Does the constant hype of tummy time make you feel stressed? Are you more overwhelmed with the thoughts of when to do it and how long to do it? If so, you’re not alone. The first year of a baby’s life is so precious. So, why are we harping on the importance of milestones over and over? Instead, we should be enjoying and embracing the special moments with our infants.
The anxious obsession of a mother
It feels that we are often constantly worrying about what our baby should be achieving. When should my newborn do tummy time? What age should they roll over? It can seem like every milestone is hovering over our heads. Truly, it takes away from the same precious moments we look forward to. If you’re a mom who looks at social media, you may be all too familiar with the feeling of anxiety that comes with seeing mom influencer accounts. We’re often seeing ads and videos that make these milestone moments look amazing. In reality, we’re not all sitting on a fluffy throw rug with our baby, dangling the latest gadgets and smiling while our baby makes sweet coos. Sometimes, the baby is screaming because they’re tired of being on their belly. Mom quickly becomes burdened with the question of whether they should continue tummy time or snuggle their baby to stop the crying.
Picture this scenario, too. Have you ever mentioned tummy time to your mom or dad, and they looked at you sideways and said, “We never worried about that with you!” Suddenly, you find yourself stressed again and worried about the “perfect” schedule with your infant. This can only mean you’re trying to do your best as a mom! I get it! However, it could help ease the stress to understand, truly, what “tummy time” is. Why is it important, what are the benefits of it, and ultimately, how can it be more enjoyable and less stressful for you and your baby? It turns out, there’s a reason for tummy time encouragement. Rest assured, this post should still help ease your anxiety over the constant tummy time “hype.”
What is tummy time?
Tummy time is placing your supervised and awake infant in the prone position (laying baby on their stomach). This position helps build your infant’s gross motor skills for later development milestones, such as sitting and crawling. The Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU defines gross motor skills as development involving the large muscles in the arms, legs, and torso. In a nutshell, the purpose of tummy time is to strengthen the muscles in the neck, shoulder, and arms to help children reach other motor development milestones.
So, where did the idea of tummy time get its hype? We could likely credit the “Back to Sleep” campaign that started in 1994, now known as the Safe to Sleep campaign. It is recommended that parents place babies on their backs to sleep to reduce the risk of SIDS. As a result, babies were ultimately spending more time on their backs and less time on their stomachs. This led pediatricians to wonder if there was a difference in the motor development of infants based on whether they slept on their stomach (prone position) or on their back (supine position).
The American Academy of Pediatrics published Effects of Sleep Position on Infant Development and found that babies who slept on their stomach reached motor milestones at an earlier age than those who slept on their backs. Therefore, we can assume that there was a push for tummy time to encourage infant development to make up for the lack of time spent on the stomach while sleeping. Now that we have an understanding of what tummy time is and why it’s encouraged, let’s take a look at why tummy time is important.
Benefits of Tummy Time
Understanding the benefits of tummy time can make it enjoyable, not just necessary. Essentially, it’s a prerequisite for future milestones. We discussed that tummy time increases muscle strength. We know that it increases infant gross motor development. If we look further, there are other reasons that putting a baby on their stomach while they’re awake is helpful.
- An infant that is spending time on their belly can also help treat Torticollis and positional plagiocephaly (a flat spot on the head). Making sure that an infant gets adequate time to exercise on their stomach can help fix or prevent flat spots on the head.
- Tummy time can also be a special bonding time with the baby and mother, which also has health benefits for cognitive development. If your newborn is lying on your chest and they raise their head to look at you, this is considered tummy time! They are using muscles to develop neck strength. Plus, it’s a special bonding moment!
Let’s get to it! Tips and tricks for mom and baby
Perhaps, tummy time can feel like a daunting task. If we only visualize it as an exercise that must be done, it can feel like a chore. If we think of tummy time as only placing a baby stomach down on the floor, it can feel inconvenient. There are other ways to do tummy time that can make it less stressful for both mommy and baby. These tips do not require being on the floor:
- Place your baby on your chest while simply holding them and talking or singing. You’ll notice that your sweet baby will begin to lift their head to look at your face.
- Sitting down on the couch or bed with your legs bent, your baby can rest on your thighs, belly down with their head by your knees. This will prompt them to lift their head some and use their muscles but in a more comfortable and bonded position with mommy.
- Placing a baby belly down sideways across your thighs. This can be done while multitasking. For example, I am doing this right now as I’m typing this post.
Making tummy time easier
Sometimes in our daily lives, it’s hard to find convenient moments to do tummy time. Placing your baby on their stomach after you just fed them because they woke up hungry isn’t the best idea. Perhaps by the time they had a diaper change and have been fed, they’re ready to sleep again. Maybe during their wake time you needed to run an errand followed by cleaning the dishes. Suddenly, the day is flying by and tummy time didn’t happen. When there is the overwhelming task of following all the recommendations to be the “best” mom, it can be stressful. So, start small and set attainable goals. Choose predictable times to make tummy time exercise less stressful. Here are tips to make it easier:
- Consider doing tummy time before or after a diaper change. This can be as simple as putting them on their stomach wherever you change diapers. Always use supervision.
- When waking up from a nap (assuming they’re not immediately hungry), do some tummy time.
- Worry less about fancy toys. Find objects in the house that are safe to play with. You don’t need fancy toys to make it enjoyable for your baby. Look for ones that make noise, are colorful, or have texture.
- Consider taking a break from social media to focus on what works for you and your baby. When we are not comparing ourselves to others, it makes our own goals feel more obtainable.
- Give baby light back rubs while they lay on their stomach.
Fear not, it can be less stressful!
Now, here is the good news! The AAP study that was discussed earlier mentioned in their results that babies who slept on their backs took more time to reach developmental milestones. However, all 351 of the babies in the AAP study “achieved all milestones within the accepted normal age range” despite their sleeping position. It should be noted that the AAP states, “This difference in milestone attainment is not a reason to abandon the American Academy of Pediatrics’ sleep position recommendations.”
In other words, the babies went on to prosper in milestone development at their own pace and did so successfully. What does this really mean for you? Do not overstress tummy time. We can assume that tummy time encouragement and the “hype” came from this lack of sleeping on the belly, and probably as a precaution to ensure proper development. It likely wasn’t meant to stress out moms! Therefore, set obtainable goals, start slowly, and find your groove with what works for your schedule. Your baby will reach their milestones!
Key takeaway: Babies reach milestones at varying ages, but they will reach their milestones! Try to worry less about the time spent doing tummy time. Instead, focus on easier ways to incorporate it into your daily life that works for you!
This post should not be considered medical advice. You should always consult your child’s pediatrician with any questions or concerns.