10 Ways to Help a Child Adjust to a New Baby

Making the decision to have another baby can be a difficult one. For so long you have devoted your attention to one child and now they are going to have to share. How will they cope? How will you cope? These are all questions that will spin around in your mind and make the process just that little bit more stressful.

I have written about my experience with introducing Little G to the idea of being a big sister before. I was given lots of advice and found that with the right approach Little G was absolutely fine with the introduction of a baby into her world.

With the Dutchess of Cambridge about to give birth it got me to thinking about my own experience. So, I have written 10 ways to help a child adjust to a new baby in the family, I have also included some stats gathered by Johnson’s® showing different tactics parents use.

1. Introduce the baby as early on as possible. We introduced the idea at 12 weeks with the scan photo. We didn’t talk too much but just added in the odd thing here and there to start the ball rolling.

2. Encourage independence. First of all, it will make your life a whole lot easier if they are able to do certain things themselves but it also gives their self esteem a boost if they know you are giving them attention for learning a new skill.

3. Involve them in major decisions. I asked opinions on clothes, on names and what colour the nursery was going to be. It really helped her take ownership and made her feel a part of the process.

4. Talk about the baby. The more you can familiarise them before the birth the better. By the end of my pregnancy I would talk about the baby all the time. She was a part of our lives and Little G was excited to meet her sister.

5. Refer to the baby as their baby. This was such a great tip and one I always tell my expectant friends. Try not to say that it is ‘mummy’s baby’ or ‘my baby’ as this will result in jealousy. By referring to the baby as ‘their sister/brother’ the baby is no longer a threat- they belong to them.

6. Invite them to be the baby’s first visitor. Only 26% of parents make sure the older brother or sister holds the new baby. This was a very special moment for us, watching the two sisters meet for the first time was magical. By having Little G as the first visitor it meant that the family was complete. She was then part of the welcoming committee as other visitors arrived.

7. Help them choose a gift. I took Little G on a shopping trip to buy something for her little sister. She chose a little pink bunny from JellyCat. She was so excited to give it!

8. Have the baby give a gift. I really liked this idea and so made up a gift bag from Baby to Big Sister. Inside it contained a big sister book, a world’s best big sister teddy bear, a best big sister certificate and a card. It meant that among all of the gifts that were given for baby, she still had something to make her feel special.

9. Ask for their help. It can be hard when you have a newborn and another child wanting your attention. I involved Little G in all of the baby activities such as passing me the babywipes, bathing the baby and choosing her outfits. So instead of vying for my attention she felt included and involved. 20% of parents let their oldest help with feeding and 15% let them help with bathtime.

Everyday activities such as bath time are a special part of the day for parents and siblings alike to share time together, play and bond through multisensory interaction.

10. Remember they are your baby too. Sometimes when you have a newborn it is quite easy to forget that your other child is still a baby too. There were definitely times when I expected more from Little G and then I would realise she was only 2 and still needed her mummy. I made sure I spent lots of 1:1 times with her when Little L was asleep so she knew she was still important to me.

The research also found, that ‘ordinary’ family moments can provide the best opportunity for siblings to form a special bond.

If you would like to download your very own sibling certificate then Britax have created one to celebrate the imminent arrival of the new prince or princess.

To download your copy you can follow this link for the original Royal Baby_certificate. I would love if you shared photos of your super siblings holding the certificate on my FB page!

Prince George was a Britax Baby, going home in the BABY SAFE infant carrier in 2013, who knows- maybe the new Royal baby will have a Britax SMILE just as we do! 🙂

Have you got any tips for easing a child into the idea of being an older brother or sister?