The Happiest Baby on the Block and The Happiest Toddler on the Block 2-Book Bundle pdfdrive com

Hannah thought her first son, Felix, was almost
addicted to the pacifier. “He insisted on using it for
years. So when my second child was born, I vowed to
try not to use it. But once again it became an
invaluable calming tool. Harmon was so miserable
without it, and so content with it, that I couldn’t bring
myself to deny him that simple pleasure.”
In summary, the first two “S’s”—swaddling and side/stomach—start
the calming process by muffling your baby’s flailing movements,
shutting off the Moro reflex and getting him to pay attention to what
you’re doing as you begin to activate the calming reflex. The third and
fourth “S’s”—shhhhing and swinging—break into the crying cycle by
powerfully triggering the calming reflex and soothing your baby’s
nervous system. The fifth “S”—sucking—keeps the calming reflex turned
on and allows your baby to guide himself to a profound level of
relaxation.
The 5 “S’s” are fantastic tools, but as with any tools, your skill in using
them will increase with practice. Since the calming reflex works only

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when triggered in precisely the right way, you’ll find that mastering
these ancient techniques is one of the first important tasks of
parenthood.
Interestingly, not only do parents get better with practice, so do
babies. Many parents notice that after a few weeks of swaddling their
babies straighten their arms and begin to calm the instant they’re placed
on the blanket. It’s as if they’re saying, “Hey, I remember this! I really
like it!”
You might read about the 5 “S’s” and think, “So what’s new? Those
soothing techniques have been known for centuries.” And you would be
partly right. The methods themselves are not new; however, what is new
are two essential concepts for making the old techniques really effective
—vigor and combining. In
Chapter 13
, you will learn how to perfectly
combine the 5 “S’s” in the “Cuddle” Cure, but now I would like to share
with you one of the least understood and most important elements of
calming a screaming baby … the need for vigor.