Many parents believe that newborn babies only understand crying and feeding, and that they rely purely on instinct without emotional awareness. However, modern science has revealed that infants have a remarkable ability to sense, interpret, and respond to emotions from the very first days of life.
Dr. Yahya Al-Sayyad, Professor of Psychiatry, explains how infants perceive their mother’s emotions and how this affects their psychological and social development.
1. Infants Have a Highly Sensitive Nervous System
After birth, a baby’s brain grows rapidly, forming millions of neural connections every day. Their sensory nervous system is highly prepared to detect signals from the environment such as sound, light, touch, and smell.
The most important signals come from the mother’s emotional cues. Even without understanding words, babies can detect changes in:
Tone of voice
Facial expressions
Touch and hand movements
Breathing rhythm
These signals are enough for the baby to form an early understanding of the mother’s emotions.
2. How Babies Recognize and Respond to Sound
Babies begin recognizing sounds during the final weeks in the womb. When they are born, they can already identify their mother’s voice.
A calm and warm voice reduces the baby’s stress.
A loud or tense tone increases stress hormones such as cortisol.
Frequent shouting or crying from the mother may cause physiological responses in the baby, such as a faster heartbeat and quicker breathing.
Infants do not understand words yet, but they clearly sense the emotional meaning behind the voice.
3. Reading Facial Expressions
From almost the first day of life, babies can distinguish between a smiling face and a frowning one. They tend to prefer looking at faces that show positive emotions.
Sometimes they even imitate simple expressions, such as raising their eyebrows or opening their mouths. This reaction is not random—it is part of early attachment that helps build a sense of emotional security.
4. Smell and Touch: Another Language
A mother’s scent and the way she touches her baby form another emotional language. Through these signals, a baby can:
Recognize the smell of the mother’s milk and skin
Feel comfort through warm, gentle touch
Distinguish between tense or rough touch and calm, soothing contact
All these signals help the infant create an early emotional “map” of their surroundings.
5. The Importance of Early Attachment
Attachment is the primary emotional bond between a baby and their mother. A mother’s emotional responsiveness directly affects:
The baby’s emotional stability
The baby’s ability to calm themselves
The development of trust in others
If the mother is constantly stressed or sad, the baby may sense instability even without understanding the reason.
6. How Babies Sense Happiness and Sadness
Babies may not understand the concept of sadness, but they feel it through:
Tone of voice
Slower movements
Reduced eye contact
Fewer smiles
In response, babies may become quieter, cry more often, or interact less.
On the other hand, joyful emotions have a positive effect. A mother’s smile stimulates the release of dopamine and serotonin in the baby, enhancing feelings of happiness and safety.
7. Early Emotional Learning
Infants do not understand complex emotions, but they begin learning from them. They start to notice patterns:
Smiles are linked with safety
Anger is associated with tension
Emotional reactions create expectations about how others behave
This early learning forms the foundation for social communication skills later in life.
8. How Babies React to Their Mother’s Emotions in Daily Situations
- When the mother is calm and happy:The baby is relaxed, heart rate is normal, and they smile and interact more easily.
- When the mother is stressed or sad:The baby may cry more, have trouble sleeping, and cling more closely to the mother.
- When the mother is angry or loud:The baby may show strong stress reactions, avoid eye contact, temporarily refuse to play, or try to withdraw from the source of tension.
Crying and Emotional Communication
Crying is the baby’s first language. Infants cry when they are hungry, uncomfortable, in pain, or in need of emotional comfort.
When a mother responds calmly and lovingly, the baby learns that emotions can be managed and that the world is a relatively safe place.
It is important to understand that infants respond emotionally without fully understanding the reasons. They recognize that loud voices mean tension and smiles mean happiness, but they cannot interpret the cause of anger or sadness.
This emotional sensitivity is the first step toward empathy later in life.
Tips for Parents to Support Emotional Security
Try to calm yourself, as babies easily sense tension.
Maintain eye contact and gentle touch to communicate safety.
Speak in a calm tone even during stressful moments.
Avoid arguments in front of the baby.
Maintain a consistent daily routine to create a sense of stability and security.
Post a Comment