Written By: Debjani Arora | Published : May 9, 2014 7:39 PM IST
Words would be too less to express the beautiful bond between the mother and her baby. That unconditional love, trust and faith that a mother and a baby enjoy to make this bond special is beyond explanation. The sense of security, warmth, affection and love that one feels of a mother-child relationship is irreplaceable. Well though we know all this but there is something that happens deep down to make this bond special and intense. Nature and nurture goes a long way in making it a special one. Here are few things that make this bond an eternal one:
It starts early
The bond between the mother and baby doesn't develop right after the birth, but from the time when the baby makes its presence felt in the womb. For a mother, love and care for her baby probably begins to take shape then. Nine months of talking to the bump, caressing it, daydreaming, walking around and taking care of it day and night is what sows the seed of an eternal maternal love. The umbilical cord that attaches the baby with the mother sends out these signals in the womb apart from the nourishment and oxygen. It's a bond that a mother establishes with her baby even before the baby enters the world.
The mother's womb is a special place for the baby to live and grow, a world away from the world. It's the place that promises utmost security, care, affection, nourishment and peace, all that's needed for the baby to face the big, bright world out. This security develops that attachment between the mother and baby that lasts for a lifetime.
Sensing true love
A large part of prenatal care that the mother does relentlessly for her baby are those menial jobs like bathing, feeding, cuddling and singing lullabies to her little one. Did you know that these little tasks are like small stepping stones which establish a lifelong bond between the mother and the baby? A newborn's sense of security is developed through her five senses touch, taste, vision, hearing and smell. The daily care that the mother bestows upon her child helps to achieve this. A baby is most comfortable when she is close to the mother and can smell her scent, breastfeed, hear her voice, see her face and be cuddled in her warmth. These simple actions open new neural pathways that help in brain development and bonding between the mother and baby and the magic is that these neural pathways make the bond grow stronger with every passing year. No wonder, mums are so special to their kids, no matter how old the child is.
Love hormones play their part too
Oxytocin often termed as the love hormone plays an important part in establishing the mother-baby bond. It is believed that the hormone oxytocin helps the mother to be more caring, affectionate towards the baby, trigger a letdown to nourish her baby and it provides with a sense of love and attachment towards the baby. The hormone helps babies also to connect better with the mother. Oxytocin in babies help to link the smell of the amniotic fluid with that of mother's milk and skin, establishing the bond deep in the brain and helping to attach with the mother. This is the sole explanation for the separation anxiety, longing for the mother's hug and the clinginess a baby shows if she has to part from the mother, even for a brief moment. Even formula fed babies yearn for their mother's touch and smell over the bottle or another caregiver. Of course, with time they grow out of it, but there is no denying that the bond only grows stronger by the day.
A constant support system for life
Okay we know that we aren't dependent on our mothers throughout our lives but she is the one person we will turn to or at least think of when we are in need. This trust and dependency has its roots tucked in early infant care those hours of comfort suckling, skin-to-skin contact, cuddling and sleeping and tantrums during toddlerhood which your mother took in her stride -- makes her the epitome of patience and affection. Sure you don't remember any bit of it, but your subconscious mind does, that's reason enough why you yearn for your mum's loving arms when you are really in need of it. That bond that your mother cultivated with so much love and care during the initial years keeps the faith and trust alive to return to her comfort zone at any point in life no matter your age or your troubles.
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