Baby’s Tummy Time And A Few Life Lessons For Me

Posted: June 14, 2015

Tummy time for babies: What can it possibly teach? A lot more than one can imagine! A mother recounts her lessons.

One of the things that you hear from your new born’s pediatrician most probably during your first visit is to give the baby some tummy time daily. To elaborate, tummy time refers to placing the baby on its tummy for some time and has numerous benefits. It gives the baby a new view. In fact, to make it more effective, you can lie down beside the little one with your face pressed against the bed so that the baby can see your face in proximity. This also helps bonding.

Apart from this, it helps strengthens the baby’s muscles at the back which will help the baby roll over, crawl and sit at a later stage. Of course, this entire activity has to be done under adult supervision at all times.

My daughter Angel enjoyed her tummy time but got restless in a few minutes and had to be turned over. One day, out of the blue she turned on her tummy and lifted her head. Oh, what a beauty! The most wonderful mommy moments lie in these little milestones that our babies achieve. That euphoric feeling just can’t be expressed in words. As I lay beside her and saw her lift her head slowly and look around taking in so many interesting sights, it made me nostalgic.

I recalled how anxious she was when we placed her on her tummy for the first time. It was something new for her, the view she was so used to, lying on her back was now different. She looked a bit scared and confused but slowly got used to it and then started enjoying it for short periods at least. Finally, she mustered enough energy to turn herself on her tummy one fine day. And lo and behold! Wasn’t she thrilled about it?

Now that she had emerged victorious in the first lap, she became confident to try something new, let’s raise our head and get a better view of what’s around us. She did that too after some struggling and now she coolly lifts her head and amuses herself with different sights each day. I’m certain she’ll try out the next stage of sitting/crawling very soon. It is said that all these are milestones which all babies naturally progress through. It set me thinking, what about us adults?

Isn’t our story so similar to baby’s tummy time? We become so comfortable in our little cocoon that we hesitate to get out of it. Be it our job, our set of friends, family life, hobbies or anything else; over time, we get so complacent that we do not want to step out of this comfort zone. Just like the baby was happy lying on its back, remember!

How willing are we to take risks which may dynamically alter our life’s course?

How willing are we to take risks which may dynamically alter our life’s course? A promotion at the workplace, getting married, having a baby, making new friends, moving to a new city, taking up that hobby you always dreamt of – we are often hesitant, aren’t we? There is no doubt we need to give it a lot of thought but very often, the fear of the unknown and the unwillingness to let go of our comfortable space leads to lost opportunities. Just like the baby who was scared when it was first turned on its tummy and didn’t know what’s in store for it!

Gradually the baby started liking it and mustered enough courage to do it by itself one day. Once successful, he went a step further and tried lifting his head.

We adults too need some tummy time – to beat complacency and step out of that protected zone. You aren’t sure that you will succeed; no one is. But taking one small step in that direction will definitely teach us some interesting lessons. Taking up that promotion at work or changing a job would surely mean additional responsibility and you may be required to stretch at the workplace, but if you manage to do a good job, it would no doubt boost your morale and the person enjoying success would be none other than you. Self-introspection would make you realize you have gained something out of this experience.

There is a lot we can learn from our tiny tots. As they grow each day, we grow not only as parents but as individuals too. Tummy time is one of the first lessons they give us. So the next time you see your little one on his or her tummy, think about getting some tummy time for yourself too!

Baby during Tummy Time image via Shutterstock

Originally published here