Propping up baby

[Expectans]

My baby is one month old. When he is not sleeping, he much prefers being upright. He has quite a strong neck but is obviously not able to sit up on his own.

He has been a lot more alert this last week or so, and I have been propping him up in a sitting position occasionally, he cannot roll over. He seems very happy like this, and looks around him. I have never left him in this position for longer than a couple of minutes.

But, my mum has come to stay and saw me do this, and said she thought it might not be very good for his back. Is she right? He really seems to hate being flat

Your mums right, it isn't good for a babies back if they are in that position all the time.
My dd is the same, and she spends most of her time in her bouncer chair but I make sure she spends a good part of the day with her back flat either on her playmat or in her carrycot pram.

If certainly recommend you getting him a bouncer chair if he likes sitting up, as you can strap him in and don't have to constantly have your eye trained on him.

Is being properly upright any of the time bad for him, though?

He does also go in a bouncy chair/ flat on a rug and in bed.

He can be upright some of the time yes, I think its recommended for no longer than 2 hours at a time because it can squash his growing organs and spine etc.

I've not heard a time limit for a bouncy chair - surely babies being held or in slings naturally have a curved back anyway? I thought the 2 hour thing was for car seats.

There's no way he would put up with being uncuddled for anywhere near two hours. Will continue in moderation.

Yes the 2 hour thing is for car seats, but I have heard that its recommended for bouncer seats too but I wouldn't worry about being as strict.

My dd is happiest in her bouncer, she likes to be able to see properly and be able to fidget.

Do you ever have him in a sling? That would allow him to be upright, and support his body and spine development properly. Being flat for a long time isn't ideal either - lots of babies develop flat heads from spending a lot if time on their backs.

I asked the Hv about this for our 3mo, the advice was basically that they shouldn't be propped up in a straight up seated position and held there - the idea being that it hurts their bone development. She said car seat etc are at an angle (ie not straight up), so that's different, though obv still time restricted.

Her advice was to help him sit up if he's strong enough but not hold him /support him in any way. If he tumbles to one side that's because he's not got enough muscles to maintain it, and by falling you're helping him relieve the strain on his back. Also, it'll help him build muscle.

Not the best answer for appeasing a frustrated baby, but it's helped ds get stronger.

That's interesting Mustard. He will be allowed to fall over from sitting then. It must be very frustrating for them!

I do sling him outside callamia, but not much at home. Just starting trying using a structured sling after a Moby, which I found very sweaty.

I used to have to prop DS1 up for a while straight after a feed or he would vom it all back up.
I used my v pillow on top of another pillow, he would gradually slump lower and lower until he was lying down or crying!