Having taken the child out of the hospital, the parents begin to study him more thoroughly and observe him. They are worried about the general condition of the baby, its reactions to the outside world, manifested in physical activity, vision, hearing, and crying. Sometimes parents are alarmed that their newborn child does not react (or reacts very weakly) to extraneous noises and sounds, may not notice and does not wake up from a working TV, some noise from a neighboring apartment, etc. That is why many parents are interested in whether newborn babies hear well immediately after birth or not at all.
It has long been established the period when the child begins to hear - this is still happening at 16 - 17 weeks of pregnancy.
It is proved: the child was not born, but hears already
While in the womb, the baby already has the ability to hear and respond to sound. With intrauterine development, there is a reaction to music and voices, which has been repeatedly proved experimentally:mother at the last stage of pregnancy read several children's poems. When a certain time passed after the birth of the child, a familiar verse was read near him and the reaction of “recognition” followed: the child began to actively move its legs and arms.
Child's reactions to sound
There are opinions of some parents that a newly born baby still does not hear well, or even does not hear because of the fluid in the inner ear, and begins to distinguish sounds only on the second or third day, but this is absolutely not so!
From the first days of life, a child reacts to sounds, but mainly only responds to loud sounds (sharp, which can create a certain vibration), so if there is no reaction to a working TV, to calm voices, to other quiet noises, you don’t need to think that the baby doesn’t he hears, he hears everything, just does not respond.
It is absolutely surprising that a newborn can distinguish a person’s voice from any other sound, i.e. the child has a congenital reflex of the ability to hear. Faster and best of all, among the other voices, the baby begins to recognize the mother's voice that has spoken during pregnancy.
The baby immediately after birth has a well-developed hearing and has a reaction to:
- intonation;
- pace of speech;
- timbre of voice;
- rattles;
- different sounds.
It is expressed in:
- in the motor activity of the legs and arms;
- head bends;
- finding the source of voice through the eyes;
- Fading
- startle;
- crying
- listening.
We repeat, if the first days the child does not respond to extraneous sounds, this does not mean anything. In any case, if this is alarming and scary, you can always consult a doctor.
FACT. The baby hears the same way when he is awake and when he sleeps 🙂
By the end of the third month, the child consciously turns his head to any sound - a rattle or voices.
How to test your hearing
If you are worried that the child is not hearing, you can check his hearing. After 3 to 5 days after birth, quietly pat (naturally without fanaticism 🙂) next to the baby’s ear - the baby should blink or show any other reaction. Rattle the rattle to the right or left of the child's head - he will turn his head in the direction of sound. If the child does not respond to sounds, then it is necessary to consult a doctor.
A sharp reaction to sounds is normal
Many children in the first weeks of life with loud, sharp sounds startle, cry, they may appear convulsive movements. The baby can also react from a completely calm 
a voice sounded very close, unexpectedly. But such a reaction does not speak about him “Inadequacy”. On the contrary, this indicates a perfectly normal hearing.
The same reactions can occur to any unfamiliar circumstances, not only in the first weeks of life, but also almost before school age. This indicates that normally developing babies have a very high level of sensitivity to the external environment. Therefore, you need to talk calmly and evenly with a newborn child.
Important: why is the child afraid of loud noises (what to do) >>>
Best of all, babies discern a high key, listening to a child's sonorous song or rattle. Infants are happy to listen to calm conversational speech, sometimes freezing or trying to find the source of the voice with their eyes. To develop hearing while you are awake, include children's songs, read poems, and just talk more with your baby.
By the beginning of the second month of life, the child’s convulsive movements will disappear, the reaction to the voice will be expressed in more ordered and uniform movements. There is a clear reaction to the pace of speech. Observe:
- as soon as the mom’s speech speed accelerates, the child’s movements accelerate;
- Mom switches to calm, measured speech - movements also become smoother, more even and rhythmic.
If a child is very keen on something (playing with a toy, examining interesting and new objects around him), he may also not respond to any extraneous sounds, this is quite normal, children simply abstract themselves, so there is no need to worry.
Hearing problems
If during pregnancy a woman has had measles, rubella or has taken toxic drugs, alcohol or drugs, then the child may have a disease such as hearing loss or deafness. In order to prevent a child from hearing loss, help and recommendations of a specialist are necessary.
Important: proper baby care >>>
More on the topic when:
- When a child begins to see (as seen and what newborns see);
- When the baby starts (this is one of the joyful events)
When we arrived from the maternity hospital, for the first couple of weeks the child did not really respond to the sounds.But when her daughter turned one month old, she could not sleep with the sound of the TV, she woke up from any loud sound. Everyone has a different way.
And my son, the first days of his life only reacted to me. He drove his eyes behind the trinket, but simply looked at the others, probably got acquainted. But after a week at home, a reaction appeared on both dad and sister.
Actually, doctors are now checking the hearing in maternity hospitals in Moscow with a special device!