Studies show that responding to a baby’s needs (not letting a baby “cry it out”) has been shown to influence the development of conscience; positive touch affects stress reactivity, impulse control and empathy; free play in nature influences social capacities and aggression; and a set of supportive caregivers (beyond the mother alone) predicts IQ and ego resilience as well as empathy. […]
“The right brain, which governs much of our self-regulation, creativity and empathy, can grow throughout life. The right brain grows though full-body experience like rough-and-tumble play, dancing or freelance artistic creation. So at any point, a parent can take up a creative activity with a child and they can grow together.”
– Science Daily, Modern Parenting May Hinder Brain Development.
All of this seems like common sense, and yet I know it’s not in our society – yet.
If we want to see how we evolved to be raised, we don’t need to look further than looking at primates and – to some extent – current hunter-gatherer societies. It’s our natural way to raise children be raised: Plenty of body contact. Responsiveness from the adults. Freedom to explore and learn from own mistakes.
Thank you