Baby Newsletter – Week 2

Welcome to the second newsletter in the story of your baby and we hope that each day you are feeling a bit stronger and more able to cope with this whole new lifestyle that has been thrust upon you!

Your baby in his second week

Your baby is born with several reflexes which will only last for the first few days to weeks:

• If he is startled, he will throw out his arms and arch his back.
  
• If he is gently touched on the side of his mouth, he will turn towards the source.
  
• His hands will clench into a fist and hold small objects while his toes will curl inwards if you stroke his inner sole. If you stroke on the outer sole, they will splay out.
  
• He will suck anything placed in his mouth.
  
• When placed on his tummy, your baby will bend his legs underneath him in a crawling reflex.
  
• When held upright, your baby’s one foot steps in front of the other as if he is going to walk.
  

Are you getting any sleep?

You may be wondering in this first couple of weeks if you will ever get a good night’s sleep again? Sleep deprivation can leave you feeling bad-tempered and unable to cope with even simple things. Try to help the situation by:

• Sharing night feeds with your partner. This is possible even when breastfeeding by expressing breast milk ahead of a feed.
  
• While your baby is getting into some sort of routine, sleep when he sleeps. If he settles in the evening, take a relaxing bath with a warm drink and go to bed early. Your sleep is going to be interrupted for these first few weeks (and maybe even months) so you are going to have to learn to relax and sleep whenever you can.

Most of your social life is going to have to go on hold for the time being but not at the risk of your feeling isolated or lonely. If you have a friend in a similar situation, then this is ideal as you can share all the ups and downs of a new baby. Later on and when you feel up to it, think about joining a mother and baby group.

Baby Blues

One in ten mothers suffer from some form of depression or distress after having a baby while 70% will experience an emotional let down (however slight) at this time. Having a baby is a time of biological, physical, emotional and social change and all or any of these changes can cause the baby blues. The signs and symptoms can vary and in most cases last just a few days or a matter of weeks at the most. Such symptoms include:

• Feeling anxious
• Feeling sad
• Feeling tearful
• Having difficulty sleeping
• Feeling exhausted

Experiencing depression after having your baby is not a character flaw or a sign of weakness. Sometimes it is simply part of giving birth and if you are depressed, prompt treatment can help you manage your symptoms and enjoy your baby.

There is a natural healing product which is made from essential oils and specially formulated to help new mothers with the baby blues.

Engorged Breasts

In some women, a few days after their baby is born, the milk supply comes on so quickly that the breasts become swollen, hard and even sore. There is an increased supply of blood and other fluids in the breast as well as milk. The breasts and nipples may be so swollen that your baby finds it difficult to latch on and suckle. The discomfort can also make it difficult for you to relax and enjoy feeding your baby. The most common causes for this condition are:

• Breasts that are too full of milk
• Feeding in the wrong position
• Improper sucking by the baby

The positive side of this condition is the knowledge that you are producing enough milk to feed your baby so here some hints to manage the problem:

• Have a warm wash or shower before breast feeding to help soften the breasts and to encourage the free flow of the milk.
  
• Feed your baby on demand and with a new born every 2 to 3 hours even if it means waking your baby and then do feed until he has had enough.
  
• Try to use one breast per feed (alternating with each feed) so that the breast is completely emptied and avoid giving your baby any other liquids.
  
• If you find any breast lumps while feeding, gently massage these towards the nipple.
  
• Apply cold packs to the area after feeding or even cool washed cabbage leaves – strip the main vein from 2 larger, outer leaves, cut a hole for the nipples before sliding them into the cups of your bra.
  
• Always wear a good, comfortable and well fitting bra night and day. If possible, remove the bra when breast feeding. It is very important that the bra should not be too tight nor under wired.
  
• There is a natural healing product, made from essential oils, and specially formulated for helping with engorged breasts.
  

Tip for the week

If you are formula feeding your baby, buy a larger Tupperware pitcher and mix up enough formula to last for 36 hours to keep in the refrigerator. Then it is ready for every feed for at least a day and a half.

Join us again next week for more help in easing your load in looking after your new baby in his third week. Some of the topics will be cradle cap, fretful babies, cracked nipples and dealing with exhaustion.