What should I do if my baby won’t lift his head?

Lifting the head is the first movement that babies learn, and it is also the first movement in their motor development. Generally speaking, babies will start to lift their heads around 2 months old, and gross motor development follows certain rules, such as: 2. Lifting (lifting the head) 4. Turning over (rolling over) 6. Sitting (starting to sit, being able to sit independently is usually after 7 months).

When the baby raises his head, his field of vision expands. After the head moves freely, the novel visual experience makes the baby excited, thus stimulating the baby's curiosity and further developing intelligence. The prone position is conducive to the baby's practice of raising his head and crawling. With stable head control, the muscles and coordination ability are fully developed, laying a solid foundation for the subsequent turning over, sitting, crawling and standing.

How to induce your baby to lift his head?

01 Training the baby to lie prone naturally in front of the mother's chest and abdomen when the baby is on an empty stomach. The mother can massage the baby's back with both hands to promote bowel movements. The baby will sometimes raise his head.

02 Prone head lift training The baby can lie on a flat and comfortable bed, but not too soft. Use words and toys to guide the baby to lift his head. If the baby cannot lift his head, a small pillow can be placed under the baby's chest and under the armpits on both sides, and the upper limbs can be placed in front of the pillow. The height should be such that the hands can touch the bed surface when the elbows are bent. At the same time, gently tap the baby's neck to stimulate it, and use a toy with a sound in front of the baby to tease the baby to lift his head actively.

03 Supine forward flexion exercise Let the child lie on his back on a slope of about 30 degrees. The parent holds the baby with both palms from below the shoulders, teases the baby with objects or the parent and the child look at each other. When looking at each other, assist or induce the child to bend his head forward. The position of the parent's hands can be adjusted according to the child's situation.

04 Head turning training: On the basis of prone head-raising or supine forward bending, take a colorful and noisy toy in front of the baby to tease him, and slowly move the toy from in front of the baby's eyes to both sides of the head. This method not only exercises the baby's endurance to raise his head, but also exercises the flexibility of the baby's neck.

Things to note when training your baby to lift his head

01 The preparation for head-raising exercise should be done when the baby is in a good mood. Avoid doing it immediately after the baby finishes feeding to prevent spitting up. It can be done one hour before or after a meal.

02 During the head-raising exercise, let the baby raise his head while lying on his stomach or on his back. The mother should use a brightly colored toy with sound, call his name to tease him, and let the baby raise his head to find the toy. In fact, no matter what props are used, the purpose is to let the baby raise his head from all angles. In addition to lying on the bed to tease him, you can also make sounds from above to tease him while holding him.

03Necessary relaxation and encouragement

The baby's training time does not need to be too long each time, just a few minutes is enough. When the baby is in a good mood, you can exercise several times at intervals, and stop when the baby does not want to exercise.