“Wearing” your new baby in a papoose or baby sling, allows your baby to experience movement as you move. He will also feel secure since he is held close to you, and is less likely to be fearful of movement if he is carried in this way. As you bend over to reach for things, he too will experience the pull of gravity as his little head becomes orientated in different ways.
The baby who is left to lie or sit, rather than being carried, does not experience nearly as much movement input.
It is also wise to read your baby’s cues, some babies do not like to be moved much. Be sensitive to this, and gradually encourage more movement, but always do so gently and respectfully if your baby appears more sensitive to movement.
Car seats and baby carry seats are useful to move baby about when you go visiting. They should however not be used for more than a short while – a few times a day – as they restrict movement far too much. The rest of the time, your baby should be positioned lying on his tummy, on his back or his side on the floor, so that he can move his arms and legs freely. With this freedom of movement, he can also begin to learn to roll.
Once your little one learns to roll, you can leave him on his tummy and he will find his own way to roll over to whatever position he prefers.
