Weaning your baby: A psychological perspective
Yesterday I had such an interesting meeting with some of my Cape Town based ‘Babies in mind’ practitioners. The topic of our discussion was weaning. We were so interested in…
Infancy – 1001 Critical Days
Recently I attended a meeting at the Western Cape Association for Infant Mental health, an affiliation of the World Association for Infant Mental Health. Prof Astrid Berg, child and adolescent psychiatrist…
Infants’ Rights – World Association for Infant Mental Health
The latest ‘Perspectives in Infant Mental Health’ (an online professional publication of the World Association for Infant Mental Health (WAIMH) outlines the new Declaration of the Infant’s Rights. In 2012,…
What babies need from their parents
I have been reading an interesting book by Graham Music called ‘Nurturing Natures. It’s about attachment, emotional and brain development and it’s well worth reading, particularly for people who work with…
What is your baby or toddler thinking?
I have just listened to a brilliant TED talk about what it’s like inside the mind of a baby. The talk is by Alison Gopnik, professor or psychology and philosophy…
Can babies be left alone?
From an evolutionary perspective, human babies are designed to stay close to their mothers so that they can be protected from danger. This is also true for some animal babies….
Get your baby to sleep
Not all babies are the same so there is no ‘one size fits all’ perfect sleep solution, and often what works for one baby doesn’t work for another. If there…
Does my baby need a routine?
Some babies are predictably unpredictable! Others seem to gravitate towards a fairly predictable daily rhythm. If your baby seems to want a feed or a nap at different times each…
How to help your baby
Why does your baby need you to join our ‘Babies in Mind’ network and attend our parent workshops? Psychologists are always going on about how mental health rests on the…
Beyond Dr Spock
When we become new parents, there are many voices that try to guide us. Remember that the loudest voice should be your baby’s. Quote by Port Elizabeth based psychologist and Babies in Mind…
Superbaby
Check out this page for a few mind-boggling facts about the super-powers of babies. There is so much that babies can do that we aren’t always aware of. Their unique…
Older child and new baby
I recently received an e-mail from a reader, Mia, who asks the following question: After 5 and a half years of Sharon being an only child, getting our full attention…
What not to expect from your baby
Don’t expect parenthood to be easy Don’t expect breastfeeding to go smoothly and easily from the very beginning, but try to persevere if possible Don’t expect too much from yourself…
10 Survival Tips for New Moms and Dads
Don’t expect your baby to do what the baby books say she should be doing. Don’t expect him to sleep through the night. If he does, that’s fabulous, but many…
Why your baby doesn’t sleep
There are so many reasons that some babies have poor or disruptive sleep patterns, and we can’t always find the perfect sleep solution for every baby. But research suggests that…
Disorders in babies
A couple of weeks ago, at the monthly meeting of the Western Cape Association for Infant Mental Health, we were fortunate enough to host Prof Chris Milton, a paediatrician who…
Co sleeping with a baby
Parents often ask whether it’s a good or a bad thing to sleep with their new babies. Some of the more hard core believers of strict sleep training argue that…
Support for adoptive parents
This life can be very hard when we try to walk its path alone. The same goes for parenthood and also for the adoption process. Adoption is not without its…
Understanding your child’s eating disorder
Anorexia and bulimia are extremely complex psychiatric disorders and there are loads of different theories about what causes them and how to treat them. Inevitably, as with so many other…