Your baby may begin to get more active after a few weeks, but we all know that the effect on parents can be quite opposite.
So, from the mouths of real moms, here are our top advice for moms with newborn kids!
- Don’t Hush-A-Bye-Baby
While the infant is napping, you are not need to be silent. The womb is a noisy environment, and newborns are accustomed to it. When ours first arrived, we watched TV as I vacuumed, washed dishes, and talked on the phone while she napped. She grew accustomed to sleeping with noise, and I was able to get some work done. I can still vacuum in her room while she sleeps (she’s 14 months old), and she wakes up peaceful and well rested.
- Soothe Your Crying Baby
When my baby cries, I pat her back in a heartbeat-like pattern to soothe her. This allows her to burp more rapidly, as well as calm if she’s crying out of insecurity. If that doesn’t work, I use one or more of Dr. Harvey Karp’s five calming techniques: swaddling, shushing, holding her on her side, swinging her, or allowing her to suck. It may be necessary to use all six!
- Assist Your Baby in Learning to Latch
If you’re having trouble latching on to your infant during breastfeeding, you can use breast shields to help. This was a fantastic suggestion from my lactation consultant. I had to use the shields for a month before my kid was able to latch onto my nipple without them. I would not have been able to continue nursing my baby if it hadn’t been for the breast shields.
- Prepare yourself
At three weeks, your baby’s days and nights become more predictable, allowing you to concentrate on yourself as well as your newborn. One way to accomplish so is to reduce your stress level, and one way to do that is to have everything ready for your hungry baby and yourself. As soon as the last feeding is finished, begin preparing for the next one. For example, after an 11 p.m. feeding, prepare whatever you’ll need for the 2 a.m. feeding and set out new drinking water for yourself so you don’t have anything to worry about in the middle of the night. During the day, use the baby’s naps to exercise, shower, catch up on e-mail, or take a nap yourself.
- Maintaining Your Baby’s Alertness During Feedings
My husband and I would rub our baby’s cheek to encourage her to eat more quickly when she was eating slowly and sleepily. All it needed was a light stroke with her fingertip on her cheek, and during those sleepless nights, this simple method was a lifesaver! It’s also shown to be effective with our friends’ infants. When newborns eat until they’re satisfied before going to sleep, they sleep for longer periods of time between feedings. And that means you’ll both be more relaxed!
- Comfort in the Crib
My three-week-old daughter preferred to sleep only on me. She would wake up every time I put her in her bassinet after she had fallen asleep on me. I understood she must have enjoyed the warmth. So, while I fed her, I wrapped a blanket around a heating pad and let it warm her bed. I removed the heating pad and tucked the baby between the folds of the warm blanket after she had finished and had fallen asleep. She’d be right at home. It’s also possible to pre-warm a blanket in the dryer.
- Sleeping Methods
Our infant, who was around 3 weeks old at the time, would cry and fuss because she couldn’t fall asleep. We started rubbing her nose one day, and it helped. In fact, it always worked. We’d start at the top and work our way down to the tip, over and over again. Her pupils would constrict and her eyes would gradually close. It’s still working now that she’s four months old. Here you can find the best baby sleeping bags and side sleep positioners.
