Parent and Baby Bonding

The Science of Early Bonding

Research shows, bonding with your infant is important for emotional, social, and cognitive development. Positive and loving experiences create pathways in the brain. These pathways help memories and relationships form, and learning and logic develop.

Sleep and the Present Moment

Rocking your baby to sleep is a powerful bonding opportunity for you and your child. It’s also one of the biggest challenges as a new parent. So how can you make the most of it?

Count to 100

A parent found a creative way that’s calming for both you, the parent, and your child.

David says, “When my older daughter was just a baby…I’d count to 100. Not quickly, but 100 slow back-and-forth sways while holding her on my chest or 100 calm and steady rubs of her back. One hundred was more than I often needed, but since I didn’t know how many I needed, it gave me the light at the end of the tunnel that almost always did the trick.”

He found the number 100 became like breaths in meditation, dissolving thought streams and forcing him to be fully present in the moment. This relaxed state of presence,”mindful parenting”, he says, allowed for a stronger emotional connection.

Bonding With Your Baby

https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/bonding.pdf