positive sleep environments and routines can also support your toddler to self-settle. There are a few approaches you can try if you are concerned with your toddler's sleeping, these include: parental presence, camping out, bedtime fading and controlled comforting.