It is natural for the child to be jealous of a new baby. There is no child in the world that has not been jealous when new siblings arrive. During the birth you will want to make your older child doesn’t feel abandoned.
11 ways to prepare older child to adjust with a newer one.
• Firstly parents especially dad should go to the first child and scoop him/her up into the arms and do a lot of adoring, hugging and kissing starting from the birth of a new born baby.
• Make your child the hero in the eyes of the baby. Whenever you get the moment with your children call the older child over to snuggle with you and the baby. Tell the newer one that you introduce big sister/brother who is a wonderful girl/boy. Tell each and every good quality of the child to the baby so that her morale should be boost up.
• Better living through bonding .Let the older baby sit and hold the baby helping her to support his head. The more your older child snuggles the new siblings, the better their relationship is likely to be.
• Make sure each of the kids knows that they still have an important role in the family. Reinforce all the wonderful things about who they are and how they contribute to the family. Tell your child and develop a sense that she/he is still a valuable member in the family. Talk about the fact that each member of the family is important in their own way and makes their own special contributions.
• Sometime your child will be testing you to be sure that their parents still love them. Keep your relationship with them as smooth and affectionate as possible sidestepping power struggles and minimizing the conflicts. Keep usual limits which will help her to feel secure.
• Never telling your older child to be a big kid. Let her be a baby as much as she wants to be without any guilt and confusion. Give her/him lots of love and attention.
• Keep the kids routine same as they were before the baby. This will give a balance against any stress of changing in the love or feel insecurity.
• Never leave toddler unsupervised with the baby. Little ones cannot be expected to control the jealous emotions and the stakes are just too high to take a chance. Try to avoid admonishing your child. If you notice her getting rude, quickly move the baby away from her and distract her with a question, song or story.
• Your older child needs to grieve what he / she is lost especially with your relationship .He /she always wants your concentrated time and attention.
• When parents encourage the older siblings to see the baby as real person with feelings of his/her own, the siblings are more affectionate and protective with the baby.
• Stay connected to your older child. Spend the precious time with your child. When there is another adult around you, let them hold the baby while you snuggle with your toddler. If your hands are busy, use your voice to stay connected with your older children. When you sit down to feed the baby, invite your older kids over to read any books or stay around them.
