My New Born baby’s arms are tight and won’t relax

Lyam writes:

My son is 3 months old and he will not
reach up for hanging toys, also whenever we try to pull his arms up he
tightens them onto his chest, what can we do to help him relax and
losen them.

This is common amongst newborns.  You will see a range in muscle tightness from “noodle arms” to hands that are stuck to your baby’s chest.  babies just have different levels of tightness and is all within normal range.  For babies who are tighter it is a natural reflex for them to pull back if you pull on their hands.  So what can you do.

Here are some suggestions:

-Have him lying on his side to reach for toys in front of him at eye level vs. on his back or tummy.  Some times when they are on their back the gravity can affect there reaching ability.  When they are on their tummy they may have a tendency to want to tuck the arms in.  Tap his hand with the toy to “wake up” those muscles and then put it just past his hand as he tries to reach for it.  Let him reach the toy to have a positive experience and then do it again.

-lay him over a boppy or a firm pillow and pull his arms forward to hang over the boppy or pillow.  Try to pull his arms by the back of his elbows as you are facing him or above the elbow vs. pulling the hands (their natural reflex will be to pull back if you pull on their hands).  It may be most effective to do this on a couch because babies like being on an elevates surface to see more.  You can entertain him with toys at eye level in front of him  

-Lay him on his tummy over a adult yoga ball with his arms in front and gently roll back and forth to relax him.  If you go too fast it may stimulate his muscles to tighten.  Gentle rhythmic rolling and bouncing.

-Baby massage is very effective.  When your baby is on his back you can gently massage his upper arms  and then stretch the arm to his ear (holding the elbow or above the elbow) .  He shoulders may feel tight, but you are not hurting him.  You can do this as long as he is in a happy mood.  Babies will let you know if it is uncomfortable.  Alway engage and talk to your baby in a gentle voice during these activities to relax him.

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Making Tummy time interesting

Jayme asks- Is it normal for a baby to stop rolling from their back to their tummy  after they have been doing it for a while? Her baby is currently 4 mo old.

Yes, this can happen at times.  There can be a couple of reasons for this.  

Babies learn to roll to their tummy, but can’t roll back.  They may play on their tummy for a while, but will become frustrated if they can’t roll back.  If this happens often they may not want to roll to their tummy anymore.  

This may also be the case if they can’t lift their heads up well or push up on their hands.  

Babies at about 4 months of age are just learning to coordinate their hands and manipulate toys in their hands.  This becomes more difficult to do on their tummy and they may prefer to be in a supported seat or on their back.

My tip for this is keep them entertained on their tummy to improve their neck stability, shoulder strength and upper arms strength/mobility.  The more they can do in a certain position the more they will want to be in that position.  Provide them toys they can’t play with on their backs or in a chair.  Here are some ideas…

Taller toys are great motivators for babies to push on their hands and lift up their heads

Babies seek toys they can grab and bring it to their mouth

They can be entertained for quite a while looking at their mirror image

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My Baby Won’t LET GO!

Jenny Kim (Los Angeles, CA) asks…”How do I get my baby to open her hand and let go?”  

She says that her new born would often get a hold of her own hair and start screaming because she can’t open her own hand.  Mom stresses out because her baby’s grip is so strong and mom can’t open her baby’s hand either without pulling out a couple pieces of hair.

I hear this often, not just in new borns, but also older babies and toddlers.  There is a simple solution to loosen your baby or toddler’s hand.

Place your thumb on the back of your baby’s hand and gently bend the wrist forward.

The fist naturally loosens when it is bent forward.

A direct link to the youtube video is here: spotlightbaby development – My baby won’t let go

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Baby Rolling over

Somewhere between 3-4 months old your baby will be squirming around trying to roll over.  Here are steps to help your baby roll over:

1. while your baby is on his back lift one of his arms up to his head.

2. put your hand on his hip/butt and roll him to his side on the side the arm is lifted up

3. gently rock back and forth and jiggle the hip until you see him trying to roll

4. when you see him wiggling around trying to roll over give as little help as possible and slowly push him over.  Let him do as much as he can do for a successful roll.

To view this video directly on youtube go to: baby learning to roll over

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Is my baby symmetrical? What can I do?

I was having a conversation with someone about how many preemies are born with one side of their body being stronger and more developed than the other.  I don’t know why this happens, but I’ve often had to address this issue in my therapy sessions.  As I was observing  my own new born of 2 weeks, I noticed he ALWAYS turns his head to the left when he sleeps.  I also  noticed his left ear was very flat when he was born and his left chin was chubbier than his right chin.  My conclusion….many babies are born a little uneven and favor one side even from the womb.

Why am I addressing this topic?

Most babies fix themselves as they grow up and develop more motor skills, but as parents if we notice this asymmetry should we just sit back and hope that it corrects itself or is there something we can do?  

As a proactive mother and an experienced therapist, I can definitely say we can help correct this asymmetry and do not have to sit on the sidelines hoping that it will correct itself.

So what can I do as a parent to help my baby be more symmetrical? Here are tips for some basic milestones:

Head position- This can start from the first week.  As I stated earlier, I noticed my baby always turning his head to the left and tilting it to the right on car rides.  So I just turn his head the other way whenever possible while he’s sleeping.

Rolling- you may notice when your baby starts to roll from his back to his tummy that he may prefer to roll only to one side.  He may role independently to one side and need help on the other.  I would encourage you to give as little help for a successful role to the more challenging side. What does this mean…put your hand gently on the baby’s hips and role toward the more difficult side.  When you see your baby wiggling his arms and legs to try to roll over give just a little nudge for a successful role on the more challenging side.  Give the LEAST amount of help as possible.  The more you help, the less your baby does.

Pivoting on the tummy- Before crawling you will notice your babies using their arms and legs to pivot and turn on their tummies. Sometimes they like to pivot only to one direction.  Put toys on the other side or in the center and slowly move it to the other side to encourage them to pivot the the more challenging side.  If they need some assistance you can position the arm straight out to the side of the more difficult side and then put toys there for them to reach.

Cruising- when your baby begins to cruise along the furniture you may notice he likes to cruise to one side more than the other.  You can put toys on the more challenging side to encourage cruising toward that direction.  If they need a little help, gently push the side of their hips to encourage movement in that direction.  

All in all, whatever you see your baby doing on one side make sure he does it on the other even if he needs a little help doing it.  

I think this covers most of the basic milestones.  If you have any questions feel free to e-mail me at judy@spotlight-baby.com

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What is the big Deal about “Tummy Time”?!

Many doctors and healthcare professionals say “you have to give your baby tummy time” , “tummy time, tummy time, tummy time!!!”.  It is emphasised so often by so many people…but WHY?  What is the big deal about Tummy Time?!

Well, I hate to follow the masses, but YES… tummy time is essential to a baby’s development.

….but WHY?

When you put your babies on their tummy it naturally encourages them to lift their heads, move their heads about, and explore their environment from a new perspective.  It encourages them to develop neck strength; thus, developing neck and head stability when held in an upright position.  So why is this important?  Neck and head stability develops head balance which is the precursor of trunk stability, to sitting balance,  and finally standing balance.  If you can’t balance your head you can’t balance the rest of your body.

As babies head lifting ability begins to improve they naturally begin to push up on their hands.  This develops arm and shoulder girdle strength and starts to develop upper trunk strength.  Why is this important?  These are the building blocks to develop their ability to push themselves to a sitting position, sit with arm support before sitting independently, and the first building blocks for crawling as they learns to support part of their weight on their arms. 

When can I start tummy time?

As early as 6-8 weeks when you start seeing your babies lift their heads when you are holding them at your shoulder.  They will begin by just turning their heads side to side while on their tummies.  Then they will slowly begin lifting their heads slightly off the ground.  Your babies will eventually lift their heads up fully and begin to push on their arms toward 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 months.  They may begin to roll from their backs to their tummies between 3-4 months and start moving their arms and legs to move and reach for toys.  

Do I have to do tummy time just on the flat floor?

You can get creative.  Here are a couple of suggestions if the floor seems to be too difficult at the early stages.  You can place a “boppy”  under their chest with the arms forward.  You can place them on a higher surface such as a couch and place a rolled towel under the arm pits.  When they have good head control you can put them on your chest and push against their hands to encourage them to push on their arms and shoulders.

Always make tummy time fun!  In the first stages have toys on either side of their heads for them to focus on as they turn their heads side to side.  As they begin lifting their heads more and more have toys at their eye level.  Move toys side to side for them to follow and visually track and attempt to reach and bat at.

Any questions…feel free to e-mail me at judy@spotlight-baby.com

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Is my baby a righty or lefty? When should I know.

I often hear mom’s saying, “I know my baby is only 6 months old (or 1 year old or 1 1/2 years old), but I think my baby is going to be a righty (or lefty) because he uses this hand more.”  Moms often ask me when should my baby have a hand preference and why.

A child typically shows a hand preference at around 2 1/2 years old. Why is this?  A baby develops various hand skills the first 2 1/2 years of their lives such as grabbing toys, using their fingers to pick up finger foods, manipulating toys in both hands and using both hands independently of one another.  These skills that are learned in the first 2 1/2 years of their lives should be performed equally with both hands.  It isn’t until they begin to develop more fine skills such as purposely drawing a line or circle, using a utensil with good control, or learning to stabilize an object with one hand while manipulating it with their dominant hand do they begin to show a hand preference.

My baby will be 2 years old next week.  He uses both hands to scribble, stack, push cars, place puzzle pieces, eat and use a utensil.  As his skills become more fine tuned he will begin to use one hand more because he will naturally have better control in his dominant hand.

If you see your baby favoring one hand at an early age it is good idea to encourage use of the other hand so that their little hands develop equally.

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When should my baby be walking?

Many parents are told that if your baby is not walking by 12 months of age he may be behind. As therapists we learn that there is a range in which milestones are considered “within normal limits” of development.  For walking it is between 10-18 months.  So if your baby is not walking until 15 months, rest assured, he may still be the next Lebron James.

If you have questions about milestones you can e-mail me at judy@spotlight-baby.com

still need a little help walking mommy

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Boys and Their Toys

Sometimes toys can serve as pacifiers as well.

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