Looking for gentle and meaningful ways to bond with your baby? In this episode of The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast, Dr Marianne Trent and Jo Wilson founder of Aqua Sensory and Bath Babies, explore how bath time, baby swimming, and water play can strengthen parent-baby bonding and early attachment.

You’ll learn how simple baby bath routines, skin-to-skin moments, sensory play, and warm water can support emotional connection, co-regulation, brain development, and confidence. We discuss reading baby cues, creating calming rituals, and using water to reduce stress for both babies and parents.

Whether you’re a new parent, expectant parent, baby group practitioner, perinatal professional, or anyone supporting early childhood development, this episode offers practical baby bonding ideas, attachment-building activities, and sensory play tips you can start using straight away.

Perfect for those interested in early attachment, responsive parenting, infant mental health, baby swimming, and supporting secure, confident babies through everyday routines like bath time.

⏱️ Highlights & Timestamps

00:00 – Why water is such a powerful bonding medium
01:00 – “100% attention, not divided attention” — presence in the water
02:30 – Eye contact, attunement & following baby’s cues
04:00 – The raw emotions of early parenthood & building confidence
05:25 – When bath time soothes — and when babies need less stimulation
06:59 – Making bath time fun: voice, movement, simple toys & attunement
07:59 – Stacking cups, sensory joy & reminding ourselves to play
08:52 – Supporting parents who fear water or aren’t swimmers
10:01 – Sleep schedules, real life & why outings matter for parental wellbeing
11:17 – Water as community, postnatal support & early social development
12:17 – “Blue Mind” theory: why water boosts mood and calm
13:47 – Rituals, relaxation & water as a tool for mental health
15:13 – Amniotic beginnings & the instinctive comfort of water
16:34 – Shifting bath time from “task” to connected activity
17:34 – Jo’s story: redundancy, finding purpose & building Aqua Sensory
19:01 – Child-led water confidence vs old-school dunking
21:11 – Baby swim costs, accessibility & long-term developmental benefits
22:45 – Bath Babies: a gentle fourth-trimester approach to water connection
25:02 – Training others to support parent-infant bonding through water
26:34 – Why this matters for clinicians in perinatal and parent-infant work
27:01 – Where to find Bath Babies & Jo’s book
27:48 – Dr Marianne’s reflections & another book recommendation

Links:

📲 Jo’s website: https://aquasensory.com

Jo’s pools in Rugby and Leamington Spa: https://swimworks.co.uk

📚 Jo’s Book, Bath Babies: Creating Beautiful Bonds in Water https://amzn.to/4ptegRO

📚 Dr Caroline Boyd, Mindful New Mum, The book I mention in the outro: https://amzn.to/47R7wH5

🫶 To support me by donating to help cover my costs for the free resources I provide click here: https://the-aspiring-psychologist.captivate.fm/support

📚 To check out The Clinical Psychologist Collective Book: https://amzn.to/3jOplx0

📖 To check out The Aspiring Psychologist Collective Book:

Baby Bonding Activities: Why Bathing & W...