Skin-to-skin contact (SSC) or Kangaroo Care is where a birth mother has direct skin contact with the child on her chest or belly, much like kangaroos do with their young. Skin-to-skin isn’t just for adoptive mommas, but for adoptive papas too!
Skin-to-skin contact has several bonding and health benefits. This type of care started in 1979 in Bogotá, Colombia when physician researchers Edgar Rey Sanabria and Héctor Martínez-Gómez discovered its use as an alternative to conventional incubator treatment for premature babies. They named the technique Kangaroo Mother Method, which was later coined as Kangaroo Care or Skin-to-Skin. A 2001 study discusses how skin-to-skin contact actually saved the life of a critically ill and premature child. The body of work also discusses the process of the skin-to-skin contact the adoptive parents did while the child was in the NICU and the child’s progression. Also, it articulates the importance of practicing skin-to-skin and advocates for the practice itself.
Skin-to-Skin Care
Skin-to-skin contact aids in the initial connection a mother has with her child. Kangaroo type care at home can look like a range of different things intermixed with other forms of bonding with the child, including, but not limited to: verbal and physical affection, attending to childrens’ needs, and making breastfeeding a bonding experience.
Skin-to-skin contact can look a number of different ways. All achieve the same common goal, which is to bond a child with his or her parent by way of ‘attachment parenting’. This can occur when a mother places her child against her skin as they nap, after she bathes or feeds them, or straps them to her body in a specially designed skin-to-skin carrier. Adoptive dads can create that father-child bond through skin-to-skin contact as well – especially when mom needs a break.
Innate Behavioral Process
When the natural bonding cycle is interrupted, the child can experience issues feeding — especially when planning to breastfeed as an adoptive parent. The process starts with the child’s initial cry, entering a stage of relaxation, following brief movements toward the breast. The child familiarizes themselves with the breast by nuzzling, smelling and licking the area. Finally, the child self-attaches and begins to feed, allowing a synchronous reciprocal interaction pattern between mother and baby.
8 Benefits a Child Receives from Skin-to-Skin
Skin-to-skin is the closest thing the child has after labor to feel safe and secure as he or she did in the womb. Outside of bonding with the child emotionally and physically, there are quite a few health benefits that come with practicing skin-to-skin contact. Here is a list of several health benefits:
- Kangaroo Care allows for temperature regulation, which is achieved through sensory stimuli such as touch, warmth, and odor. Odor is a powerful vagal stimulant, which, among other effects, releases maternal oxytocin. Oxytocin causes the skin temperature of the mother’s breast to rise, providing warmth to the infant. The child goes through the process of thermoregulation – a process that allows a birth mother’s body to maintain its core internal temperature.
- Skin-to-skin and breastfeeding enables colonization of the baby’s skin with the mother’s friendly bacteria.
- SSC stimulates the release of Oxytocin to support breastfeeding and mothering – boosting the mother-child bond.
- SSC and the stimulation and release of the hormone Oxytocin reduce cortisol (stress) levels and pain when going through Allostasis, the process by which the body responds to stressors in order to regain homeostasis.
- Breast milk production and infant weight gain is increased due to effective breastfeeding via skin-to-skin, which allows children to go through the process of self-attachment.
- Skin-to-skin or Kangaroo Care supports positive sensory stimulation.
- Skin-to-skin has proven that children cry less and achieve quiet sleep.
By way of skin-to-skin stimuli, regulation of the autonomic nervous system – a system that controls involuntary bodily functions – is achieved improving brain development or homeorhesis. The autonomic nervous system controls things like breathing, oxygen saturation, heartbeat and digestive processes.
Resources for Skin-to-Skin
- Mamahood: This is a local Denver support group for pre and post-natal, breastfeeding, parenting, etc. They also have a local shop where one can buy pre and post-pregnancy clothing, baby items, and take classes/workshops, etc.
- Ora’s Amazing Herbal Newborn Salve: This natural salve soothes and moisturizes a baby’s skin.
- Hands-Free Kangaroo Care Shirt: These tube tops are used for skin-to-skin and breastfeeding.
- Baby Ergo Wrap Carrier: This front body wrap holds and carries babies for skin-to-skin and breastfeeding.
Back to the Basics
The benefits of skin-to-skin contact are, by far, greater than meets the eye. To name a few: being able to bond with the child physically and emotionally, beginning to recognize the child’s needs and building confidence in parenting.
Practicing skin-to-skin doesn’t need to be that perfect afterbirth picture moment. Skin-to-skin is about parents going back to the basics and simply being there to bond with and soothe their children. It brings out a mother and father’s parental instincts. The rest will fall into place.
Adoption Choices of Colorado
For more information on adoption please contact Adoption Choices of Colorado. We can be reached via our website or phone 303-670-4401.
Support Adoption Choices
Adoption Choices, Inc. is partnering with Crowdrise, a fundraising website for nonprofits, to help our adoptive parents and birth parents with much needed financial assistance. We understand that expenses keep clients from fulfilling their dreams. Both with birth parents making a plan for adoption, and with adoptive parents growing their family. It is our mission to provide financial assistance through grants and scholarships, awarded annually in November, in honor of National Adoption Month. Funds assist adoptive parents with matching and placements, adoption finalization and helping birth mothers improve their lives through higher education — and much more.
However, we can’t do it alone. Please read up on our programs and donate money where you are able. Your donation will make a huge impact.
About the Author
Taylor Tsakopulos, the bestselling student. She has interned locally in Denver and internationally in Dublin, Ireland, taken classes/workshops and worked odd jobs and yet always comes back to being a student and the desire to learn or create.
She is a jack of all trades (i.e. a Gemini). She is a Denver-based writer, creator, artist and student. A graduate from Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU).
When she isn’t creating content she’s off dancing and hiking. Always chasing after new things and experiences. After living and working in Europe she is hungry for more.
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Sources:
10 benefits of skin-to-skin contact. (n.d.). Retrieved January 21, 2020, from https://babygooroo.com/articles/10-benefits-of-skin-to-skin-contact
How to Maximize Skin-to-Skin Time with Baby (Kangaroo Care). (n.d.). Retrieved January 21, 2020, from https://www.mamanatural.com/skin-to-skin/Lissienko, K. (2013, June 6). The importance of skin to skin contact. Retrieved January 21, 2020, from https://www.kidshealth.org.nz/importance-skin-skin-contact
Moore, E. R., Anderson, G. C., Bergman, N., & Dowswell, T. (2012, May 16). Early skin-to-skin contact for mothers and their healthy newborn infants. Retrieved January 23, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3979156
Skin-to-skin contact. (n.d.). Retrieved January 21, 2020, from https://www.unicef.org.uk/babyfriendly/baby-friendly-resources/implementing-standards-resources/skin-to-skin-contact/
The importance of skin-to-skin with baby after delivery. (2018, August 9). Retrieved January 21, 2020, from https://news.sanfordhealth.org/childrens/the-importance-of-skin-to-skin-after-delivery-you-should-know/
Stephanie joined the Adoption Choices family in 2014 as the Child Placement Supervisor. Her love for adoption began in first grade when she made friends with twins adopted from Vietnam. Her heart grew strong over the years for adopted children and ultimately led her to graduate school where she continued her focus to her dream of working in the adoption field. Stephanie earned a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver in 2001. Over the past 15 years, Stephanie has worked as a pregnancy counselor and as an adoptive parent counselor for foster care, international adoption and domestic adoption, writing hundreds of home studies for families, and helping build their forever families. Stephanie is married and has three boys ages 12, 9, and 5. Together with her family she enjoys riding bike, playing games, watching her three sons compete in their various sporting and musical activities and go on vacations.
Christy Ikeler, is our Executive Director and Birth Parent Director. Christy has been with Adoption Choices Team for 18 years, since opening the doors in 2002! Christy has a true passion for what she does and her true love is working with and helping each birth parent. Whether she is up all night on the phone talking with them, taking them to doctors appointments, out for their favorite treat, providing counseling or at the hospital during labor and delivery, Christy is very involved every step of the way. She has a contagious laugh and a spunky personality that our birth moms all can bond with and relate to. As an adoptive parent herself, adoption holds a very special place in her heart and she can relate on every level with both birth parents and adoptive parents. In her free time Christy loves spending time with her daughter, gardening, baking and taking vacations with her family. Christy is an excellent leader for our team at Adoption Choices and is truly one of a kind!! As Executive Director, Christy spends time with the staff, birth parents and adoptive families in order to ensure that the agency is running smoothly. She has placed a huge emphasis on community outreach and programs for birth parents. Christy loves the opportunity to lead the agency into a brighter future.
Ms. Mackenzie has built a successful counseling career over the past 20 years, supporting mothers and families, people of all ages and genders, students, community professionals and fellow clinicians. Liv values a diverse professional focus, including the entrepreneurial life of a sole proprietor, the evaluative process of certifying foster/adoptive homes, the insightful and mindful one-on-one one work with enthusiastic clients, and serving as an advocate for underserved populations. Liv is a Licensed Professional Counselor and holds a BA in Pre-Law and Economics from American University, an MA in Counseling from Adams University and a certificate in Human Resource Management from Villanova University. Away from work you will find Liv spending time in nature, biking to the farmer’s market and adventuring with her family.
Catherine A. Madsen, joined the Adoption Choices family as legal counsel in 2013. Catherine is responsible for providing legal guidance to the Agency, training and updating staff on developments in adoption law and legislation, and program development. Catherine
Virginia Frank is an adoption attorney accredited since 1991 with the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. Ms. Frank is a leader in the field of private adoption and has completed over 4,000 adoptions in her career. Ms. Frank has a law degree from Oklahoma City University and a BA in both Political Science and Communications from the University of Oklahoma.
Cassidie has been with Adoption Choices since 2015, she has her bachelors in Interdisciplinary Affairs with concentrations in both Sociology and Business Management. Cassidie has additional training in Victim Advocacy, foster care and has been working in women’s services for over 10 years. Cassidie has always had a heart for adoption and it was her career dream to work in adoption. She started off doing volunteer work for advocacy programs, adoption organizations and worked in High Risk Maternal Fetal Medicine through the University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Colorado. Cassidie is also blessed to have personally experienced an adoption of her own in 2012, completing her family of five! Cassidie loves what she does as a case worker from initial phone calls, meetings, doctor appointments, interaction with the adoptive families to delivery and counseling. Cassidie has a passion for those in need and strives to help make a difference in the lives of the people she meets. She is a firm believer in being kind, compassionate and open minded in all situations. “Unless you’ve walked in their shoes, there’s no place for judgment. A kind word or compliment can go a long way!” The bittersweet moments in adoption reminds Cassidie each and every time, why she loves what she does!