Interrupted sleep: What are the effects, and how can we cope?
Interrupted sleep causes impairments in well-being and ability to function, above and beyond the total amount of time we spend sleeping.
Newborn
Newborn cognitive development: What are babies thinking and learning?
The newborn brain is busy processing information, searching for patterns, and learning. Here’s a fascinating look at newborn cognitive development.
Newborn sleep patterns: A survival guide
If you learn about circadian rhythms and sleep cycles, you can make sense of your newborn sleep, and lay the groundwork for easier nights.
Baby sleep stages: What is active sleep and quiet sleep?
Like adults, babies cycle through a series of different sleep stages at night, and understanding these stages can help us cope.
Postpartum depression symptoms: When is it more than the “baby blues?”
Postpartum depression symptoms overlap with symptoms of the “baby blues,” the mood swings that mothers experience in the first few days after childbirth. But when symptoms persist beyond two weeks — or take a more severe turn — it’s time to get screened for depression.
Postpartum stress: A guide for the science-minded parent
A parent’s guide to the physical and psychological triggers of postpartum stress. Includes sleep deprivation, fussy babies, stress hormones and tips for coping.
How do babies respond to music in the womb?
In the last trimester, fetuses can hear music in the womb. And if they hear the same tune many times, they may learn to recognize it.
The social world of newborns: Why babies are born to learn from our sensitive, loving care
Yes, newborns spend most of their time sleeping and eating. But babies are more than mere survival machines. At birth, they are primed and ready for social input, and our loving care has profound effects on their development.
The newborn senses: What can babies feel, see, hear, smell, and taste?
How do newborns perceive the world? Can they see in color? Can they recognize you by scent? Learn more about the newborn senses.
The newborn feeding schedule: The evidence for feeding on cue, and avoiding regimented, strictly-timed meals
The newborn feeding schedule: Why feeding frequently, on cue, is best for the health and development of young infants.
Evidence-based tips for breastfeeding moms: A guide for the science-minded
© 2008-2014 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reserved Breastfeeding may be natural, but it isn’t automatic (Volk 2009). Here are some tips for breastfeeding moms, based on research by lactation experts, anthropologists, and social scientists. For more evidence-based information about breastfeeding, see this collection of Parenting Science articles. 1. Don’t be bamboozled by the myth … Continue reading
Childbirth trauma and post traumatic stress
What’s wrong with the status quo? © 2006-2013 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reserved Childbirth trauma in cross-cultural perspective In Western countries, parents are expected to respond to childbirth with happiness and joy. But when anthropologist Wenda Trevathan reviewed childbirth in other cultures, she discovered that joy is not very common (Trevathan 1987). In many … Continue reading