Wonder weeks - development leaps

[Nesski]

Hello! I was wondering if anybody uses the app and read the book, has it been fairly accurate? Especially around the fussy behaviour during the leap? We are one day before the baby's second leap and he's a completely different baby to last week

I'm trying to use the app as a tracker as opposed to a tick box exercise as it's pretty stressful when I think he's not achieving everything on it!

It didn't tally with either of my girls, they're all so individual so I just don't see how it can work at all.

Not really. My boy is supposed to be in the middle of a leap now and he's perfectly fine. He did have 2ish fussy, feedy days right before it supposedly started though.
The development skills are fairly accurate though I find!

I have the book and the app. I bought the book purely to read about baby development. I don't bother following when exactly my dd is meant to be in a leap as I found it wasn't that accurate. Sometimes I think it's easy to put fussy behaviour down to a leap when it could be down to several other reasons... And I think it can put you in a negative mindset like 'oh no, we're approaching another leap, here comes the fussy behaviour'. I find it less stressful to not follow it too closely.

The Wonder Weeks author's research got debunked (by his own student) and then there was a whole kerfuffle that ended in him being dismissed from his university post. So frankly I think it's bollocks.

Babies go through loads of different stages of development and days/weeks where they are crankier than others. You can explain everything away as being 'about to go into a leap, in a leap, coming out of a leap' but you can't map things out on a calendar to the day – babies are not robots. Also confirmation bias plays a big part - when you expect them to behave a certain way, everything they do confirms it.

Honestly ditch it. Babies go through phases and it will of course take up with some but plenty of others that it won’t tally with. It just gives parents another thing to worry over.

It's bollocks and works entirely via confirmation bias.

Yeah that's what I thought as well, the only thing I find useful is a breakdown of 'skills' to look out for as opposed to tracking to milestones.

It's nonsense.

Your baby is acting differently because of growth spurt/tired/over stimulated/hungry/eyesight development/hearing new sounds/poorly ... Could be any number of things.

Babies grow and change so much week to week. They don't follow rules in a book.your baby might roll over a 3 months...they might roll over at 6.... But at the end if the day, the majority of babies will roll over when they're ready. Baby development/milestones are bell curves.

One baby has the be the youngest to say "mama" and one has to be the oldest. But the majority of babies will hit milestones within a few months of each other.

Please try not to fret.

Just the other day on MN there was an MNer who was frantic and worried their 8m old wouldn't eat food... She was convinced there was something wrong....the very next day he wolfed down his breakfast porridge.

It's such a load of nonsense. Honestly, when you have subsequent children they'll just come along with you and you won't even notice these apparent fussy times. I think the whole leaps thing really taps into mothers on their first maternity leave who have oodles of time to analyse and discuss their baby's behaviour (and I say that having been one of those mothers). I'm so enjoying having a second baby and this time not having loads of babies the exact same age around me to constantly compare mine to and microanalyse everything they do!

I think it was worth it for me because I could see her practicing the skills and that helped me understand why she was being fussy or whatever. I didn't follow the timings though and I NEVER looked ahead in anticipation! Now I know DD better I can tell when she's in a leap (she still has them at 3!) because she's a pain in the hole for a week or so and then at the end of it she'll suddenly be playing imagination games or understanding the concept of time or whatever.

@JaggedLittlePilI yeah I agree, it just makes me fret and anxious and @peachgreen I try not to look at the leaps that are due but it's hard not to... Makes me bite my nails with worry on how he's going to act..

In that case I would uninstall it. Anything that gives you more anxiety isn't worth it!

If you adjusted it so you changed your child's age by 3 weeks say the leap weeks would be different ones. But I'd bet good money you would still see fretfulness and worse sleep and whatever else this app claims you'll see on the days it predicts because it is just confirmation bias.

[quote Nesski]**@JaggedLittlePilI* yeah I agree, it just makes me fret and anxious and @peachgreen* I try not to look at the leaps that are due but it's hard not to... Makes me bite my nails with worry on how he's going to act..[/quote]
Delete the app.

Anxiety inducing apps are not a mother's friend!

No, it was never accurate for my baby. It’s also scientifically dubious! The claim that babies develop in accordance with a particular schedule is not supported by independent studies, and the findings that underpin the wonder weeks theory have not been replicated in other studies.

All babies go through spells of being fussier - it could be a growth spurt, teething, a new skill emerging, anything really. Repeat to yourself the parenting mantra - this too shall pass!

It was spot on for my baby. I found it useful. If it's making you anxious, get rid of it.