Bonding With Baby Bump – Forming an Attachment With the Unborn

From the very moment you get to know that a tiny one is growing in your womb, you feel a surge of emotions. Most pregnant women start connecting with their baby right on. But some women take time to get used to the idea of being a mom. If you also feel disconnected and are unsure of how to connect with your baby, we have come up with a few tips to help you forge a connection with your baby in the womb.

Video : 8 Best Ways to Bond With Your Baby in the Womb

How to Bond With Your Baby in the Womb

Mother and baby bonding during pregnancy is important and there are various ways to do so. Whether you talk to your bump or sing to it, it can go a long way in forming an attachment with the little one growing inside you. So how do you do it? Read on and learn about the best ways to connect with your baby in the womb.

1. Talk

Talking is one of the most common ways to bond with a baby in the womb. It is said that the foetus develops the ability to bond from about 18 weeks onwards and from the 20^th week your heartbeat is audible to her and she will be able to recognise your voice from inside you. So, make time to talk to your baby every day.

2. Caress Your Bump

Move your hand gently over your bump as if you are caressing your little one inside you. The soothing touch will relax her and a bond will be created between you and your baby.

3. Sing to Her

Music can create a huge difference in the bonding process between a baby and the expecting mom. It will have a soothing effect on the baby, who right from her mother’s womb has been familiar with it. Therefore start singing to her or play some good soothing music while she is still inside.

4. Send Good Vibes

Your little one in the womb is most active at night or when you are resting. During this time, you can practice the act of sending good vibes through petting, talking, telling a story etc. You can also recite some prayers or do chanting to relax yourself and your baby as well.

5. Practise Breathing Exercises

Yoga and Pranayam is something that every mother-to-be should practice during pregnancy. The regulated inhaling and exhaling not just relaxes the mother but also draws in oxygen down to the baby. This oxygen gets the baby more active and she starts responding by kicking and moving.

6. Take a Look at the Ultra-scan

Every now and then have a look at the ultrasound scan pictures of your baby growing inside you. Notice how the size changes and the features become more prominent with the passing of time. All these will get you excited and get you more attached to your baby.

7. Take a Prenatal Massage

Make it a routine to pour some good massage oil over your bump and massage. As you gently move your hands, the baby starts responding by kicking and moving. The massage not only helps you bond better with your baby but also clears away the stretch marks that become more and more visible as the bump increases in size.

8. Choose a Name

Select a good name for your baby with your partner and address your baby bump with that name. A simple endearment would also do. Doing so will make you feel closer to her.

9. Make Something for Your Baby Before Birth

Knitting a pair of socks, cardigan, making hand-stitched cloth napkins or a blanket, etc. can go a long way to bond with your baby. Doing this may give you a strong urge to see your baby, hold her in your arms which means that you have developed a strong bond with your baby.

10. Read to Your Bump

Reading a story to your baby will get her acquainted with your voice in the womb. She will recognize your voice even when you talk to somebody else.

11. Try Slow Rocking Movement

Usually at night or when you stop moving is when your baby gets active in the womb. Too much movement in your womb can keep you awake at night, so try rocking your body slowly side by side. Your baby will begin to relax and the movements will stop eventually.

12. Play With Your Baby

It is usual for a baby in the womb to get active when the mother takes rest or lies down. When the baby starts kicking or moving, respond back by gently patting the bump or poking it back and wait for her response. You may also give the bump a gentle rub. This will help the two of you bond.

13. Pen Down Your Pregnancy Journal

You can do this by addressing the journal to your baby. This will help in creating a bond between you and your baby in the womb. Write down all that you experience during your pregnancy—the good as well as the bad, and keep the journal as a memoir to gift your child when she grows up.

14. Take Photos as the Pregnancy Progresses

Taking photos of you with your baby bump is a beautiful way of making your baby’s presence felt in your life even before she is born. The photos taken during pregnancy can be a great way of remembering your pregnancy journey later on.

15. Go Shopping

Retail therapy can be relaxing and fun. So, go shopping for your bundle of joy. Include her too while shopping by holding the outfits to your bump. Ask your husband or anyone who has accompanied you to see whether it will fit your baby or not. By doing this you will be making your baby a part of the shopping activity.

How Can Dad Bond With the Unborn Baby?

Mothers have an advantage over dads in case of bonding since they carry the baby in the womb and can practically feel their unborn baby. Therefore, fathers may feel a bit left out. So, listed below are some tips for the would-be fathers on how to bond with the little one in the womb.

• A father bonding with a baby during pregnancy is usually not very common but it is important to do so. He can connect with other dads on online groups or ask his friends and family about how they felt when they became a father. Your husband can take tips from them to help him bond with your unborn baby better.

• A father-to-be should make it a ritual to say “hello” and “bye” to the unborn. An occasional kiss on the bump can also have a very positive effect on the baby in the womb.

• Ask him to talk to the baby. It is always good to do a little chit-chat every day. Along with yours, she will start recognizing her daddy’s voice too. Once she is out of the womb, the voices will be familiar to her making it easy for her to bond better.

• Your husband can interact with the baby by gently caressing or rubbing your bump when the baby kicks or pokes. Once a week you may ask him to give a massage over the bump and while doing so he can talk a little so as to let the baby know that it is her daddy doing it.

• From the 20^th week onwards, babies can hear from their mother’s womb so encourage your dearest husband to sing or read a story to the baby.

• Every time your husband tags along with you for the doctor visits, he gets to know about the baby’s latest development, see the baby and hear her heartbeat during ultrasound tests etc. All these activities make him feel closer to the baby thus creating a bond between him and his unborn one.

• Printing out several copies of the sonogram and having it near all the time, like in his wallet, car, or at the workplace will give him a reminder of the little bundle of joy that is about to come into his life very soon.

• Antenatal classes are very informative and educative for parents to be. Therefore, accompany your wife and learn how to massage your newborn, how to put on the diaper, how to give her a bath, etc. These small but important lessons on parenting will go a long way in bonding with your baby.

• Ask your husband to take a few days off before your delivery so that he can fix up the nursery or finish off with the things that cannot be done after the baby comes in. It can be anything – a cot, a cradle or even a board with the baby’s name (or endearment) written on it. Making something with his very own hands will make him feel connected to his unborn baby.

Tips for Older Siblings to Bond With the Baby Bump

Making your older child a part of your pregnancy journey is important. This helps her understand and take in that in a few months time she will have someone else to share her dolls and toys with and most importantly, her mother and father. The faster she accepts it, the easier will it be for her to bond better with her unborn sibling.

Help your older one to start bonding with her yet-to-be-born sibling with the essential tips listed below.

• First, tell her that she will have a sibling in a few months time. Get her all excited by telling her that she will have someone to play with, run around with, talk to and share her secrets with. Stress on the positive points of having a sibling.

• You can read out stories that will educate her about pregnancies and babies.

• Bonding with the foetus is important for the older sibling from the very start of your pregnancy. You can do so by showing her the sonograms of her sibling who is yet to come. Point out the baby’s eyes, nose, head, etc. to her.

• Encourage her to talk to your bump every now and then. Ask her if she would like to tell a story or sing a rhyme for her sibling.

• Another way to teach her to bond with your baby before birth is by letting her touch and feel your bump. Tell her that she must caress the bump gently since there is a fragile one inside. You should also educate her on being careful while you are pregnant. Tell her that a hard poke on the bump on the outside could hurt the baby inside.

• You can take her along when you go shopping for her unborn sibling. Let her choose for the baby. This will keep her from feeling left out and will give her a sense of importance.

• Allow her to feel the bump when the baby moves or kicks inside.

• Involve her when you or your husband do something for the baby’s arrival. If your husband is making a cot for the baby, allow her to paint or ask her to hold the tools or you can also ask her to draw something like a welcome card for her baby sibling.

• Make her feel all important by asking your older one questions like, “how will you take care of your younger sibling when momma is busy?”

An almost full-term baby has the ability to hear anything that is audible and can respond to sounds like talking, singing, music. As the foetus matures, the sense of touch also increases. Therefore, try the above-given tips to start bonding with your baby even before she is out of the womb. However, a word of caution for parents with an older child—do not start bonding with your baby bump so much that you forget that your older one is right beside you.

Also Read: What to Do in Pregnancy to Have an Intelligent Baby