What it means
Attachment grows over the first months of life through holding, eye contact, skin-to-skin contact and a caregiver who answers the baby's cries. Bonding usually means the parent's early feelings toward the baby; attachment is the two-way tie that builds over time. A secure attachment supports a child's later emotional health.
For the nurse
Encourage skin-to-skin contact, rooming-in and holding. Report a parent who rarely looks at, touches or talks to the baby, or who speaks of the baby negatively.
At a glance
| Spanish | apego |
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Related terms
postpartum
The time after giving birth, usually the first six weeks, while the body returns to its non-pregnant state.