Bonding & Attachment | Oxytocin

When a baby is born, the bond between parent and child begins immediately. Sometimes it takes time for both parties to grow together, but one thing is certain: the bond between mother and father is very important to the baby.

Dr. Harry Harlow, an American psychologist, demonstrated through experiments that for newborn baby monkeys, the warmth and sense of security that comes from contact is more important than food. When a baby monkey was given a wire mother monkey with milk and a soft cloth mother monkey with nothing, the baby monkey chose the soft cloth mother monkey, which gave it warmth and comfort. In addition, when a young monkey chose the wire mother monkey, it only did so when it was given food, and once it had finished eating, it returned to the cloth doll.

Moreover, other studies have shown that when baby monkeys are born and given a mannequin mother, they become sad and develop stunted when they try to hold and touch the mannequin without any parental response. Experts have also noted that in human babies, the lack of bonding can cause similar problems. Human babies try to bond as soon as they are born.

This is a great joy for us humans. On the other hand, parents can have mixed feelings about how to respond. Many parents feel a strong bond within the first few minutes or days after the birth of their baby. For various reasons, if the baby is in an intensive care unit, it may take some time for this important bond to form. Bonding is a process,

and babies need to be able to bond with each other.

It is not something that happens immediately after the baby is born, in a limited time frame. For many families, the bond is something that develops in the everyday parenting process. Bonding takes nurturing and time. It is never too late to think about and act on ways to deepen the bond with your baby. Parents may not even realize that they are bonding with their baby, and that is not surprising. It is only when the baby smiles and makes eye contact that the parents feel the love for their baby.

Giving your baby a baby massage helps parents to develop and deepen the bond with their baby. This bond is achieved not only through touch, but also through the baby’s warmth, eye contact, smell, voice, and by imitating the baby’s movements and words.

Baby massage is a form of affectionate communication that helps parents to recognize different cues from their baby and respond appropriately. Meeting your baby’s needs helps build a lifelong bond of love and trust.