From pregnancy, the mother creates a strong bond with the baby, which becomes tangible after childbirth, a moment in which an important connection between mother and child takes place, thanks to the hormones present during the first hours and days of birth. baby life.
However, although we always talk about the powerful bond between the two of them since before birth, dad can also strengthen his with the baby from birth. We share 11 things that dad can do with the baby to create a strong bond from the first days .
Spend time with him
Of course, the first point is to spend time with the baby during the day (and at night), so that both begin to become familiar with each other’s presence and a beautiful bond gradually grows.
talk to him
Some studies say that babies recognize mom’s voice before birth and it has calming powers, so one way to establish a connection with him from the beginning is for dad to talk to him too.
Although the baby still cannot understand us and is not able to respond, talking to him is a very important part of his development , because in addition to helping him recognize us, it benefits language development.
caress him
A baby feels safe when he knows that we are close to him, and the best way to do this is through touch. By cuddling or caressing him, dad can also convey calm and a message that the baby needs to know: “I’m here for you.”
give him a massage
Along the same lines as the previous point, another thing that dad can do to strengthen the bond with his baby from the first days is to give him gentle massages . You can start with something small, like gently massaging their little feet, and later do a full massage. Here we leave you instructions to do a relaxing massage for babies, step by step.
read to him
From birth, dad can start a nice tradition with his baby: reading stories to him. It is never too early to start reading to babies, and in addition to the fact that a quiet reading will help the baby to relax, this moment will undoubtedly be a very emotional and beautiful one to remember for both of you.
smile at him
As we mentioned when we talked about the emotional development of the baby’s first months, smiling is one of the first social behaviors , related to emotions, that our child will return to us voluntarily.
Smiling at him and returning his smiles is one of the most beautiful and fun ways in which we can promote the bond with him.
skin to skin
Although whenever we talk about skin-to-skin contact -also known as “kangaroo care”- we do it referring to the mother, dad can also do it.
In fact, it is one of the most recommended things to create a strong bond with the baby, because in this way the baby begins to recognize dad through his senses: feeling his skin, identifying his smell, listening to his heartbeat and relaxing with the gentle movement of your breath.
carry him
One of the things that most resembles skin-to-skin is the porterage, which without a doubt dad can do too. Carrying the baby, in addition to keeping him close to us, provides warmth, security, comfort, protection and love for him.
Get involved in your care
Except for breastfeeding, fathers can do just about anything a mother can do. Getting involved in the upbringing and care of the baby from birth is not only part of responsible parenthood , but also helps us create that powerful connection between parents and children.
Feeding him, dressing him, changing his diaper, rocking him, bathing him and putting him to sleep are examples of some of the things dad can do with his baby from birth and can help him connect with him on a daily basis.
Play together
In addition to being a fun way to establish a beautiful connection between dad and baby , the game of fathers in particular is often different from that of mothers, and according to some studies, it brings important benefits to children during the first three years of life. life.
Take walks
Finally, an activity that both will undoubtedly enjoy a lot: going for walks together. In addition to becoming a time between dad and baby, going out together helps the baby relax, breathe other airs and also have a little bit of daylight and sunlight on the skin (which is necessary for the synthesis of vitamin D), and mom to take some time for herself or rest.
Cover photo | istock
