Why is a newborn afraid of his hands. Swaddling and developing the sense of touch (a few words in defense of the diaper)

13.03.2022

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All parents are concerned about the health of their child. They look especially carefully at the child in the first weeks and months after his birth: is everything all right? If the child is the first, then mothers and fathers may not know about some of the features of his development, and sometimes they are surprised or even frightened by the most ordinary phenomena. What most often worries the parents of a newborn?

The child's arms and legs are tense all the time. Maybe it's hypertension and you need to start some kind of treatment?

Yes, this is hypertonicity - an increased tone of the flexor muscles, but this is a completely normal phenomenon that all babies have up to a certain age.

If you look at a newborn, you can see that his arms are bent at all joints, brought to the body and pressed to the chest, the hands are clenched into fists, the thumbs of the hands lie under the other four. The legs of the baby are also bent at the joints and abducted at the hips, dorsiflexion predominates in the feet. Muscle tone in the arms is usually higher than in the legs.

Attentive parents will see that muscle tone can change, for example, when turning the head to the side, it is higher on the side opposite to the turning of the head. Changing tone in the same muscle group is called muscular dystonia - this name is often heard by mom and dad at a neurologist's appointment, but you should not be afraid of this, this is also a completely common occurrence in infants.

By 3.5-4 months, physiological hypertonicity in children weakens, movements become more coordinated, the hand opens, so-called locomotions develop - body movements, in which almost all muscle groups are involved. There is no need to treat physiological hypertension, but you can do a general strengthening massage, it will contribute to the development of the muscular system and coordination of movements.

The baby constantly makes some movements, they are very chaotic. Why is this happening?

In a newborn child, the nervous system is still immature, which is why he cannot make coordinated movements. The nerve fibers of the baby are just beginning to be covered with a special myelin sheath, which is responsible for the speed of transmission of the nerve impulse to the muscles. The faster the transfer occurs, the smoother the movements of the crumbs become. In the meantime, the nervous system has not matured, a small child can be in constant motion, which sometimes persists even in a dream.

As a rule, chaotic twitches disappear in the second month of life. Then the movements of the arms and legs gradually become more even and orderly.

The child's arms, legs, chin are trembling - maybe he is cold or has some kind of neurological disease?

Trembling, or tremor, is a physiological phenomenon that occurs in most children in the first 3 months of life.

Tremor appears again due to the immaturity of the nervous system. Shivering usually occurs during crying or after some kind of exertion (for example, after bathing), but sometimes it starts quite suddenly, maybe even at rest. When a child has a tremor, the chin and lower lip usually tremble, and the arms and legs may still tremble.

The tremor can be symmetrical (both arms tremble) or asymmetrical, when different parts of the body tremble separately (for example, the chin and arms tremble at the same time, or one arm and one leg tremble).

As soon as parents notice that the baby has a tremor (and it may not appear immediately after birth, but even a month later), they are very worried. However, as we have already said, this is a normal phenomenon in young children. Nevertheless, it is necessary to pay attention to the following points: physiological tremor does not last long - only a few seconds; if the tremor increases, the episodes become more frequent and longer, it is necessary to show the baby to a neurologist.

The kid often shudders and spreads his arms to the sides. Is this normal or should I take my child to the doctor?

This is a manifestation of one of the innate reflexes - the so-called Moro reflex (arm extension with subsequent reduction). It lasts up to 4-5 months and usually occurs in response to sharp sounds or a change in body position. Parents call this reflex the startle.

Moms and dads notice that if you change the position of the baby in space (for example, lift him out of bed and then put him back), the child will throw up the arms slightly bent at the elbows. The same thing can happen with any sharp sound (clapping hands, knocking on the door). Sometimes the Moro reflex occurs spontaneously, that is, the baby throws up his arms without any stimuli. All these phenomena are completely normal for young children and do not require any treatment.. The only thing to watch out for: the Moro reflex should not become more pronounced; after 4-5 months it should disappear.

The child constantly wants to suck (pacifier, breast, finger). Maybe he's hungry and doesn't have enough milk?

In children under 1 year old, the sucking reflex is pronounced: any irritation of the lips, tongue, the child makes sucking movements. This is the very first and most important unconditioned reflex: it is the ability to suck (and hence the satisfaction of hunger) that ensures the survival of the baby. The suckling reflex completely disappears only by 3-4 years.

Even in infants, you can notice a search reflex (it lasts up to 2-4 months): when the corner of the mouth is irritated, the baby turns its head in the direction of irritation; proboscis reflex (it can be observed up to 2-3 months): when tapping on the lips, the child stretches his lips with a tube. Before eating, these reflexes appear brighter and are more easily evoked, but in themselves they are not an indicator that the baby is hungry.

The baby spit up a lot, I heard that this could be due to neurological disorders. Is it so?

- a very common complaint in the first months of life. Most healthy children spit up to 3-5 times a day. For babies, regurgitation is more the norm than a pathology., since the structure and functioning of the gastrointestinal tract in them predispose to regurgitation.

The stomach of newborns is located horizontally, has a rounded shape and a small volume - only 5-10 ml: that's why a few drops are enough for a newly born baby to eat. The entrance to the baby's stomach is relatively wide, and the sphincter (the muscle that closes the entrance to the stomach) is underdeveloped. Therefore, the movement of food through the gastrointestinal tract is somewhat slow.

The immaturity of certain enzymes and the lack of coordination in the processes of breathing, sucking and swallowing, which are more characteristic of premature and small children, also predispose to regurgitation. Still regurgitation can be associated with overeating, frequent feeding, aerophagy (swallowing air). Yes, they can be a manifestation of some kind of neurological pathology, but this is very rare, especially if there are no other symptoms of the disease.

The baby often "goggles". The doctor said that this is a symptom of Grefe and does not need to be treated. What is this symptom, and why does it appear in young children?

Graefe's symptom in infants is a white strip that remains between the iris and the upper eyelid when the child lowers his eyes down. By itself, Graefe's symptom does not indicate the presence of any health problems in children. It is often observed in healthy children with a change in lighting or body position, and even Grefe's symptom can simply be an individual feature of the structure of the baby's eyes (it is often found in children with large eyes).

Sometimes this symptom occurs due to the immaturity of the child's nervous system. In these cases, Graefe's symptom does not need to be treated, it usually disappears during the first 6 months of the baby's life. But if, in addition to the Graefe symptom, a child has increased excitability, tremor, developmental delay, if he often throws his head back, this already indicates that he has neurological problems. For an accurate diagnosis, it is necessary to undergo a number of additional studies: neurosonography, electroencephalography.

A tiny man, barely born, knows practically nothing, his movements are erratic, his hands cannot grab and hold an object, and it seems that the only thing the baby does is eat, sleep and cry. But after a couple of months, he confidently fixes his gaze on the objects and faces around him, can smile back, and also holds his head well. With each month of life, the child comprehends more and more new horizons in his development - it remains only to patiently wait for this time.

Discussion

Comment on the article "Newborn: treat or pass? 7 questions for a neurologist"

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Section: Diseases (child shakes when waking up). My daughter is shaking like she's in Parkinson's. Who faced? It went away on its own, without intervention. When a child has a tremor, the chin and lower lip usually tremble, and the arms and legs may still tremble.

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We had this, the neuropathologist said not to create situations where the child is frightened. Newborn: treat or pass? 7 questions for a neurologist. But even with the open, he does not sleep for a long time, he begins to shudder, gets frightened and screams.

Nine months in the mother's stomach, the child is in a state of weightlessness. Having been born, he does not yet know anything about his body. Weak muscles are in a kind of tone and cannot yet fully serve the crumbs. In the first months after birth, the movements of the child are unconscious and chaotic. The limbs do not seem to belong to him, so parents during this period may notice that the newborn is afraid of his hands. Sudden touches with handles to the body, scratching frighten the child. He shudders, wakes up and cries.

Why is a baby afraid of his own hands?

Infants are first aware of only the mouth as part of their body, since it is present in the prenatal state and is already fully formed by the birth of the child. The development of other parts of the body occurs gradually.

After birth, the hands of children are clenched into fists almost all the time and relax only in a dream. And although there is an unconditioned grasping reflex, until about 2-3 months the child does not control his own hands. Until this age, the grasping movements of the baby are reflexive, the child grabs what touches the palm or is close to it (Robinson's reflex). This explains the presence of uncoordinated actions by the baby: pinching, grabbing, scratching, which frighten the child so much.

How to help the baby?

During the day, when the child is awake, he is not often afraid of hands, this is due to the fact that the baby inadvertently scratches himself and then cries from pain. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that the nails are and wear anti-scratches. It is more convenient when they are attached to the sleeves. Separate anti-scratches are removed by many kids.

Moms take note!

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During sleep, sudden waving and grabbing really scare the baby. In order for him not to be afraid of his hands, the newborn is swaddled.

Modern pediatricians advise "free" swaddling, which preserves the natural position of the limbs and the possibility of movement.

The "tight" swaddling that was used in the past can hinder the development of motor, tactile and other skills of the baby.

"Free" swaddling contributes to a faster acquaintance of the newborn with his hands. Therefore, it is worth swaddling with handles no longer than the first month, and in the future, up to three months, only swaddle legs. After 3 months, there is no point in swaddling, since from this age the unconditioned grasping reflex begins to fade and voluntary grasping begins to form.

Infants are initially aware of only the mouth as part of their body, since the sucking reflex is present in the prenatal state and is already fully formed by the birth of the child. The development of other parts of the body occurs gradually.

How to help the baby?

During the day, when the child is awake, he is not often afraid of hands, this is due to the fact that the baby inadvertently scratches himself and then cries from pain. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that the nails are cut short, and wear anti-scratches. It is more convenient when they are attached to the sleeves. Separate anti-scratches are removed by many kids.

During sleep, sudden waving and grabbing really scare the baby. In order for him not to be afraid of his hands, the newborn is swaddled.

Modern pediatricians advise "free" swaddling, which preserves the natural position of the limbs and the possibility of movement.

The "tight" swaddling that was used in the past can hinder the development of motor, tactile and other skills of the baby.

Often in advice for new parents you can read that swaddling a child inhibits the development of his sense of touch. Moreover, they assure that this is the opinion of pediatricians and child psychologists, and it is psychologists who advise not to swaddle a child. It is very doubtful for us, as caregivers, that a competent psychologist does not know the physiology and developmental psychology of the child and could be so mistaken. Most likely, these are incorrectly interpreted recommendations of a psychologist. The constant description of swaddling as a procedure of violence against a person, a kind of “binding” of a child who wants to move so much, is also surprising! It seems that the child is already running, and everyone is swaddling and swaddling… Such an illogical picture can only be drawn by people who have absolutely no idea what a newborn looks like, how he behaves and why he needs a diaper, as well as when and which nations have it applied.

As early as 3 months of fetal development, the child develops a sense of touch, that is, skin sensitivity. By the fourth month, he has coordinated movements, and the baby can find his mouth by touch and begins to suck his finger or fist. While the weight of the child is not very large, he swims freely in the amniotic fluid and sometimes bumps his arms or legs against the walls of the uterus, thus stimulating his skin sensitivity and developing his sense of touch. By the 32nd week of intrauterine development, the child can no longer move freely, the surrounding uterus is constantly in contact with many parts of the body, as if hugging him. Periodic contractions of the uterine walls (so-called Braxton-Higgs contractions) give him the experience of stronger bodily impressions, tight hugs, which become an integral part of the memories of intrauterine comfort. In the last weeks of intrauterine development, the child's arms most often cease to bend and unbend at the shoulder joint due to lack of free space - they are tightly pressed to the body and this condition becomes another intrauterine habit. The baby's palms can only touch their own body and mouth, so the baby receives basic tactile information from the entire surface of the skin that the uterus hugs and stimulates.

After birth, the child finds himself in a huge free space for him, which is many times larger than that to which he is accustomed. As long as he has no other experience, he retains his intrauterine habits and is guided by them. The specifics of newborns are sharp uncoordinated motor acts of hands and feet, which are a legacy of intrauterine life. These specific movements are called "throw-ups". During the “throw-ups”, the child experiences a feeling of panic and horror if his arms and legs, accustomed to rest against the walls of the uterus, hang in the air and do not find any support. This is very clearly seen if you watch a newborn. He is very frightened at every movement of his arms and legs and calms down if he is pressed against the warm body of an adult, or at least hold the dangling arms or legs with his hand.

After birth, the development of a newborn's sense of touch occurs due to the accumulation and differentiation of information that he receives from outside. Just as in the womb, the stimuli for the baby are touches on the entire surface of his body and, especially, on his arms and legs. Stimuli for the development of a child’s sense of touch are absolutely everything that he can touch: a diaper, clothes, an adult’s body, his own body, etc. The more diverse the stimuli and the more often they affect the baby, the more actively his sense of touch develops. If the baby's limbs are left free and their movements are not limited by the close hugs of the mother or the diaper, then he will “throw up”, experiencing fright. A strong fright and subsequent panic is a strong reaction that drowns out all others. Therefore, in the presence of unrestricted freedom and frequent “throw-ups”, the development of touch slows down significantly.

Thus, in order for a child to successfully develop a sense of touch, it is necessary that the child’s arms and legs constantly bump into different surfaces that are close to his body, while he has not yet had time to “jump up” and get scared.

Which of the modern methods of keeping and handling the baby contributes to this:

Carrying on the hands

When a mother carries her baby in her arms or sleeps with him, she creates familiar bodily sensations with her hugs. Next to the mother and in her arms, the child sleeps calmly without a diaper, because, hugging the child, she prevents the “tossing up”. Warmed by the warmth of the mother, the child does not need a lot of clothes, and can be with bare arms and legs. This allows, by touching various surfaces, to receive maximum information in a comfortable situation.

This is how many primitive peoples treat babies, who still retain various devices for constantly carrying a child on themselves (various holders, slings, etc.). However, it should be noted that these peoples usually do not have any devices at all where the child would be placed separately from the mother (such as cradles, hammocks, etc.), so the child is in her arms 24 hours a day, which modern parents are hardly able to do.

Free swaddling

If a child is forced to be without a mother for some time, especially during sleep, then the best way to protect him from “throw-ups” and stimulate the development of touch is an ordinary diaper. As soon as a newborn is swaddled, giving him an intrauterine position, he immediately calms down. In this case, we are not talking about tight, but about free swaddling, allowing the child to make movements with his arms and legs.

The less clothes under the diaper, the better the sense of touch develops, because the child bumps with his arms and legs not only on the diaper, but also on his own body. In addition, the diaper wraps around the baby and stimulates the sense of touch of all the skin that comes into contact with it. The number of sensory stimuli in the diaper is no less than in the mother's hands, because the diaper heats up differently in different places, it is stretched somewhere, it gives in somewhere, etc. its main purpose is to create the illusion of support, but not to hamper natural movements, limiting them only in the area of the shoulder joints (as it was in the uterus). A loosely swaddled baby has the ability to pull his hands up to his face, find his mouth, as he did in utero, suck his finger or fist, dangle his legs, etc. Gradually, the child gets used to his hands and coordinates their movements more confidently. This happens by about 10-30 days, and from that time on, babies stop waking themselves up with sudden movements. However, some children keep "throw-ups" up to 3-6 months of age and need more prolonged swaddling.

At one time, the diaper was invented and used by peoples living in areas with a temperate and colder climate, where temperature conditions and an abundance of clothing did not allow the child to be worn all the time during normal daily work. Simultaneously with the presence of a diaper, such peoples necessarily had some special places where they put a swaddled baby (such as a cradle, a cradle, a hammock, etc.), repeating the shape of a diaper, which, as a rule, could still be rocked to create a complete illusion the fact that the child continues to be in the arms of an adult.

Modern parents, who often do not know how to swaddle freely, or consider swaddling "under the arms" to be free, do not see the advantages in swaddling at all, because they do not know how to use it. Clumsily, with difficulty, swaddling her "resisting" child, a minute later the mother sees that she pulled her hand out of the diaper and sucks her thumb. Instead of leaving things as they are and letting the baby enjoy the benefits of free swaddling, she swaddles him persistently, making sure he can't get his hands out. And she is unaware, poor thing, that this is how a child should do if he is already more than 7 days old. And of course, if a swaddled baby instead of a comfortable cozy swaying "nest" is placed on a hard huge bed, he will protest. And the parents take the absolutely fair protest of the child to their failures in swaddling and perceive it as a protest against the diaper. So who is uncomfortable with the diaper, the child or his stupid parents?

What will not contribute to the development of touch?

Undershirt with sewn-in handles

Of the many tactile stimuli, such an undershirt gives only one - the feeling of an undershirt - everywhere the same rag, and its shape does not change, it does not go anywhere with the intensification and weakening of movements - that is, no variety!

Such undershirts were supposedly invented so that the baby would not scratch his face during erratic movements with his hands. However, if the baby is in the mother's arms, then he will not scratch anything, even if he is completely without a vest. If the baby lies without a mother, then any erratic movement of the arms will frighten him, and he will not lie like that for a long time, the movements of the hands will wake up the baby and his sleep will be restless. Therefore, in this case, it is better to swaddle your hands - then he will definitely not scratch anything for himself. When the baby ceases to be afraid of his hands, he stops scratching ... Therefore, the need to use such vests is greatly exaggerated, and it can only be justified in the children's ward of a medical institution.

tight swaddling
Now, even in families that observe traditions, among urban residents, you are unlikely to meet a woman who knows how to tightly swaddle a child using a swaddle. In the village, tight twining of a child was used to nurse weakened premature babies injured during childbirth, that is, as a kind of medical procedure. Only a specialist who owns this method, is able to assess the appropriateness and timeliness of such a measure and is able to teach this to parents can correctly use tight twisting in modern urban conditions. But in the process of forgetting the significance of the tight twining of a child, the impression was that all the children in the village were barbarically tightly swaddled. Now, most often, "tight" is understood simply as a tighter swaddling with the arms and legs of the child straightened. This is how children were swaddled in Russian maternity hospitals and nurseries 20-30 years ago. Of course, such swaddling contributes to a more calm behavior during the “tossing up”, but it also provokes more violent reactions in the waking child. Of course, such an appeal does not stimulate the development of touch in any way. The number of sensory stimuli is minimal here, the responses to them are even less, and the advice of “competent” grandmothers “so that the legs are even” or “so that you sleep more calmly” cannot serve as an excuse for such violence. Moreover, the thoughtless use of tight swaddling slows down the development of basic hand movements, the child gets used to his hands only by 6 months and can wake himself up with sudden movements even at 7-8 months.

Complete lack of swaddling

If a newborn baby is without a mother and without a diaper, then the number of sensory stimuli again decreases. The child flounders helplessly in a huge space for him, experiencing panic and horror, and even touching his body, does not have time to adequately respond, because, as we remember, the state of panic is the most powerful reaction that drowns out all the others. Since there are no reactions to sensory stimuli, information is not accumulated, the development of touch is inhibited! It has been observed that children who are kept completely without a diaper and left to lie down for a long time, waving their arms and legs, subsequently adapt to their hands much more slowly than those who were introduced to the handles gradually. The child becomes more restless, it is more difficult for him to fall asleep, and when he falls asleep he easily wakes himself up with his hands.

Due to the imperfection of the thermoregulation of the baby, leaving him to lie without diapers, parents are forced to put on him various suits, panties, which again impoverishes the child's ability to touch, because only the palms remain free, and the warm body - the most familiar and developing stimulus, they just they practically cannot touch - everything is hidden in numerous clothes.

Thus, for the best development of touch in a newborn, it would be reasonable to combine two mutually complementary techniques - all the time that the child is in the arms of a mother or another adult, he can be minimally dressed, because he is warmed by the warmth of the human body and receives a maximum of sensory stimuli; and when the baby is laid off, he must be swaddled loosely, and be able to receive the same stimuli under the protection of the diaper.

The age to stop swaddling each child is different, some safely say goodbye to the diaper at 3 weeks, others at 6 months. The criterion for the duration of swaddling may be the presence or absence of "tossing". If the child rises up - he still needs a diaper for sleep, he sleeps calmly - there is no need.

A child who parted with a diaper in time usually already has the confidence and coordination of movements, which allows him to respond differently to various sensory stimuli. Moreover, the skin of the legs for him is the same source of information as the skin of the hands. The main condition for the continuation of the development of touch at this stage is the absence of clothes on the legs, in other words, the absence of pants and sliders. The legs of the child should receive information about the environment, as well as the hands. However, for normal development, it is important to receive this information on the entire surface of the skin, and not be limited to a small area of the sole. The child retains the ability to receive information with the whole skin for a long time, therefore, the more we cover the surface of the skin, the more we impoverish its ability to perceive numerous sensory stimuli.

Suitable clothes for a baby of this age are a blouse, a shirt and nothing more. For those mothers who do not know how to do otherwise, take care of their furniture or carpeting, a diaper is also needed. For children, whom mothers wear a lot on themselves, such clothes are simple and natural, because this way the child does not overheat and it is easy to change clothes. Children are left to themselves for very short periods of time, during which they do not have time to freeze even in winter, and after that they easily restore their warmth, clinging to the body of an adult. But mothers, who are accustomed to regularly and for a long time to put off waking children, practically come to the need to put pants on them - so, they say, it’s warmer and more aesthetic, and even socks on each leg, otherwise they freeze!

If parents refuse swaddling too early, they quickly begin to abuse sliders and socks, because the child is still too small to be completely naked all the time, he freezes. Subsequently, parents are already so accustomed to watching “to keep the legs warm” that a child who has not been swaddled, as a rule, at the age of 3 months, is dressed at home much warmer during wakefulness than his previously swaddled peer. Reducing the number of external stimuli, hindering the formation of appropriate reactions, preventing the accumulation of information useful and necessary for its development, parents are often sincerely sure that they obey the wishes of the child and do not violate his freedom in any way!

A paradoxical picture emerges. Great idea - let's raise a child without violence and give him maximum incentives for development. However, by realizing this idea, adults directly transfer their own feelings and experiences to the inner world of the child, not taking into account either his physiological characteristics or his psychological needs. They consider a diaper to be violence, and pants, socks, diapers and a little helpless man lying alone on a huge bed - a manifestation of individual freedom. Whose freedom are they fighting for here? Parents, under the guise of caring for the child, seek to quickly get rid of unaesthetic diapers, quickly put on fashionable pants and suits. Maybe we will not be so quick to discount either folk experience or modern research and take care of the real needs of the child.

Psychologist-perinatologist, i.е. child development consultant
Mayorskaya Maria Borisovna