How do you think lockdown is affecting your baby?

[Lelophants]

First baby here so dont know what's normal and compare. Dont mean this to be a negative or scaremongering thread either. I actually think there have been loads of benefits, like DH being around so much and lots of time the three of us.

I wonder if this will make him a different person though. We don't go out that much, he's not used to loads of people (was very confused when saw a myhermes person who wasn't me or dh!)

Realised he doesn't hear much kids music or background noise in general. He's very happy but used to attention from two parents and not other children. I think he's quite quiet!

Can anyone compare how their current baby is to one who was little before lockdown? Good and bad?

How old is your baby?

Mine is only 3.5 months so probably a bit too young to tell but so far she is a really content happy baby, much more than her older sister was. However she does have a toddler running about all day for entertainment.

Maybe try and find something like an online bookbug session and do a bit of singing and stories with them each day? I'm not too worried about my baby to be honest, it's been a lot harder on my nearly 3 year old.

6 months. I'm not worried so much, more curious! Can't stand the online classes. He doesn't like the screens and zoom for some reason (probably a good thing).

Mine is the same as yours and I'm quietly worried this is going to make her anxious about other people. My DH says I'm worrying other nothing. She likes Zoom, but only because the baby in the mirror appears on the screen, and she loves the baby in the mirror...

Mine is 11 months old and I did wonder if he would be shocked when we have to go out in the car, go places and see people again - but last week he had an appt at the gp and he was thrilled in the car looking out the window and seemed happy enough with the staff at the gp surgery - the receptionist and the nurse.
I think the biggest shock for him will be when I go back to the office and hes back to the childminder. He hasnt been there for 6 weeks and I really dont know if hed remember her.
I am glad though that his older brother is here so he is with another child all day and theres plenty of noise around him.

I wouldn't worry op, baby is still little. I'm sure your cuddles are more than enough

My ds is almost 2 and I can tell he misses his little friends but we're doing our best with activities at home, going for walks etc.

He'll be fine, at this age it's meshes no difference to them. All the social stuff is for the parents benefit, there's plenty of time when your baby is older for that. You just need to make sure you're stimulating and encouraging development like tummy time, rolling, sitting, singing/stories- loads of ideas online, all pretty simple.

I'm a little concerned about my 6 month olds immune system... he hasn't really been exposed to anything yet so I'm not sure how he'll be when he first gets something (like his first cold or tummy bug). Dc1 was ill with something or other for her first year so this is very different.

My baby is fostered by us, when he came to us he was very shutdown and would actively avoid eye gaze. If anyone made eye contact with him he would turn his head away, he barely cried and wasn't keen on being touched or handled. In many ways I think lock-down has been good for him, he is unrecognisable as that baby now, he lifts his body to be picked up when I go to his cot in the morning and has formed a lovely bond with my DP that might not have happened had DP not been furloughed for six weeks.

I'd suggest he will be fine aswell

I had depression when DS1 was born and hardly went out at all, let alone went to a baby group. He's 4 now and is honestly the most sociable little boy you'll ever meet. I also have a 12 week old and am not worried about him at all yet.

I'm more worried about the 5yo Tbh

The twins seem chatty, NOISY, They ARE fairly grumpy but I think it's my inability TO divide myself in 3 but I worry I'm neglecting their physical needs because I'm homeschooling the big one. They're 5 months and not rolling yet. I think if it was just us at home all day they'd be doing more because I could dump them on the floor and know they're safe, lie down with them etc instead of having a never-still 5 yo running around our small living room.

@bloodywhitecat so sad but also how lovely how he's changed already!

I was just looking for a link for you that I can’t find. I work supporting mums and babies and we received a lovely article that I’ve passed on to several mums reminding them of the science of what babies need. Their brain literally is built in relationship with you, their main caregivers. What they really need is interaction with a few key people, everything else is extra. Babies are discovering the world every day, and seeing a tree blowing in the wind, or a funny expression on your face, is mega stimulation for them. Many young babies get terribly over stimulated at groups, and in my experience, the groups and classes are all for us parents, don’t do much for babies until they are older.

In fact, I think these are almost ideal conditions for your baby - apart from missing out on family and friends, of course, but you are the most important thing in his world and your interactions with him are actually growing his brain.

@bloodywhitecat that's a lovely change, how amazing for your baby!

@SleepingStandingUp don't worry about them not rolling, my 6mo isn't rolling either and my dc1 didn't roll at all until after she crawled at 10 months and she's fine. You're doing an amazing job with 3 little ones! I'm struggling with 1 baby and a 5yo!

I'm not hugely worried about it. He seems happy as Larry. I do think he will struggle more with being left when I go back to work as he's not been to playgroups/been left with anyone else.

@majesticallyawkward DS has lots of medical issues so was late at everything so I guess I worry but I think it's also cos they're so round and fat 😂😂

@SleepingStandingUp I said to dh the other day the baby should be great at rolling because he's so fat he's cylindrical 😂 I'm sure the only reason he can sit up is his thighs are so deliciously chubby they anchor him...

Oh see I think their rhinderous tums untopple them, and their baby milk bellies squash flat so they can't move 😂😂

14 week old here and compared to her 2 older siblings she's used to contact attention and affection. I think she's at an age where there's no such thing as too much of that, but I do wonder how she'll be once the kids are back at school and DH at work. I tried putting on CBeebies Baby Club the other day but it just made me sad that we weren't able to go to our real life local one. I don't know anyone else with a baby this age, so I was looking forward to making some new friends, but hopefully there'll still be time for that post-lockdown.

*constant attention

Mine is 14 months. The lockdown happen just after he'd turned one. It feels like he's become much clinger and whiney since the lockdown, it's like he's gone back to being more of a baby whereas pre lockdown he was quite happy to go off exploring and was beginning to interact with his baby 'friends' ... But maybe this would have happened and it's a phase anyway, we will never know. I'm on the shielded list which means he's not really been out beyond our garden since mid March whereas previously we went out to a group or somewhere pretty much every day. I can tell that he's also really missing his grandparents as we do a what's app video call with them most days and his face beams with excitement when he sees it's them. He tries to touch them etc through the screen which is cute and sad at the same time.