As your baby grows and develops she begins to learn about good and bad feelings. Help her by talking about emotions. Say, “You fell over and are crying. You feel bad. Let me help you up. Now, you’re feeling better.” Learning about our emotions takes a long time. Labeling the emotions your baby is feeling will hep her to learn about them. The first steps start right now. Your child’s tears may be hard to take. It will pull at your heart-strings to see your little one feeling such pain. But, tears are a sign of healthy emotional growth. Your baby is reacting the same way you would when you trip over a bump in the sidewalk, fall down and get drenched in the rain — all on an empty stomach. Tears can be good medicine — they help us relieve tension, reduce stress and get us ready to bounce back to feeling better in a short period of time. Tears help us deal with bumps in the road. Teach your baby that it is okay to cry when you feel overwhelmed.

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