Keeping your newborn/infant safe is perhaps one of the most importance aspect of caring. Safety issues in newborns are probably not a big hassle like they are in infants.  As babies begin to rollover, crawl and take their first steps, safety becomes the biggest priority of your daily schedule. 

You may have heard this a thousand times but never leave your baby unattended not even for a minute.  You will be surprise what a baby can do or what will happen to an unattended baby in a minute.  As babies begin to sit and crawl, everything they pick on the floor goes into their mouth so be sure to put away small toys and small things that can easily choke them.  Below are additional safety measures for you to look out for as a first time mother.

• Always buckle your baby in an infant car seat facing rear until they are over a year or safe to face forward
• Prevent poisoning by locking all cabinets with cleaning or household supplies that the baby can reach
• Do not leave baby unattended in the tub, on the changing table, in an open bed or in any unsafe place
• Wear your baby appropriate clothing for the weather.  Do not stuffed them with too many cloths in the winter because they easily get hot and not too loose because they easily get cold just decide what works for your baby
• If you have a pool be sure not to allow your baby to crawl near in order to prevent drowning
• Buy appropriate age toys for your baby
• Prevent your baby from climbing the stairs alone in the your home
• Be sure your baby’s crib doesn’t have too big holes that their head can fit in
• Always be aware of recall items to prevent your child from using them
• Do not leave your baby in the car or at home alone
• Do not put stuff animals in your baby’s crib especially newborns because they can suffocate on them
• Do not smoke or allow people to smoke around your baby, he/she is too precious to inhale all those chemicals
• Above all be a loving mother and keep your baby safe at all times

Your newborn begins communication with you immediately after birth through his/her senses. Have you wondered why babies cry a lot when someone beside their mother holds them? Babies are endowed with amazing senses of hearing, touch and sight. One way babies communicate is through cry. As a new mother, am sure you are not surprise about why your baby cries for everything and sometimes even for nothing. Newborns and infants can only communicate by crying. Babies cry when they are hungry, need a diaper change or are wet, needs to be held, wants to sleep, coming down with a fever or generally sick and sometimes for no apparent reason, babies just cry.

As a new mother you need to learn to understand when your baby cries.  This can be frustrating sometimes when you can’t differentiate between what the cry is all about.  As your baby grows and you continue to bond with him/her, you will soon be able to differentiate between the different cries.  Some cries are short and others are long depending on the need and how soon you attend to them.  Sometimes after you’ve done everything, babies will still cry and this could be a sign of sickness or sometimes they may be nothing wrong.  Learn to understand your baby’s cry and you can attend to his/her  needs better.

Birth

 

Before birth, newborns/infants are often protected from infections due to antibodies that are passed through the placenta to them in the womb.  This protection continues after birth but not for long.  Breastfeeding babies continue to get these antibodies but it’s temporary and not enough to prevent all the infectious diseases available out there that may possibly affect these babies. 

Immunization is the best way to protect newborns and infants from most of these infectious diseases. Babies begin receiving immunizations from birth until adolescent years and even further as conditions determine. It is important to keep up with your baby’s immunization to prevent them from contracting certain diseases that can be fatal to them.  Some children may react to certain vaccinations and some mothers also believe that vaccinations do cause autism but medical studies have proven otherwise.  Vaccinations have been beneficial to our society and taking advantage of it in helping prevent diseases that could otherwise be fatal to our children is the best way to go. Below are immunizations recommended for babies as they grow:

• Hep B: Hepatitis B vaccine (HBV); recommended to give the first dose at birth, but may be given at any age for those not previously immunized.

1-2 months

• Hep B: Second dose should be administered 1 to 2 months after the first dose.

2 months

• DTaP: Diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis vaccine
• Hib: Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine
• IPV: Inactivated poliovirus vaccine
• PCV: Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine
• Rota: Rotavirus vaccine

4 months

• DTaP
• Hib
• IPV
• PCV
• Rota

6 months

• DTaP
• Hib
• PCV
• Rota

6 months and annually

• Seasonal influenza. .

6-18 months

• Hep B
• IPV

12-15 months

• Hib
• MMR: Measles, mumps, and rubella
• PCV
• Varicella (chickenpox)

Like adults, babies get sick too.  It is very frustrating to see a baby sick because they can not talk to tell you what is wrong with them. They express their frustration through crying and sometimes they can cry for a long period of time.  Babies don;t have a strong immune system as a result, they are easily infected with different kinds of diseases if not protected well.  New moms should be careful about people handling their babies especially children. If possible, people around the baby should either wash their hands or use a sanitizer before touching newborns.  Children with running nose, a cold or cough should also be prevented from coming in close contact with newborns.

Newborns and infants can suffer from a cold, cough, diarrhea, fever, dehydration, and a host of other problems.  As a new mom, learn to know your baby well enough to determine if he/she is not feeling well.  Call your baby’s doctor to report any unusual condition your baby may be going through.  After explaining about the condition your baby is in to the doctor or nurse, you may be asked to be seen or do something at home to help your baby feel better.  As a mother I never wanted my son to get sick because of the whole experience of what these little ones go through when they are sick especially with a cold when they can’t breathe and haven;t learn to breath through  their mouth.  Situations like this can be stressful and frustrating for the parent and the baby too.

Sleeping time is one of the most important aspect of caring for your baby. The way you put your baby to sleep can also be questioned sometimes.  According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), healthy infants should be placed on their backs to sleep.  Some mothers are known to place their babies on their tommy for sleep but this can be problematic when a baby is having problems with breathing. Newborns can not roll over or move themselves to a position to breathe better when they are obstructed and this can be fatal.  Sudden Infant Death (SID) is a common condition that often result in babies being place on their stomach to sleep. New moms can prevent this from happening to them by following the guidelines and placing their newborns and infants to bed on their backs.

Newborns spend most of their time sleeping and don;t know the difference between day and night. On an average, a newborn spend about 16 hours or more sleeping within a 24 hour period. Often new parents get exhausted from waking up so many times in the night to attend to a new baby and often don’t get enough sleep due to this.  Babies feed on a regular basis at least every couple of hours and due to their tiny stomach, they often don’t get enough food to last them for a long stretch of hours.

Hang-in there new moms, this doesn’t last forever, as they grow they learn the difference between day and night and before you know it, they are sleeping through the night.

 

Bathing your newborn/infant can be one of the challenging things especially for new moms.  Bathing a newborn needs patience and time.  Little babies are so fragile and delicate that it takes extra care to attend to them.  Sometimes mothers may feel they will unintentionally drop their newborn in the process of giving them a bath and so they often don’t do it.

Bathing your newborn/infant can actually help them relax and sleep better at night and that can give you the mother sometime to enjoy your sleep too. How often you bath your baby depends on you.  Before you bath your baby, gather all the supplies you need to make bathing time smooth sailing because it is not advisable to leave your baby unattended in the bath, not even for a few minutes or seconds. 

Bathing Needs:

• Safe place for bath
• Appropriate water temperature for baby
• Mild soap or body wash for baby’s delicate skin
• Washcloth
• Baby lotion
• Diaper
• Etc.

One of the most important part of your daily routine in caring for your newborn or infant is feeding.  Whether you breastfeed, bottle feed or starting on solids, you need to make up time to feed your baby because it does take some time.  Feeding newborns and infants is also a time for you to relax especially when it you are breastfeeding.  Some infants can take quick naps during feeding and they can’t just be rush through that.  Making the time to feed your baby can also be bonding time for you the mother.

Bottle Feeding is a way of getting dads to bond with their babies too.  Often men are left out during this important part of a baby’s life.  Fathers need to connect with their children too at an early age and bottle feeding can help to bring that about.  Formula fed babies are those who often get this opportunity with their dads but breastfeeding moms can also pump and feed their babies in bottles that way fathers can also participate in this important part of a baby’s life.

Taking Care of your Baby’s Basic Needs

 

 

Having a new baby is an exciting moment for every family but meeting the needs of 

babies can sometime be overwhelming or scary.  After a delivery in a hospital, nurses help tremendously in taking care of most needs of your baby while staying under their care.  This help you, the mother have some time to yourself and rest from the long hours of labor.  The challenges of caring for newborns and infants begin after returning home from the hospital.  With no help from nurses, new mothers begin to worry about taking care of the basic needs of their babies such as, how often to feed, bathing, putting a baby to sleep and so on and so forth.  Below is a list of some of the basic needs that your newborn will need on a daily basis:



1.  Feeding:  Whether breastfeeding or bottle feeding, newborns and infants feed on a regular basis at least every two hours

 

2.  Diaper change:  You will be surprise how often you change your newborn’s diaper in 24 hour period

3.  Bathing:  Depending on the mother, this can range from everyday to every other day

 

4.  Sleeping:  Newborns sleep a lot even though they can sometimes be so short you hardly get anything done before they are awake

 

5.   Sickness:  Newborns and infants do get sick like every other individual but the difference is, it is hard to tell what exactly is wrong with a newborn or infant because they can not talk and express this feelings of pain by crying.  A long crying baby can be frustrating for the mother to cope with.  Get use to your baby and notice when something is not normal such as crying for long hours and not comforted by feeding or a diaper change.  You may need to talk to his/her doctor

 

6.  Bonding:  Bonding begins immediately after delivery when you can hold your baby close to you.  Thereafter, you continue to bond with your baby daily as you take care of him/her

 

7.  Safety:  Your newborn’s safety should be the most important thing in your daily activities.  Newborns and infants are to be put in a crib to sleep or just relax.  The crib must not have too big holes that your baby can fit his/her head in.  Your baby should also not be left unattended when he/she is on a changing table, or in the bath tub.  When infants begin to move around the house, make sure you remove all small objects out of their way since children take everything straight to their mouth

 

8.  Medical Care: Be sure to take your baby to his/her well baby check-ups when it is time.  Also keep your baby’s immunizations up to date in order to prevent him/her from contracting any infectious diseases