How You Hold Your Baby May Indicate Your Stress Level
August 29, 2007 by kate baggott
Filed under Baby Care, Mental Health
A new study by Dr. Nadja Reissland found that women who cradle their babies to the right, may be experiencing higher than normal stress levels and indicate a greater likelihood of PPD.
Obviously, hand-preference, child behavior and other factors influence how new mother’s hold their babies, but this observation is an important one. We’ve already seen research that shows many doctors just don’t ask their patients who are new mothers about stress and other emotional factors. Asking them to notice how a woman holds her child may just prompt time-starved medical professionals to delve a little deeper into their patients’ well-being.
Results of the study appear in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.
So do you think that holding a baby aloft by the neck could mean something too?
(just kidding! seriously!)
I’m sorry… I feel bad about the first comment– am sleep-deprived and did not mean to offend. But I guess now more seriously I should say that truly thinking about it, it makes more sense to (if you’re right-handed at least) to want to cradle a newborn with the left hand, since it tends to be your non-dominant but stronger arm and is closer to your heart.
It’s OK Madame, we appreciate all attempts at humour.