Every baby has their own unique physical and mental development. Sometimes we'd like to see ours doing things that others do, but each one is endowed from the moment they come into this world with abilities and gifts that develop in their own time.
Children are born with the need and ability to adapt to their environment, but if, out of concern for seeing other babies more advanced, we offer them more advanced models and stimuli, they will assimilate these models and adapt to them, skipping previous stages necessary for the development of their psychological, cognitive, and emotional structures.
Is our baby bottle-feeding, but our friend's baby has already stopped? Is our nephew clapping, but our baby can't find his hands yet? Is our baby barely babbling, but our neighbor's baby can already say more than two words? Is our baby not crawling, but our cousin's baby is already running? These and countless other situations can upset a mother who is always trying to ensure her baby's optimal development.
However, there are noticeable signs when a baby is truly not responding to external stimuli, and these are easily detected with the help of a pediatrician. Beyond that, our baby needs to live each stage of his or her life according to his or her own rhythm and circumstances.
Let's not rush their development. It's better to discover them as they grow, to let ourselves be surprised by what our baby is, by what they achieve at their own pace, by what they experience at their own time. Let's allow them to be different from our friend's, our sister's, our neighbor's baby. We shouldn't insist that they learn more than they should.
What's truly important, what will help them grow emotionally healthy, will be our attention, affection, care, letting them feel free to learn in their own time, allowing them to experience and discover the world in their own way, without comparisons, without pressure, without having to prove to others that they are worth what they do or know, but rather making them feel unique and special just for who they are.
Chances are, by the time your child reaches kindergarten, they'll have already reached excellent development, and yet there will always be differences, because the world is like a puzzle, and each of us is a different but necessary piece to make everything work.
Let's enjoy our baby and let him discover, learn, and achieve everything he sets out to do, always allowing him to do so at his own pace.