Child growth crises. Calendar of age-related crises of child development up to a year

27.09.2020

Naughty? So it is developing! Content. lucky_mur wrote in May 5th, 2012

The famous book about the mental development leaps of a child in the first 1.5 years of life. Helps to understand the reasons for crying in a particular month. The parent, having realistic expectations, responds more calmly, and the "difficult weeks" pass faster. You can enter your date of birth and get a crisis schedule for your child

As you can imagine, sleep in a "crisis" usually suffers. Especially in active and temperamental children.

A small step back and a jump forward

Children grow in leaps and bounds. For a long time, nothing or almost nothing happens. And suddenly, in one night, the child grows a few mm. The mental development of children also occurs in leaps and bounds. Studies of children between the ages of 1.5 and 16 have shown that these jumps coincide in time with changes in brain waves, which can be determined using measurements. In infants under 1.5 years of age, 7 age periods were also known when changes in brain radiation occur. It was found that in each of these periods, the development of the child makes a noticeable leap. But in the mental development of babies there are even more leaps, which, however, have not been studied from the point of view of the brain until now. Leaps in mental development do not always coincide with leaps in growth. The latter are more numerous. And teeth usually do not appear at a time when the baby is making a developmental leap.

What happens when your child's mental development takes another leap?

During each leap, something new develops very quickly and unexpectedly. This almost always happens in the baby's nervous system, bringing him a new ability. For example, the ability to recognize "patterns". It appears around the 8th week. This ability affects the general condition and behavior of the child. It changes and improves everything that he has been able to do so far and gives the infant the opportunity to learn new things. This can be expressed, for example, in the fact that the baby begins to pay attention to visible "patterns", for example, cans on a store shelf, or branches of bare trees swaying in the wind against the background of the sky. And at the same time, your child can now control their body position. This is also a kind of "pattern", only it is recognized not outside, but inside the body.

How will you tell if your child is making a developmental leap?

Tiring, whiny periods are the "calling card" of such a jump. It becomes more difficult to cope with the baby than usual. Many moms get worried. They ask themselves if the child is sick or annoyed, not understanding why he is so harmful. The kid rushes to his mother.

At what age do difficult phases begin

Difficult phases are observed in all children at the same age. There are 8 of them in the first 14 months. At first, they are shorter and quickly replace one another.
If your baby was born 2 weeks late, start counting two weeks earlier. If he was born 4 weeks before due date, start counting 4 weeks later. This difference also indicates that the surges are related to brain radiation.

No child can escape it

All children go through difficult phases, both calm, problem-free, and capricious, "with character." The kid "with character" has even much harder time than the "calm" one. And so did his mom. Such a child already requires more attention, and in "critical" periods he needs "extraportion". He needs even more mom's attention, he is eager to learn new things, and he has stronger conflicts with his mom.

You will see that he can do more than before.
It's hard, take pity on the child!

The baby goes back to a safe base

As the baby suddenly becomes more restless, you start to worry. Automatically, you begin to observe him more closely. Then you notice that he is behaving normally again. And you also notice that he can do much more than before, tries to do something new, and you understand that your baby has made a leap in development. Children are scared of these leaps. During this period, the child's familiar world is turned upside down. This fear can be understood: imagine that you woke up on a foreign planet. Everything suddenly became completely different. What would you do? Would you sleep peacefully further? No. If only with an appetite? No. Would you cling to familiar people? Yes. And that's exactly what your little one does.

New Ability: New World

Each new ability helps your child to learn new things. The baby gains abilities that were inaccessible to him before this age, no matter how much they practiced with him. You can compare each new ability with the new world that opens up to him. There are many opportunities to make discoveries in this world. Something new there, something familiar, but much improved. Each child sets his own priorities - according to his predispositions, his preferences, his temperament. One examines everything and tries everything, the other is carried away by one single thing. Every child is special.

Help your little one learn

You have the opportunity to show your child what is next to him and what suits him as a person. You know your child best. Therefore, you will help him better than others to manifest what is in him. Your little one is not alone in setting priorities. You too are embarking on a journey of discovery. Something will be more interesting to you, something less. After all, every mother is special. At the same time, you, as an adult, can offer something that your little one will not notice. You can help him "discover" what he missed. With your help, he learns faster, easier and more diverse.

Conflicts with the baby.

When your child learns new things, they may have to give up their old habits. If he can walk, he can no longer expect his mother to wear him the same way. If he has learned to crawl, he can take toys himself. After each jump, your child can do more and become more independent. Both mom and baby understand this, and sometimes it leads to conflicts and quarrels. The desires of moms and babies do not match.

Cloudless phase: short rest after the jump

The difficult phase passes as unexpectedly as it begins. For most mothers, this is the time to relax. The kid became more independent. He is busy applying what he has learned recently. And he is happy. But this rest is short. The next leap is coming soon. Your baby is working hard.

Scheduling hours of games is not natural

If your little one is allowed to decide when to get your attention, you will find that this will change from week to week. During each jump, your child experiences the following: - the need for mother's closeness, - the need to learn new things with his mother. Therefore, the scheduled hours of games are unnatural. It may so happen that the baby wants attention at an unplanned time. Magical, funny, scary experiences with your little one are impossible to foresee. A child is not a video that can be played at a certain time. He is not an adult.

Crisis calendar by week

The sun corresponds to the "good" period of the baby.
The cloud is the hardest time.
The painted weeks are the ongoing crisis.

Huge gratitude community "Kids" from livejournal.com for translation and revised drawings.

Hetty Vandereit and Frans Ploy "Is it naughty? So it is developing!"
Hetty Vanderijt & Frans Plooij: The Wonder Weeks: How to Turn Your Babys & Great Fussy Phases into Magical Leaps Forward

All parents, without exception, are worried, and sometimes frightened by situations when suddenly, a baby begins to cry for no reason, his sleep deteriorates, he refuses to breast. They are trying to create good conditions for him (change the diaper more often, put on lighter things, cover them with warmth, reduce the noise in the room to a minimum), but most often this does not improve the situation. What's the matter?

It turns out that there are developmental crises in children under the age of one year, as well as a special calendar indicating when to expect the next deterioration in mood. These periods cause a dramatic change in the baby's behavior. Not everyone has heard of them, since others are more often heard, and babies are somehow unreasonably forgotten, but this does not mean that they do not experience similar problems in their few months old.

What is a crisis schedule for a child under one year old?

According to the observations of child psychologists, for many years who have studied the behavior of infants, their whole life is divided into light and dark moments. In the table of crises that lie in wait for a child under the age of one year, which they compiled, this is expressed in the form of weeks of the baby's life, going in order. Each of them is colored either neutral (white) or gray - the very beginning of the crisis. Black means directly the time of crisis, and a cloud with rain, apparently, mother's tears - those days when parents are ready to climb the wall.

But not everything is so bad and hopeless, because in addition to gray-black periods, there are also sunny ones, when the baby is cheerful, active and enjoys life in the literal sense of the word. In total, up to a year, there are 7 crisis periods - 5, 8, 12, 19, 26, 37 and 46 weeks. They last from two to five days and have their own characteristics.

Why do crises occur in a child under one year old?

Having carefully looked at the calendar of crises of a child under one year old, you can see some regularity - the "black" days are always followed by sunny ones, and there are not so few of them, and you definitely should not fall into despair.

But why these unpleasant time periods occur is not entirely clear. It turns out that it is they who indicate that the baby is growing up. The fact is that at this time there is a so-called growth spurt, but not physically, but psychologically. It's the same as a child wears the same pants all winter, and then over the summer it grows sharply by 3 sizes and these are no longer pants, but shorts.

The same thing happens with the psyche, which is very vulnerable in babies. As soon as the child begins to perceive himself as something separate from his mother, the first crisis occurs. Then he realizes that he has a right to his own feelings - and this is the second and so on.

It is impossible to completely avoid crises of the first year. But to mitigate their manifestation is quite within the power of the parents, especially the mother, since the baby trusts her the most. In acute periods, it is necessary to spend as much time with the child as possible.

Body contact is very important, especially in the first half of the year. It is necessary to talk with the baby, swing in his arms, show affection and care. Then he will not feel such anxiety, because the mother's confidence will gradually be transferred to him.

During his first year of life, the baby makes phenomenal progress - he learns to control his limbs, acquires new skills, and, of course, gains weight and grows. Any new event or skill leaves an emotional mark on the child, which requires an exit.

You have noticed more than once how, after vivid impressions, a child becomes moody and does not fall asleep well. Pediatricians note that even the process of increasing growth is too difficult for a baby, and even single out several crisis episodes that occur in the life of every baby.

The baby can start to be capricious and constantly ask for hands only to you, while there are no prerequisites for this: he is not sick, the gums do not itch, and the tummy is calm. The fact is that children under one year old have several growth spurt when their behavior changes dramatically. Such developmental crises frighten parents, and sometimes they can lead to white heat, since often the child's whims look like mockery and a test of what is permissible.

Nevertheless, pediatricians and psychologists ask parents of children under one year old to understand that such whims are developmental crises inherent in absolutely all babies.

Weight gain

According to the child development standards developed by WHO based on statistical data, the growth of infants in the first year of life undergoes significant changes. Until the age of six months, this indicator should increase by an average of 2.5 cm every month. After six months, the growth rate slows down slightly: the baby will grow by 1.5 cm per month.

By the end of the first year, the child's growth should increase by 50% relative to the indications recorded by neonatologists in the hospital.

The peculiarity of the development and growth of children under one year old is that they do not grow smoothly and evenly, but in jumps. Moreover, on average, such "breakthroughs" occur in the same periods and are associated with certain emotional difficulties.

When does growth spurt occur?

The very first growth spurt is observed in children under one year old in the time interval between 1-3 weeks of life;
the second growth spurt will be in your baby at the end of the second month of life - from 6 to 8 weeks;
after a long break, the next growth spurt is observed in children under a year at 3 months;
the fourth jump on average in babies occurs at six months;
the last spurt during the first year of life will occur at the age of 9 months.

Growth jumps in children under one year old will not necessarily take place at the indicated time periods, since each child develops at its own pace. Such jerks last on average for children about 2-3 days. But for some babies, such developmental crises can drag on for a week.

How to determine that it has come?

The child's appetite increases during a growth spurt. The baby will constantly demand to eat, and because of this, feedings and sleep are possible. Nursing mothers who cannot visually assess the volume of milk eaten by the baby may have the impression that their lactation has decreased, so the baby does not eat enough and constantly wakes up and begs for breast. It is easier for artificial mothers to recognize a growth spurt as they will see that there is enough baby in the bottle.
The baby begins to be very capricious and cry for any reason, while you will not see the reasons in the child that cause this behavior. His temperature will be normal, his overall appearance will be healthy, and you will not notice any other signs of illness.
The usual ways to calm a baby down during developmental crises suddenly stop working. Yesterday you could distract the child with a bright rattle, but today he throws it away with sobs and pulls his hands towards you.
The child becomes "tame", calms down and falls asleep, only being next to you.
The baby begins to sleep very lightly and falls asleep for a long time.
The baby loses a sense of security, and does not allow you to go about your business. Even guests who come to the house, whom the baby has already seen, can scare him and bring him to hysterics.

An active growth process requires more energy and elements from the baby, from which his muscle and bone tissues are built. That is why children during the period of such jerks do not seem to gorge themselves and constantly want to eat. An adult child can voice his desires with words, and a baby has only one tool - crying. If you cannot understand the baby and feed him when he demands it, the baby will constantly be capricious and fall asleep badly.

Another reason for the capricious behavior of children during this period of jerking is the changes in the body. Just imagine what happens inside the baby at this time - tissues grow, vessels and connecting elements stretch. Of course, such an active growth will give the baby some discomfort, which will result in capricious behavior and the desire to find comfort and warmth in the arms of the most dear person - the mother. You will notice that the baby calms down exclusively with you, and with dad and grandmothers he begins to be capricious even more.

It is important to recognize the onset of the crisis in time and not to confuse it with the usual checks of the boundaries of what is permissible among children. Raising a child is a big responsibility, and the wrong attitude to whims can leave a mark on the psyche or affect his future behavior.

If you are too strict during the growth spurt, the baby may lose faith in you or desire your custody even more, depending on your temperament and your firmness.

Indulging in whims, completely unrelated to the development crisis, will lead to the fact that the baby will always use tears in the future, knowing that with their help he can achieve everything.

If the age of the baby roughly corresponds to the average time period when the crisis should come, his behavior has drastically deteriorated in one day, and whims pass against the background of a very good appetite, then your baby is really suffering a growth spurt.

How to behave?

Feed your baby when he asks. If the artificial man does not gorge himself on the usual portion of the mixture, dilute it again, do not be afraid that he will overeat. Breastfeeding mothers should also switch to an on-demand feeding regimen. Do not be afraid that there is not enough milk in the breast to satisfy the increased appetites of the baby, because the sucking of the baby and the emptying of the mammary glands, on the contrary, is.
Drink plenty of fluids and eat a balanced diet so as not to interfere with breast milk production and provide your baby with the nutrients needed for development for up to one year.
If possible, ask your loved ones to help you with the housework for this short period. You should get more rest, because constant feeding and lack of sleep will exhaust you greatly. A stressful situation can lead to a decrease in lactation.
There is no need to try to immediately return to the former established daily routine, wait a little until the growth and development spurt of the child passes, and then begin to align the schedule. The kid is now quite hard, he needs your support and affection, and not severity.
Remember that this behavior of a baby under one year old is associated with growth and development surges. The crisis will end soon, so be patient, do not get lost on a crumb, no matter how difficult it is for you. Stay calm, because your nervousness will definitely affect the behavior of the baby..
If you want a baby, carry it in your arms at least all day. You can put the child in, so your hands will be free for household chores and the back will be slightly unloaded, while the baby will feel your warmth.
Talk to your child constantly, describe what you are doing and why you are doing it. Hearing your voice, the baby will behave more calmly, as he will feel your presence.

Babies grow up very quickly. Parents sometimes do not even have time to realize this phenomenon. The most crucial period is the first year of life. Children require maximum protection from their mother and cannot cope without her help. Rapid development is characteristic not only of the body, but also of the brain. Every month a large number of new connections appear in him. A growth spurt in babies can be taken by surprise, because not all parents will be able to answer the question, is this normal.

Scientific background

Many researchers have spent their lives studying the first few months of a baby's life. At the same time, the physical development and microclimate in the family were taken into account.

Thanks to this, it was possible to obtain data according to which the baby does not develop smoothly. Parents pay most attention to this during the first year of life. Physiologists have confirmed that the process of bone growth is also irregular. This is directly related to the expenditure of the child's energy. The body needs a certain amount of resources in order to grow. For example, in one night, a child can immediately grow a few millimeters.

Scientists were able to establish that the psycho-emotional state is also subject to jumps. They coincide with growth changes and resemble steps. Any growth and development requires a lot of energy. That is why children under one year old sleep most of the time. They do not yet understand what is happening around them and cannot explain their needs to their parents.

Features of periods of development

Growth spurt symptoms are familiar to every mother. For example, a baby's sleep and rest regime is lost. Additionally, during this period, he may be in an irritated state, eat poorly and constantly cry. Mommy has to hold him in her arms most of the time. In this case, the baby feels emotional involvement and stops worrying about all sorts of little things.

Parents without proper experience in dealing with young children cannot understand the cause of this concern. They try to feed and cheer the child, but this does not always work out. Some moms even go to the pediatrician's office. However, there is no reason to panic. The kid spends a large amount of accumulated energy, so he constantly feels tired and wants to sleep.

During the growth spurt, the child acquires new skills

A growth spurt in symptoms is very similar to the usual moods that all babies have. At the same time, other symptoms of malaise are completely absent. The baby has normal stools, no fever and no cough.

However, a number of peculiarities can be noticed in his behavior:

Parents cannot find the reason for the constant whims.
Sleep becomes short and sensitive.
The child begins to eat poorly. At the same time, parents can observe the rejection of even their favorite dishes.
The baby tries to spend all the time in his mother's arms. He requires constant, increased attention.

With these signs, parents can be completely sure that their baby is going through another crisis. His body has to give up a lot of energy.

Duration and frequency of jumps

The period of active growth is also characterized by changes in the functioning of the brain. Each time, the brain waves become more active. Other processes in the cortex also begin to take a shorter period of time. Some scientists compare this mood to a woman's premenstrual cycle. During this period, hormonal changes take place in her body. She makes all decisions through emotion. That is why a woman can experience severe irritation and tearfulness. Not all decisions can be called reasonable. However, if we are talking about an adult woman, then she may well take responsibility for her actions. The newborn does not yet have such experience, therefore, cannot rely on reasonable arguments.

An adult woman has already learned how to correctly express her thoughts and control feelings. A child is at such an age when everything unfamiliar seems to him dangerous and scary. That is why he seeks to spend more time in his mother's arms. This place seems to him the most reliable and safe. It is impossible to make an accurate plan for months, because each baby has its own characteristics.

The jump period can last from several days to a week. It is also characterized by relative suddenness. It is impossible to accurately predict its beginning and end. After several days of whims, the good mood returns to the baby, and he continues to behave as before. Mom will definitely be delighted with the return of her perfect child.

The baby begins to eat well, sleep and play well. However, after the end of a new crisis, parents may notice in their crumbs the acquisition of a new skill that will remain with him for the rest of his life. For example, after such a "shake-up" the baby begins to smile, sit or hold his head. Later, he will need some more time to consolidate and improve new knowledge.

A growth spurt calendar will be useful to all parents. Thanks to him, they will be able to understand their baby. This also makes it possible to prepare mentally and not react to the next whims.

Scientists managed to establish that during the first year of life and the child there are eight crises. Even many adults cannot handle such shakes, but children are guaranteed to cope with them. Obvious changes are observed during the first six months of life. Further, their appearance can be noticed only in rare cases. After 12 months, the next crisis awaits parents only at three years old.

This calendar should not be taken for granted. It is also difficult to apply to those children who were born prematurely. In this case, the approximate number of days remaining before the planned date of birth should be added to each date. There are also children who prefer to sit in their mother's tummy longer. To calculate the timing of their supposed crises, subtract the difference.

Child's growth spurt calendar:

4-5 weeks.
8-9 weeks.
12 week.
15-19 weeks.
23-26 weeks.
34-37 weeks.
42-46 weeks.
51-52 weeks.

If the period is specified in a range, this does not mean at all that the growth spurt continues throughout it. It was at this time that global changes were recorded in children.

Features of the behavior of parents

Mom and Dad get tired not only physically, but also mentally. When a child begins to act up and cry, they begin to doubt their own abilities. However, such changes cannot be completely excluded from the growing up of a child. The important thing is to be patient and give your baby the maximum amount of warmth and care. Thanks to this, all difficulties will be overcome.

The baby spends the accumulated energy on a growth spurt

Mom can't reject the child. He needs her. Parents can provide the baby with a sense of security and warmth. That is why you should not spare time and effort on them. The difficult period will pass, and the baby will receive new skills for him that will be used by him throughout his life. Mom should hug the baby, sing songs to him and lightly stroke him. Books and rocking have a positive effect. In infancy, a child may even be interested in the pattern on the wallpaper, which he will enthusiastically consider. In addition to walking on the street, it is also recommended to look out the window. There are many cars and people passing there, which will also seem interesting to the child.

For babies who are breastfed, you will need to breastfeed much more often. Some moms said that the procedure had to be repeated every 20 minutes. This situation will cause a lot of negativity, because a woman has to do certain household chores. If the baby is already eating complementary foods, then you must first offer it to him, and only then move on to the breast. If mommy is sure that the baby does not want to eat, then you can captivate him with the game. For some, swimming in the bathroom, listening to music, and walking in the fresh air can help them calm down.

Each child grows and develops at an individual pace. However, everyone overcomes the jumps. Parents should be patient with this and spend more time with the baby.

Recently I talked with an experienced mother. We talked about the development of a child up to a year. I complained: "The kid is capricious all the time, the whole day in his arms ..." "Not surprisingly, you have 19 weeks, another jump!" It turns out that babies up to a year are naughty on schedule! This is a real discovery for me!

Patterns of child development up to one year

In general, I became interested in this topic. And here's the information I dug up. The development of a child up to a year occurs in jumps. This applies to both physical and mental development. Studies have shown that the periodization of a child's development corresponds in time to changes in brain waves. By the way, jumps in the mental development of babies under one year old often do not coincide with growth spurts, of which there are more.

Child development stages up to one year

Difficult periods are observed in all babies at the same age. And the developmental stages of a child up to a year follow the following schedule: 5, 8, 12, 19, 26, 37, 46, 55, 64, 75 weeks of life.

Child development crises do not go unnoticed. At such moments, babies are often whiny and capricious, it becomes more difficult to cope with them than usual, they literally "hang" on their mother.

When a child learns something new during a growth spurt, he will have to get out of his old habits, and this is not easy. If the baby is already walking, he should not continue to expect that he will continue to be worn in the same way. When he crawls, he will be able to pick up toys on his own. With each jump, your child can do more and become more independent.

Child development factors up to one year

The difficult period passes as unexpectedly as it comes. For most mothers, this is a time of relief. The baby has become more independent. He is constantly busy trying what he has recently learned. And the kid is delighted! But this calm is not for long. The next leap is coming soon! Until a year, there will be many more!

Breast-feeding

During growth spurt, babies under one year old suckle longer and more often than usual to increase the amount of milk in the mother to meet the needs of the growing baby body. What to do during a developmental leap? Just feed your baby up to a year as often and as long as he needs. This will help you increase your milk supply quickly. The breast works on the demand-supply principle, which means that the more the toddler sucks, the more milk the mother produces. A few days of more frequent feedings will result in more milk supply and the baby will return to a more normal feeding pattern.

Child development indicators up to one year

Growth leaps up to a year can be measured in centimeters and grams. In order not to worry if my child is growing and gaining well, I found the following parameters.

By 4-5 months, the weight of the child doubles, by the year it triples. Each month, you can determine the "normal" increase as follows: in the first six months, the child should add 800 g each month, and for the second - 400 g.

Babies grow on average 2.5 cm per month. In general, the baby should grow by 24-27 cm in a year.