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Comment by crooked-v | Hacker News Reader

> They lack language so have no other way of communicating than screaming

This is one of those good reasons to teach babies basic sign language (https://www.parents.com/what-is-baby-sign-language-5115901).

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Teaching my kids sign language was such an eye-opener. Prior to that I was totally oblivious to how smart babies are. I guess I assumed that they developed speech somewhat in time with their understanding of language. This couldn't be further from the truth though. There's a huge gap. Maybe I was especially clueless; I didn't grow up around babies, so this stuff might be obvious to people who did.

Also be sure to start at age 0, don’t wait until 6 months. Signing and talking to your baby from day 0 about what you are doing and why brings them so much comfort. And gives them the opportunity to develop so much more quickly and confidently.

While we're sharing tips: it turns out that babies are born with a basic sense of hygiene and unlearn it because we leave them lying in their dirty diapers for too long, so they desensitize as a way to cope. If you put them on the pot from the start they will try to hold it in, and will try signal to you when they need to pee or poop because they know their needs will be met. So again it is about communication and paying attention.

We did this and while our child still needed diapers, we only went through half the number we would have otherwise. Potty training was also a lot easier compared to the experiences of our friends.

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