The Chaos and Harmony of Toddlers and Infants
 |
Do you or someone you know have a colicky baby? Then you know how difficult this phase can be for both parents and babies. How about the “Terrible Twos” when tantrums can quickly make parents and child lose control? There is new hope to calm children and regain peace!
Dr. Harvey Karp has written two books that enlighten us about the world of babies and toddlers. With understanding comes coping , control and … happiness. When baby is happy, mommy and daddy are happy too!
Understanding Colic and How to Cope
Each child brings a unique set of challenges to parents. Some babies seem to be born with an inherent calm as they softly coo themselves to sleep. Another set of parents cringe as their babies cry unceasingly for hours upon hours only to then turn into screaming toddlers.
 |
Dr. Harvey Karp began his 30-plus year career as a Pediatrician learning the horrifying combination of colicky babies and parents left with no respite or answers from the medical community. After realizing the devastating toll colic can have on unprepared and unsupported parents and their children, Dr. Karp sought out a solution to the mystery.
The Happiest Baby on the Block
Dr. Karp applied his love for the rhythmic shift of chaos and harmony within nature to his studies of infants. He found that infants, and toddlers, both follow the same principles and can be successfully returned to harmony amid inevitable chaos.
Out of his research came the best-selling parenting book, The Happiest Baby on the Block and more recently, The Happiest Toddler on the Block.
 |
His approach begins by understanding how the infant or toddler views the world. By understanding their world, Dr. Karp can teach parents to calm the fussiest baby and drastically reduce tantrums in toddlers.
Parents Can Lear the Calming-Reflex
The books use calming and soothing techniques that seek to recreate the womb for babies. Dr. Karp points out that the world in the womb is so vastly different from the world infants are brought into. Some babies have an understandably difficult adjustment. During this period, Dr. Karp teaches parents how to properly soothe their infant using what he calls the “calming-reflex”.
The Happiest Toddler on the Block
The newer installment, “The Happiest Toddler on the Block” uses techniques developed through Dr. Karp’s studies of anthropology and brain functioning. He lovingly compares toddlers to “little Neanderthals” with primitive language, strong-wills, and an impatient and distractible nature.
 |
The same approach of entering the toddler’s world is used as parents are taught “toddler-ese” and “the fast-food rule” as communication techniques. These empathetic and soothing techniques are not designed to appease the child but to communicate fully and connect with what can accurately be described as a little caveman.
The toddler book includes an additional section that deals specifically with common issues such as sleeping, potty training, separation anxiety, and biting.
Dr. Karp understands the daunting world of parenting young children and his “Happiest” series unlocks the world of infants and toddlers and gives parents the tools to bring their family back from the stone ages and into a sense of calm and harmony.
