Eye Contact

Physical contact between mother and baby is necessary immediately after birth. Research say that babies could not see properly until their eyes could focus, but babies can understand shapes and outlines. The shape and outline of your face will be recognized by your baby within 36 hours. The baby searches for the eyes and concentrates on once he has found them which they can do within a few hours of birth. Early eye contact with the babies, make them more sympathetic and help them understand their mothers easily.

Physical Contact

Following on from the first few days mothers should have maximum physical contact with the babies like carrying them in a sling. The newborns find the close physical presence of the mother very reassuring and thereby rarely cry. The soft and warm feel, familiar smell, feeling the heartbeat which they experienced for nine months in the womb makes them feel secure and at home in their surroundings. It is natural for the babies to be constantly on move on its mother's body than to lie completely still in a cot.

Smell

Smell is one of the first associations that the baby makes with the mother. The baby is very sensitive to the smell of the mother and to which it responds biologically and can make out if you are around. This is because the baby’s sensitive sense of smell picks up your chemicals called Pheromones, and it reacts because it recognizes you as its main source of comfort, pleasure and food.

Sound and Effects

The baby becomes used to a mother’s voice - speaking or singing in a soft, gentle, soothing, cooing voice. They do not like loud noise. The mother's voice is almost like therapy for a baby. You should chat, sing or croon to your baby whenever you are with your baby. Some child development research suggests those children who are sung to early in their lives rapidly develop a feeling for and a facility with words. They tend to speak and read slightly earlier than other children.