Baby at four months - development and skills. Baby at four months - development and skills Baby at 4 months is often naughty

During this period, the child grows by about 2-2.5 cm.

It must be remembered that all babies grow and develop at different rates, therefore, permissible deviations from the norm can be observed in both directions.

By the end of 4 months of life, the volume of the chest and the volume of the head of the child should equalize.

Baby weight at 3-4 months

Over the course of 4 months of life, the baby adds about 600-800 g. He may already have pleasant roundness.

Vaccinations at 3-4 months for a child

At the end of the month, the baby is given revaccination against

What a baby looks like at 4 months of age

• Hair.

By about the fourth month of life, the primary hairs with which the baby was born roll out. They are being replaced by the very "real" hair, which will soon turn into an original hairstyle, golden curls or long braids.

• Eyes.

The baby's eye color could also change. Mostly children are born with blue eyes, and only at 4 months of age they acquire a genetically inherent shade. Moreover, the color change can occur both gradually and literally in an instant: the child fell asleep blue-eyed, and woke up already with brown or green eyes.

The kid sees perfectly at a distance of 20-30 cm, responds with a smile to the face of mom or dad bent over him. The manifestations of infantile strabismus have disappeared, now the child fixes his gaze properly, and his pupils have ceased to tremble. Your baby is showing more and more signs of socialization, he is surprised, happy, expresses bewilderment, curiosity, discontent. The whole gamut of feelings overwhelming a small soul is displayed on a pretty face. It gives the kid a special pleasure to observe the movements of adults, in addition, it is time to carefully look at the animals. Believe me, a plan is already ripening in the tiny head: "one day, grab the fluffy Barsik by the tail." And someday this will happen!

The kid is attracted by bright objects. It is at the end of 4 months of life that the baby begins to distinguish colors. Now it is important to show your child the purity of color, so give preference to rattles in the primary colors: red, blue, yellow, green. Toys with more varied colors will come in handy a little later.

The child looks at his own hands with pleasure, carefully examines each tiny finger, as if he wants to make sure "is this all mine?"

• Leather.

The baby's skin was gradually cleared of postpartum rashes. Small scratches and unaesthetic pimples have been replaced by plump folds and round cheeks, which are attractively filled day by day.

What a child can do at 3-4 months

• Shows character.

Most likely, you have already learned to distinguish between "capricious whines" from "hungry", dissatisfaction with the desire to sleep and all the other signals that your baby gives you. Some mothers sometimes want to say: "Well, character!", In the case when the baby requires constant carrying in his arms and does not agree to stay alone in the crib. Yes, the child becomes a person. He already has his own preferences, both in the surroundings and in the entertainment that you offer.

You can already guess which one. Perhaps he is cheerful, agile, intolerant of objection, thoughtful or unflappable.

• Exhibits motor activity.

The child boldly turns his head from side to side. He scrutinizes everything around him, slightly raises and lowers his head. Lying on his back, the baby may struggle to reach with his chin to his chest in order to properly see his own legs.

In addition, the baby actively twists the "bicycle" with his legs and even dances a little, bending and unbending the legs when you hold him under the handles.

• Turns over.

Already at four months, some, but not all babies are able to turn from side to side, as well as make a serious turn from back to tummy and back. Some children first master the coup only on one barrel and only with time on the other. Other kids immediately spin briskly in both directions. The most important thing to remember in this situation is to ensure complete safety so that the child does not fall and get injured.

• He laughs.

The time has come for short chuckles and attempts to burst into laughter. And that's great! There is hardly a sound in the world that is more beautiful and pleasant to the ear than children's laughter. And now you are fortunate enough to hear these sounds every day. Stimulate the baby to communicate, smile, tease in a kind way, gently tickle the baby. Laughter suggests that the child is all right, he is happy and happy, ready for communication and new achievements. Take children's smiles and laughter as a signal to start active games, exercise, massage or swim.

You may also notice that your baby glances at you playfully while feeding. He holds his chest in his mouth and at the same time breaks into a smile, looking into your eyes. The kid understands that the most beloved mother is in front of him and is trying with all his might to attract attention to himself. If you respond with a smile to a smile, your baby may shyly burrow his nose into your breast. He is absolutely happy.

• Distinguishes between odors.

Your baby has an excellent sense of smell, he recognizes the smell of relatives well, especially his mother. In this regard, a nursing woman should not use various concentrated perfumes, since unfamiliar scents confuse the child, violate his sense of security and interfere with enjoying the closeness of his mother.

In addition, unfamiliar individual smells of other people may be unpleasant for the child, for this reason he does not want them to hold him in their arms.

• Floats on her stomach.

You may not immediately understand why the baby, who previously frolicked in the water with pleasure and swam on his back with the help of your support, suddenly began to be capricious. It is likely that in this way the baby insists that he likes bathing on his stomach.

Most likely, you have already noticed that lying on his tummy in bed or on the table, the child begins to characteristically move his arms and legs, as if he is trying to crawl. This is a kind of workout that is rather difficult for the baby and requires serious effort. Of course, the baby will begin to crawl by about 6-8 months. But, lying on his tummy in the water, the child really "crawls", he touches his arms and legs and rejoices at his progress. This is a great achievement for a little person, so more often turn the child over on his tummy and give him the opportunity to enjoy his own successes.

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• Offended.

Of course, these are not at all the grievances that are familiar to adults. It's just that your wonderful child may have their own preferences and reasons for joy or sadness. Of course, if mom and food are nearby, nothing hurts and does not want to sleep, then the baby's mood is usually at its best. But you yourself can spoil it unconsciously.

The kid grows and develops with leaps and bounds, and nevertheless, his life speed is millions of times different from ours, an adult, so if it seemed to you that the child had seen enough of a toy, your grimacing face or joyful grandmother's claps, and it was time for him to do something different , this does not mean that the baby thinks the same way. You interrupted a process in which the child was actively involved. You disappeared from the baby's field of vision, took or changed a toy, stopped singing or dancing - all these are reasons for children's tears. Therefore, try to look closely and listen to the baby, perhaps with his tears or whims he is trying to tell you something.

What can bother a child at 3-4 months

• Sleep.

At night, the baby can already sleep 10-11 hours. This is the total sleep time, but the baby still wakes up for night feedings. The child also wakes up his mother if he gets dirty, he had a bad dream, he is cold, scared or uncomfortable. Sometimes the baby can wake up at night with a desire to communicate with his mother and all her attempts to put him to bed again are unsuccessful.

In this situation, you can act in two ways:

• Rocking the baby until exhaustion, despite his protests;
• Actively amuse the baby for an hour until he gets tired, and then give him the opportunity to sleep peacefully.

It is clear that the second option is more acceptable, since the baby's nervous system does not suffer, and after the baby falls asleep, the mother has a chance to sleep off.

During the day, the child still sleeps 2-3 times. Most often, he sleeps once in the morning and 2 more times in the afternoon. Now the baby is already giving certain signs that he is not averse to taking a nap. The child often yawns, rubs his nose and rubs his ears. Some toddlers insistently roll their heads to the sides or suck their fingers. Over time, every mother learns to recognize these signals and respond to them as quickly as possible. When the baby grows up, he will add the characteristic sounds "ah-ah", signaling the need for motion sickness.

• Teeth.

Already at the end of the fourth month, the baby can. In most cases, the two lower central incisors are the first to make themselves felt. First, one tooth appears, and after a while another, but sometimes both teeth erupt at the same time. There are cases, but less often, when instead of the lower incisors, the upper central incisors and even the "canines" are the first to climb. This is also a variant of the norm.

A 2 month delay in teething is also normal. The accompanying factors should be considered: heredity of the child, the nature of the diet, etc. In order for the mother not to panic ahead of time, there is a formula that displays the number of teeth by age: M-6 \u003d K, where M is the child's age in months, K is the number of teeth. Specialists rely on it, but, as we said earlier, the baby's teeth can grow in accordance with his individual developmental characteristics.

Only if by the year the child does not have a single tooth, parents need to sound the alarm and, in addition to the pediatrician, be sure to visit an endocrinologist and dentist.

The process of the appearance of the first tooth quite often brings a lot of inconvenience to both the baby and the mother. The gums of the crumbs turn red and swell. The child becomes restless, does not sleep well, is capricious and irritable. In addition, some children have fever, runny nose, and upset stools.

Children tend to squeeze the gums strongly, including on the chest, and this is quite painful. Also, babies constantly pull everything into their mouths and try to gnaw everything that comes to their hand.

To relieve toothache, you can purchase. Special teethers with gel are placed in the refrigerator and when the ether with which they are filled freezes, the toy is given to the child. He gnaws at it, and the cold reduces the pain. You can also use a special teething gel that has a cooling and tanning effect.

• Crackling joints.

In the fourth month of life, the child still has an immature articular apparatus, therefore, sometimes, dressing the child, turning him over or doing special exercises, you can hear a characteristic crackling in the joints. This is how the immaturity of bones, tendons, cartilage and muscles is manifested.

Do not forget that at certain periods of a child's life, a scheduled visit to a pediatric orthopedist is recommended, next at 6 months. If necessary, after the examination, ultrasound of the hip joints is prescribed, we are afraid (underdevelopment of the hip joints).

You can check the main symptoms yourself at home. These include: asymmetry of the gluteal folds (not a 100% sign), a click when raising the hips, restricting if you want to spread the hips - all this is a reason to consult a pediatrician.

• Desire to sit.

Of course, this is not about trying to sit on your own. We say that the baby with pleasure, and sometimes with great eagerness, tries to sit up when you pull him by the arms from a prone position. The child loves this unusual position and the opportunity to see their surroundings from a different angle. But, pay attention to how much the child's spine is curved! Such early plantings are extremely harmful, you run the risk of over-tire the baby, because he makes tremendous efforts to maintain balance. But the main danger lies in the fact that the child can "earn" a deformity of the spine.

Mothers who have daughters growing up need to remember that if they start planting a baby before six months, she may have a deformation of the pelvic bones, which in the future will lead to the closure of the birth canal.

You can only pull the child to you in a sitting position and immediately lower him back. This is a useful exercise that gradually strengthens children's muscles and gives a lot of joy, especially if you do this kind of exercise on a large gymnastic ball. Note that your baby is already boldly holding his head upright!

It is worth warning young parents against the temptation to teach the baby to sit as soon as possible. For this purpose, in some families, everyone surrounds the child with all kinds of pillows and props, as was the custom a hundred years ago. In no case should this be done, now the child is very small and the most important task of the parents is not to interfere with his natural development. Of course, the baby will learn to sit, and crawl and run, only for each of the new achievements the time must come.

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What is a 4 month old baby trying to tell you?

During the fourth month, the child is mastering more and more sounds and funny syllables, which he does not get tired of repeating as soon as he opens his eyes after sleep. Now, "eternal bubnezh" is your constant companion. The kid seems to check his vocal abilities, draws on a long singing on one note eeeee - aaaaa, alternates vowels oo-oo-oo, chirps kh-gh-chh, ba-ha, in general, is trying with all his might to check what his fictional looks like language.

The kid likes music, he reacts more actively to his “favorite” motives. The baby also carefully listens to the surrounding sounds, parental speech, tries to adopt the intonation and pitch of sounds. Most of all the child likes to "take part in the conversation", he is more willing to vocalize in the presence of other people.

Now the kid is ready for new experiences, so your walks can be like "what I see, I sing." When your baby is awake, be sure to talk about everything you see. Show leaves, flowers, cars, pigeons, in general, everything that catches your eye. It only seems that a small child does not understand anything, in fact, he hears your speech, like a sponge absorbs your every word. Hence, in the future, a literate, rich in adjectives and epithets, funny and sometimes so deep in meaning, children's speech is formed.

What does a child need at 3-4 months

The time has come for games and entertainment. Your pouty cheeks or wrinkled nose are still amused by your child, but he would not mind bright rattles either. The correct toys for this age are described in the article.

Lay the baby on the tummy every day and place the toy at a short distance so that the baby reaches for it with a handle. Now the child is already trying to lean on only one elbow, and direct the second handle to grab the object of interest. Sometimes, from such attempts, the baby can fall onto the barrel, so do not leave him alone so that he does not fall.

As soon as the child manages to grab the toy, he screeches enthusiastically, moves his hand from side to side, pulls it towards him and always pulls it into his mouth.

Already now you can show your kid simple picture books, or offer him developing cards for study. Show the image and repeat what or who exactly is depicted on them. Start with photographs or drawings of animals, supplement your stories with the words: “This is a cat, meow, fluffy cat, affectionate. This is a dog, waving its tail, says woof-woof. "

You will be surprised when, in a couple of months, the baby begins to "tell" the same thing, with your intonation.

In Mom's Store there is a huge selection of high-quality hypoallergenic toys for children from 0 to 3 years old, you can choose and buy:

• bright;
• on every day;
• for the first teeth;

This is interesting at the 4th month of a child's life.

American scientists have found that children of educated parents who are experts in their field hear more than 2,000 words per hour. While babies born in modest working families - just over 1000. Children, whose mother or father are forced to exist only on welfare, get only 600 words per hour. Scientists say that the number of words that parents say is directly related to the development of children's thinking.

"The child should always be dressed and wrapped warmly to keep him warm." Such advice can often be heard from others.

Indeed, the baby's body is still poorly adapted to temperature changes, but overheating is much more harmful for the baby than hypothermia. Therefore, when planning a walk or simply dressing your baby at home, focus on your own feelings. If you are comfortable in a T-shirt and shorts, the baby can be dressed in a light sandbag or bodysuit. And when you yourself have a desire to put on socks, leggings or a warm robe, then the child needs a comfortable or. and for little dandies. ...

Good day, dear readers! Eerie op for several hours every day: have you already encountered this? The worst thing is that you do not know what a tiny creature can bother, he still does not know how to speak or show.

I would like to take it in my arms, so it is calmer for both mom and baby. But this does not always help. What to do when a child is naughty for 4 months? Let's take a closer look at the reasons.

Oh, dear mothers! During such periods, you just want to howl from powerlessness. How long does your baby's whims take? I know those who have had it on an ongoing basis. Can you imagine? Round the clock. And there are kids who show their character only before going to bed, at about the same time. Why it happens?

• "I want to eat!" Signals a small creature. Are you surprised? After all, the baby is fed! But analyze your nutrition. What if the nutritional value of breast milk is not too high?
• Something hurts. In general, this is the very first thought of worried parents. But what if?
• He wants to sleep, but cannot sleep. Does it happen with you? What do you do in this case? Probably tossing and turning, maybe turn on the TV. But you are adults, you understand that there is no disaster in this. It's unpleasant, of course, but still. And the little one is only adapting to this world. And much is a novelty for him.

Yes, only 3 reasons! But each of them is worthy of attention. How do you think? Let's take it in turn. Let's start with food!

I am not full

If I could speak, maybe I would say so! Are you? If so, do you do it on demand? And revise your menu, be sure to eat boiled lean meat and fish.

And if the baby is bottle-fed, adjust the frequency of feedings and the amount of formula eaten. Maybe you should already increase the dose?

But this problem is fixable. And when is the cause of pain?

Something hurts

In some cases, the baby begins to be capricious unexpectedly, from 3.5 to 5 months. After which this behavior comes to naught. And there are cases when a child from birth strongly manifests its character. What does this mean? Of course, for worried parents, the worst cause should be ruled out - pain. Pain also has reasons:

1. Teeth are being cut. The most common reason, moreover, drooling can also flow from (hands in mouth), and the first tooth will appear in six months. Teethers and cooling gels will help.
2. Intestinal colic is the scourge of infants, associated with the formation of the gastrointestinal tract, often as a reaction to a change in weather. Think about what you ate. If you are feeding formula milk, the baby probably needs to change it? Only discuss this step with the pediatrician. A warm diaper or a tummy will help.
3. Neurology. I do not want to scare, but often, this is a reason for whims. Especially when they are permanent. Children don't sleep well. I know of a case when one neurologist did not understand crying, attributed it to colic. But the boy went on strike and went on strike. We went to another doctor, and he sent them for appropriate examinations. In general, the baby had neurology: tonics and the like. Everything worked out, healed. Therefore, when in doubt, show the baby to several specialists.

In general, this behavior is worth talking to a pediatrician. If a child is making noise all the time, something is clearly disturbing him. Well, what if it is periodic only before sleep?

Can't sleep

The little man is just getting settled in this world. Many sensations are unfamiliar to him. If he's overworked, he needs to relieve stress. And through a cry he does it! Express emotions, calm down and fall asleep. After a couple of months, this goes away, you have to wait it out.

By the way, elementary switching on before going to bed is overwhelming. It's like, it affects everyone in different ways: someone falls asleep, and someone gets excited. Try to eliminate all noise, do it early, do not waste time. Try to adjust your daily routine. Perhaps you have been awake for a long time?

Yes, what else I want to say: dear mothers, get away your emotions! I know that many people start to panic when they see that the hands of the clock are approaching the time when the next concert is expected. Your emotional background can provoke this to the strongest extent.

Tell us, do your little ones have whims? How often? What are you doing to calm down? Leave your comments. And don't forget to subscribe to blog updates! All the best, see you soon!

The first three months, when there were adjustments in the work of the stomach, and with them the painful colic after eating, are already over. The time has come for the fourth month - the time when great changes are observed in the psychological development of the baby. What skills did he acquire during this period? What does the development of a baby at 4 months include?

Physical parameters

The baby confidently holds not only the head lying on his stomach, but also raises his chest, leaning on his half-open palms. The angle between the shoulders and forearms, if measured, will normally not be more than 90 O. At four months, the baby is able to hold the head upright for a minute or more.

The child's weight will increase by about 500-600 grams. Such a large increase in weight is due to low physical activity. With each subsequent month, the number of collected grams will decrease. The growth will increase by 2 cm.

Thus, on average, in four months for these two indicators, the following picture is observed:

• Weight ranges from 6 to 6.8 kg;
• Height from 62 to 65 cm.

Do not worry if the weight of a newborn does not coincide with generally accepted norms and tables. In a series of these articles, attention has already been paid to the individual development of children, as well as the way they are fed. Only too little weight gain (or too much weight gain) can be considered alarming signs.

Sleep

The need for sleep remains high. At four months, babies sleep 16 hours a day, of which 10 are sleeping at night. The rest of the hours are split between three daily naps. Some babies by this time give their parents the opportunity to rest all night, but in most cases, the mother still has to wake up twice for night feeding.

If the child's day regimen is set at 4 months, there will be no problems with going to bed. It is recommended to put the baby in bed at night from 7 to 9 pm. If the child does not sleep well, the situation should be analyzed. The following factors can affect poor sleep:

1. Late going to bed. An overworked child has difficulty falling asleep and getting up earlier than usual.
2. The child is constantly naughty. The cause may be teething or lingering tummy problems, worsening in the evening. If the baby has become moody, go to the pediatrician.
3. There is no ritual of going to sleep, or it is violated. This includes the same sequential actions that set the child up for sleep: a bath, reading a favorite book, a lullaby.
4. There are many distractions in the crib. Toys in a sleeping place keep the baby active, and do not promote falling asleep.

Whims before bedtime cannot be ignored, you should look for the reason

Food

In babies who are exclusively breastfed, nutrition remains unchanged. Through breast milk, the baby receives everything necessary for growth and development, so that up to 6 months, there is no need for any complementary foods.

Should the baby be given water? It is believed that with milk he gets enough fluid and cannot get thirsty. But there are no strict rules. If you offer the baby a drink and he does not refuse, then, of course, it is worth drinking, especially if it is hot outside. Dehydration at this age is very dangerous.

In the process of feeding, the baby begins to taste her mother's breast "by the teeth". Although the teeth themselves are not yet, or the front ones are just erupting, the squeezing of the nipple with the gums is very painful and unpleasant for the mother. Do not be afraid to wean the baby from such actions: a fright on the part of the mother, a cry will help him realize that you are in pain. If this does not help, you can achieve that the squeezing of the nipple is associated with unpleasant sensations for him. For example, it is recommended to close his nose with his fingers for a few seconds: so he will understand that he is doing something wrong, and will free the nipple "from captivity."

The baby's nutrition at 4 months includes one more feature: it is common for the baby to be distracted during feeding, to look around. Take this condescendingly: he does not refuse to breast at all, but is simply afraid to miss something interesting.

Breast milk covers all the needs of the baby at this age

The nutrition of a 4-month-old baby who is on formula is somewhat different. About 6-7 feedings are obtained per day, which is almost 1 liter in volume. Sometimes there is a need for early complementary feeding, but this is rather an exception to the rule than the norm. If the pediatrician gives advice on feeding the child "adult" foods, it is best to start with cereals.

Some believe that juices should be included in the baby's diet almost from a month, and from four - vegetable purees, egg yolk. However, remember that juices contain acids that are absolutely not needed at this age for the developing children's digestive tract. The fact that they are on sale with the mark "from three months" speaks more of a marketing move promoting a particular product than of concern. The benefits of egg yolk are difficult to notice, but the harm in the form of rashes and dermatitis is quite. Therefore, do not rush, everything has its time.

Swimming and walking

Bathing, as before, brings a lot of pleasure, only now, during the procedure, the baby actively waving his arms and legs, happily walks. Bathing with toys is a special pleasure.

The child's regimen should include daily walks in the fresh air, at least 2 hours a day. Moreover, you need to walk in any weather.

Basic skills

1. Flips from tummy to back or side are easy and natural.
2. The kid rises in his arms, knows how to hold his head well.
3. Crawls on his stomach on his bellies for a toy he likes.
4. If you support him by the armpits, you can see how the baby rests his toes on the surface and pushes off from it.
5. There is no longer hypertonicity of the arms (it may still be present on the legs)
6. Sits down from a prone position when pulled by the handles. This movement can be used as an element of charging, but it is not yet possible to fully plant it due to the fragile back muscles.
7. Holds a toy well in his hand, knows how to rattle it.
8. Fingers in the mouth are common.
9. During feeding, the baby holds her mother's breast.
10. He already perceives bright colors well, especially yellow and red. But toys should not be oversaturated in color. Three to four colored components per toy is enough. At this age, the baby does not just see, he follows the moving object with his gaze.
11. The baby turns his head after the source of noise, speech, recognizes relatives by his voice. If he hears rhythmic music, he can shake his head to the beat. Develop a sense of rhythm by clapping your hands in front of your baby to the beat of the music.

Good exercise for a 4 month old baby

Features of psychoemotional development

The skills of the baby are associated not only with his physical development, changes are also observed in other areas of his life:

1. Communication skills. At the sight of a mother or someone close to him, the baby revives, gives a smile, actively jerks his arms and legs. The humming becomes more and more distinct, the open vowels "a", "o" are clearly audible, sounds similar to the consonants "m", "p", "b" are caught. Reacts to your name.
2. At 4 months, the baby is able to express a whole range of emotions: joy, resentment, fear, curiosity.
3. The study of one's own body is going on with great interest. The child likes to touch his face, legs, look at himself in the mirror.
4. The ability to establish cause-and-effect relationships is traced. For example, at the sight of mother's breast, the baby freezes in anticipation, realizing that there will be feeding now.
5. The first reaction to strangers is alertness. Then she goes either into crying or into accepting the stranger with curious consideration. If the mother changes, for example, dyed her hair, drastically cut her hair, put on glasses or a hat, the baby may not recognize her.

Looking at yourself in the mirror is very interesting.

Games with toddler

Activities with your child should include games that develop fine motor skills and communication skills.

1. "Okay": the mother puts the baby on her lap, shows how to clap her hands and recites the poem: "Okay, okay, where were you? By Grandma...". This game helps to open up the palms to the fullest.
2. "Magpie-crow". This game involves circular movements of the finger in the center of the palm, which has a beneficial effect on the work of the gastrointestinal tract.
3. "There is a horned goat" also brings joy to the little ones, making them laugh.

So, at 4 months, the child's behavior becomes more and more meaningful, bringing joy to the surrounding relatives and parents. Since the baby skillfully rolls over, acquires the skills of crawling, in no case should he be left alone, even on a large bed. In the next month, you will see even greater achievements and small victories on the path of the baby's development.

Many parents find that their babies sleep poorly at 4 months. Sleep crisis at 4 months (it can also spread to ages 3 and 5 months) is a kind of diagnosis. In this article, we will explain why obedient sleepyheads begin to suffer from insomnia when they reach 4 months or so.

How does a baby sleep in the first few weeks?

How does a child's sleep change during a 4 month crisis (also applicable to 3 and 5 months)

We all alternate between deep and shallow sleep. As adults, we can turn over, look at the clock, adjust the pillow. And up to 4 months, you could shake the baby in such cases or give him a dummy so that he could sleep peacefully for several hours. At the age of 3-4 months, the child begins to sleep like adults. When he falls asleep, he does not immediately fall into deep sleep, so if you put the child to bed before his deep sleep phase, he will most likely wake up and the process of lying down will start over.

How does a 4 month sleep crisis go: putting your baby into deep sleep

At first, a 4-month-old baby very quickly goes into the early phase of sleep, in about half an hour (this figure changes with age). However, we all alternate between deep and shallow sleep. The cyclicity of the change in the phases of sleep in a child is about 45-50 minutes, therefore, after this period of time, the child wakes up briefly from deep sleep. That is: you swing the child for half an hour, trying to make him fall asleep, and after 15 minutes he suddenly wakes up again. A familiar feeling, right?

In general, a child's deepest sleep occurs in the first half of the night, so after the first cycle of phase change, he can sleep well for several hours in a row.

Correctly? Do you only need to swing for an hour? Not.

How the sleep crisis goes at 4 months: sleep the rest of the night

The correct definition of "sleeping the night away" ends at five hours of uninterrupted sleep (without feeding), and many children do so by 2-3 months. At the beginning of the night, the child has the best sleep, but after the first 5 hours (if not earlier), he begins to plunge into a deep or shallow phase. And this shallow phase no longer looks like a dream in the first half of the night.

And here comes the problem of the association of falling asleep. If a child cannot fall asleep without you at the beginning of the night, then he will certainly wish for your presence again, somewhere around midnight or later, and so every time he wakes up. That is, every 45-90 minutes.

Between 4 and 6 in the morning, the child's sleep is at its most shallow, so only an hour or half an hour before the alarm goes off, he can again plunge into a deeper phase.

Even though babies wake up early, make sure that this is not just the shallowest phase of sleep, but that the child is really awake. You've probably noticed that half an hour after "getting up" the baby wants to sleep again. Therefore, what you took for "lifting" turned out to be just another alternation of sleep phases.

Sleep crisis symptoms at 4 months

Many parents want to know what the crisis is. Of course, everything happens in different ways for all children, but there are some common signs:

• changes in appetite (the child may eat more or less than usual);
• frequent waking up at night (this will immediately seem abnormal, especially if the child has slept in longer periods for some time);
• increased tearfulness and nervousness (it often happens that you are powerless against the child's nervousness, and the usual methods of sedation do not work);
• the child does not sleep at night or sleeps less than usual

The baby has already been four months old, what he has learned, what he can do and how to take care of him, because he is growing and requires more and more attention to himself and cannot be ignored.

General development of the child

• Eyes. The baby's tears are now quite justified, in contrast to the first three months, when he asked for food or was disturbed by something. Now the child is drawing attention and demanding something. He also cries because, perhaps, he feels discomfort: hot, cold, wet, he wants to go to his mother's arms or asks to eat. Monitor and control this. So far, the child sees colors vaguely, but he already reacts to the brightest ones - red, green, yellow. Do not show your baby too bright colors.
• Character. The baby has become more active, he is already gradually getting used to the sleep regime, and adapts to it (though not ideal, of course, since at night the baby often wants to eat). The first humming was even earlier, but now they are a little clearer and more frequent. He already knows his name a little. Some kind of reaction appears.
• Reflexes. The child is already purposefully trying to grab the toy, touch it and taste it. He also tries a rattle, shakes it in order to hear the sound that we rejoice at. The little one is smiling all the time, because when he ate, he bought it in a clean diaper, why not smile. Also, the baby's smile is often densely turned to the mother, whom he recognizes by the smell and even by the silhouette. He knows that if mom comes up, then something good will happen: a massage therapist, kisses, hugs, games, help, of course food. She grabs the crib and the blanket with her hands and tries to stand up. He already knows how to roll over on his tummy and rise on the arms and even hold in this position. This means that the baby has normal development, which it should be.
• Distinguishes voices. An unfamiliar voice may burst into tears. First of all, he recognizes his mother (or the one who cares for him). He is always glad to see this person and constantly needs him, calls and feels. The baby feels fear, affection and even disgust. Moreover, he reacts to this quite actively and emotionally. Mom should definitely protect the baby from negativity.
• Begins to crease the breast when feeding. Knows how to hold a bottle.

Physiological development of a child at 4 months

Motor skills at 4 months

Feeding a baby at 4 months

Mental development 4th month

Approximate daily routine for a four-month-old baby

What reflexes should not be at 4 months

Reflex Perez

Reflex Galant

Exercises for a baby at 4 months

• When the baby is lying on his back, put your fingers in his hands so that he grips tightly. Holding on to the wrists, raise the upper body.
• In the same position, to unbend and bend the handles, the movements resemble a boxer's warm-up.
• Now cross the arms. Spread them to the sides and cross them on the chest.
• The mother turns the child's lower body onto its side from a supine position, the child himself turns over on his tummy.

The lack of what skills should alert

For moms

• Massage is required. And the back, and tummy, arms / legs and fingers.
• Talk to your baby more often, saying his name each time.
• When bathing the baby, throw rubber toys into the bath, let him develop grasping reflexes.
• Air baths regularly.
• Play with your child, carry in your arms, give love.
• Visit your pediatrician at the first sign of any abnormality. You should not hesitate, because the baby develops and the body grows with it, and the doctor will tell you how to properly eliminate any problem.