Emotional development from 7 to 12 months

| Between 7 and 12 months of life the child begins to strongly show his autonomy, sometimes in confrontation with the wishes of the parents

In the baby's actions there is already intentionality, he begins to understand the "cause-effect" (if mom leaves ... I'm left alone and I don't like this).

Separation heartache

The baby knows perfectly the people who make up his family or those closest to him. The child shows his attachment to his mother and prefers her to anyone else. It is normal for this attachment to manifest itself with crying or protest when we separate it from her. When he is with, he is happy but when he cannot see her he begins to cry.

Each baby calms down at a different time. It is a normal phase after eight or nine months. It is important to know that it is transitory; sometimes the father can feel excluded in the relationship with the baby and wonder what he is doing wrong. In reality everything is going well, it is a normal phase of child development.

Babbling and communication

Verbal communication begins at this stage with babbling. The baby more easily expresses what he feels and his emotions with gestures, screams, noises and gurgles.

He says nonsense syllables and sometimes performs typical intonations of his mother tongue, "little speeches" that parents must attend and respond to, thus promoting communication with the baby. The child likes to be accompanied and with an active and receptive company. He understands much more than he knows how to express so he has to talk a lot to the baby, naming all the objects before giving them to him.

Also his understanding of language has improved a lot and he can understand simple commands. After a year, symbolic thinking begins and they usually imitate adults with gestures. It is very important to applaud your small achievements, thanks and occurrences.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

• There is already intentionality in the acts that the baby performs.
• The baby feels more attached to the mother than to the father, but it is normal. The father is not excluded.
• He understands more than he knows how to express, therefore, you have to talk to him a lot.

Pediatric Specialist