Newborn

When childbirth ends, life on the outside begins for a newborn baby.

When you consider the peace, warmth, and security that most newborns feel inside the womb, it's really easy to understand the stress they probably feel as soon as they enter the world outside of their mom's body. Immediately after delivery, infants immerge into a world of bright lights, cold medical equipment and lots of strange voices. After spending approximately nine months in the cocoon of their mother's uterus, this new environment is shocking.

In most cases, a newborn is placed immediately into his mother's arms, and the bonding process begins. For premature infants or babies with serious health issues, however, the comfort of mom's arms may not be felt for several hours or even days. While childbirth and delivery are natural processes, they can also be very stressful, especially to an infant. Once baby is held and comforted, he begins to adapt to this new and vastly different world.

The birth of a newborn is an exciting time, and that excitement continues when you bring your baby home. Most hospitals require parents to have the proper car seat installed correctly before baby is allowed to leave the hospital. If you aren't sure whether your car seat is installed correctly, ask someone at the hospital to inspect it. Once you and baby arrive home, the reality of caring for an infant begins to set in. Keep the following tips in mind.

• Ask visitors to wait a couple of days before visiting to give you a chance to settle in.
• New moms need plenty of rest, so take advantage of baby's sleep time.
• If you had a difficult delivery, you may need added help in those first days and weeks after the birth of your child.
• It's natural to feel weepy and a little down in those first weeks after you deliver. This is typically due to hormonal changes and the overwhelming task of caring for an infant. However, if you experienced significant and/or prolonged depression, you need to seek help immediately. Postpartum depression can significantly impair new moms, but it can be treated.

In those first few weeks after your baby is born, your days will be a whirlwind of diaper changes, feedings, and everything else that goes into caring for a newborn. The following is a list of tips and advice that will help you through those first weeks of your baby's life.

• Try to get your baby on somewhat of a schedule as soon as possible. Keep in mind, though, that this may not happen until he or she is at least a couple months old.
• If you are having difficulty breastfeeding, contact your obstetrician's lactation specialist or your local La Leche League.
• If you are feeding your baby formula and it doesn't seem to agree with her, talk to your pediatrician about changing the formula you are using.
• During the first week or so after your baby is born, it isn't necessary to give him a tub bath, particularly if his umbilical cord hasn't fallen off, and he has been circumcised. It is important, however, to keep the diaper area clean and dry to prevent diaper rash if possible.
• While you want your baby to be warm and comfortable, it is important that his bedroom isn't too warm. Avoid placing blankets, pillows, stuffed animals, etc. in the crib as well, as these can create a risk of suffocation or SIDs.

Finally, while you will experience periods of sheer exhaustion, you'll also experience many moments of boundless joy as you care for and get to know your precious baby.

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