DOWNLOAD BABY SLEEP MIRACLE PDF FREE REPORT 2020 | Page 16

 When babies cry, it helps them to have a responsive, caring, and sensitive
parent who helps them calm down. This gives the child the message that their
basic needs can be met and there are ways to handle distress. This step
requires that parent(s) know how to read their child’s signals and gestures, as
well as have a host of calming strategies at their fingertips.
 As a child matures, he learns to internalize strategies to self-calm. Consistent
use of good calming strategies helps the child lean which ones to call upon in
different situations. The child also observes others solve similar problems and
learns when and where to use which strategies.
Calming strategies and environmental modifications are most useful when one
anticipates what could go wrong and have things in place for that moment
when the child needs them.
This leads to the importance of teaching the child to understand the precursors
of irritability, to anticipate the onset of frustration and distress, and to use
appropriate strategies that are available.
Self-calming depends on the ability to problem solve before, during, and after
a distressing episode.
The child gradually learns a variety of ways to help himself organize and
monitor his own actions and to tolerate various negative emotions.
© 2016 Mary-Ann Schuler – WWW.BABYSLEEPMIRACLE.COM
14