@moomysmilk - Infants don’t just detect our emotions, they can also be negatively affected by them. ➖Study finds that brain areas associated with emotions, stress reactivity, and regulation were all affected when babies were exposed to angry voices (such as conflict between parents) vs. neutral voices even while asleep. (Graham et al 2013). ➖Study shows that 6 month old babies are able to recognize adult emotions based on both facial expressions and voices. (Zeiber et al 2013, Palama et al 2018). ➖ Study show that babies – even newborns — get distressed when their caregivers become emotionally unresponsive (Yoo and Reeb-Sutherland 2013). ➖ Your baby can sense when you are stressed — which makes them feel stressed too (e.g., Waters et al 2014; Waters et al 2017). 👇🏼You may notice the following signs and symptoms when your baby experiences stress: ➖Increased crying ➖Changes in sleep/resistance ➖Changes in eating habits ➖ Frantic, disorganized activity ➖Spreading fingers wide ➖Does not seem relaxed ➖No eye contact 💡: Every baby is different, and will respond to stress differently, so this isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list of symptoms. However, if you are stressed, you can assume your baby can sense it too. BE RESPONSIVE! The presence of YOU (or another caregiver) in a stressful situation reduces the amount of stress hormones such as cortisol that are released to impact the brain. The way you handle stress determines how your baby will respond to it, and while stress is unavoidable.. try to take a second to relax before responding to your baby. 👇🏼Things you can do to lower stress: ➖Determine the cause ➖Make time to MOVE! Exercise is great at improving your mental health. Try to make time to take a walk or step outside for a little at least once daily. ➖Learn deep breathing or meditation which are proven to help moderate stress and help the body relax. ➖Get help from family or friends... so you can get some time to yourself even if it’s for 30mins. If you are experiencing severe debilitating symptoms, contact your healthcare provider. 📸📝 @moomysmilk