There are a bunch of things your baby will do throughout their development that might be alarming or raise questions for new parents.

Often these strange behaviors look odd, but are actually nothing to be concerned about at all.

While some are indicators that you should seek further professional / medical advice.

But how do you know which one's which? That's what you'll learn in this article.

I'll walk you through 5 strange behaviors that your little one might demonstrate during their development.

You'll learn why they do each of them, and how to tell whether or not it's cause for concern.

Hopefully this article helps put you at ease when you see your little one doing things that look a little strange and maybe even alarming at first.

5 Worrying Things to Watch For During Development

Strange Behaviour 1

When you have a newborn baby you are going to notice that at some stages in their day they do things which seem a little strange.

When parents see these they often become worried or concerned and think that they need to do something to help their little one.

Now, this can be extremely stressful for parents, but it doesn't need to be.

In this article, I wanna help you with that by sharing with you five strange behaviors newborns do, and for each of these behaviors, whether or not it's something you need to be concerned about and what you do or don't need to do about it.

But before we cover what these strange behaviors are that parents often get concerned about, another area of parents get concerned about is their child achieving developmental milestones, so make sure you click on the free developmental checklist in the description box below, so you'll know what to be expecting in your baby's first year of life.

So the first strange thing we're gonna talk about often causes parents to worry about their little one's vision.

What you will notice is that your baby's eyes occasionally appear to cross, or look in a different direction to the other eye.

This does not mean that your little one has a vision impairment or a vision problem.

What it does indicate is that their muscles are not yet strong enough to hold them straight, and they're still learning how to use their eyes together.

What you should notice is that your little one might appear cross eyed for only fleeting periods.

It shouldn't be constant and it should resolve by four to six months of age.

If you notice that your little one constantly appears to be cross eyed, or one of their eyes is turning in or out, or it extends past that four to six month age range, then it is important to go and get their vision checked.

Strange Behaviour 2

The second strange behavior that often causes parents great concern and leads them to think that their little one is having a seizure is when they see their little one suddenly throw back their heads and their arms and legs out to the side and then bring them in and start to cry.

Now, this movement in itself can be quite severe, and it can be scary when you see it for the very first time, but what parents are seeing is actually the startle reflex, or the Moro reflex.

Now this is a normal neurological response that newborns have in response to a loud noise, sudden movement, bright lights, or a strong smell, and this typically resolves gradually by four months of age.

Strange Behaviour 3

Another strange thing that parents will often notice with their newborn is that their hands and feet are extremely cold.

Now for us as adults, when our hands and feet are cold, it generally means we are cold too.

But for newborns, extremely cold hands and feet is quite normal, and it's not a sign that they are cold.

Rather it's an indication that their body is still growing, and they have a little bit of an immature circulation system which will improve over time.

Strange Behaviour 4

Another strange behavior, which often leads to parents becoming extremely concerned that their newborn is getting sick or has an allergy is sneezing.

Now, newborns sneeze a lot, and they're not sneezing because they're getting sick or because they have an allergy.

Rather it's protective reflex that they have to clear out their nasal passage when it's become irritated by some common irritants in the environment.

So that might be dust or fluff in the air, or a strong smell.

Sneezing can also help to reopen a temporarily closed nostril, which happens sometimes when they are feeding and their face is against the breast or the bottle.

That nostril temporarily closes, and they sneeze to reopen it.

Strange Behaviour 5

Parents also become extremely concerned when they notice their little one's hands for the first time, and what they see is their little one's hands are fisted and those thumbs are resting inside the palm.

Now, this is a completely normal hand position that you will notice in your newborn, and over the next few months, what you'll see is your little one's hands will gradually start to open, and those thumbs will come out.

We do want the thumbs to be out by three months of age.

If they are not yet out that is an indication that you might need to go and get them seen by an occupational therapist or a physiotherapist to look at their hands.

But one way that you can help to encourage your little one's hands to open up and get those thumbs out is by doing tummy time.

Baby Development