The joy there is when you finally bring a newborn to your home is immeasurable. Everyone from relatives and friends will come visit you and your baby, congratulating you along the way for finally being able to hold your baby in your own hands.
Of course, all is not as it seems when it comes to caring for a newborn. Since they are extremely frail and completely dependent on their mother for living during the first few months, you will likely have your hands full each and every day, taking care of your baby from day to night. It can be quite a tiresome experience, especially if it is your first time dealing with a baby.
You will definitely want to learn the basics before anything else: getting them all sorted out will help you immensely, which is why a small checklist is given below for help:
- Learn to Handle Your Newborn – Some parents are scared to handle a newborn due to how weak or fragile he or she may look. This is to be expected, as they don’t want to cause any harm whatsoever. Before you even think of touching your baby, make sure that your hands are clean and sanitized: you don’t want to cause him or her an infection, since a baby’s immune system is still not well developed. Another thing to take not is to always be gentle with your actions, to avoid shaking and to support a baby’s head at all times with your hand.
- Feed Him – Breastfeeding is recommended as it is widely regarded as the best possible way to boost your baby’s immune system and make sure that he has proper nutrition throughout the first months of his or her life. Formula feeding may be necessary in some cases though, mostly when you are unable to produce enough milk or if there is any condition that makes breastfeeding not feasible. A baby sleep specialist will often emphasize proper feeding as a key factor to make your baby sleep better.
- Give Your Baby Lots of Rest – Speaking of sleeping, this is actually the next most important activity after feeding. Newborns can and will sleep for many hours a day, which is actually necessary to ensure proper growth and development. In the first few weeks, babies will only sleep two to four hours at a time, needing to be fed at about four hour intervals. He or she will be able to sleep for longer periods of time once he or she is about three months old. If this doesn’t happen, you may want to get a baby sleep therapy for better sleeping habits.
As with everything, taking care of baby is something you can only learn from experience. Even though you may have trouble during the first few weeks, you will gradually become better at doing each task. Your baby will definitely appreciate your commitment and forge a close bond even without knowing