The crying of a baby is something that always stirs the emotions of parents, given the bond they’ve created with the child. However, attempting to stop a baby from crying can be a challenge for those parents, especially if they haven’t received advice from either professionals such as pediatricians or knowledgeable individuals who know how to address the issue.
In an effort to reduce such concerns, Dr. Robert Hamilton of Pacific Ocean Pediatrics in Santa Monica, California posted an online video that lasts just over four minutes showing how to accomplish this task. Dr. Hamilton has previously displayed the technique in his office and parents of his patients have followed his instructions, resulting in a great deal of success.
The four-part method, known simply as “The Hold,” is especially effective for infants that are three months old or less. It’s also been a success even when those children had been given shots. Dr. Hamilton began using it to combat the issue of a baby’s loud crying drowning out instructions he was given to parents.
The first step involves folding the child’s arms against their chest, following by a gentle securing of their arms. Maintaining the gentle hold, the holder’s dominant hand should then be placed in the back of the diaper area. The final step is to rock the child at a 45 degree angle. The dominant hand should focus on the palm area as opposed to the fingertips.
The reason for holding the child at the 45 degree angle is because of the danger of them quickly throwing their head back. Such an abrupt action can cause the person holding them to lose control of the child or potentially result in a neck injury for the very youngest children.
In the video, the actual explanation of the process by Dr. Hamilton takes up the first three minutes of the video, with the final minute used as a refresher. He also adds that if the method fails to work, the possibility of the child being either sick or hungry is the likely reason.
The advice offered by Dr. Hamilton is another effort on his part to offer assistance where needed. He also has taken time in the past to travel to Africa in order to treat young children on behalf of Lighthouse Medical Mission.
That charitable work has also included the digging of wells, construction of water projects and the building of schools and churches. Their partner in this endeavor is the Door Christian Fellowship, and has taken the organizations to previously war-torn areas like Liberia and Sierra Leone.
With regard to Dr. Hamilton’s video, it has quickly developed viral status, given the fact that it was only posted on November 29 and in the span of less than two weeks has been viewed more than 15 million times.