Now your head is busy dealing with all important tasks in connection with the expansion of your family. You think about the future and make plans. You feel responsible for your family because now not only your own life is in your hands. You are impatient to see the baby who is about to come into this world.
And then in an instant it will happen. You will become a father. And your life, your whole world will never be the same again.
You will be bringing up your child and celebrate all his\her first successes. You will become a role model. You will see how your baby makes the first steps in his\her life. You will hear how he\she says “daddy” for the first time.
This tiny newborn will be radiating so much warmth and love, so many hopes and joy and happiness for you! You will understand it all yourself when you hold your baby for the first time.
Chapter 4. Baby care
It is so amazing how our values and priorities change with the birth of a child! A long time ago I was so much into work, I cared about the political situation in our country and the best deals on plane tickets to faraway places. And then my universe suddenly collapsed to the size of 55 cm and 3870 kg. Now my main worry is not the crisis in the economy but green snot and a blocked nose. Body temperature higher than 38,5C is simply a disaster on a global scale!
And I am not alone in this. When a baby is born, many new parents have lots of questions. “What to do with him\her now?”, “How to take care of this beautiful tiny creature?”, “How to protect his\her health?”. Especially that this very creature will not tell you anything specific, only “a-a-a” in different keys. You start having a lot of duties that you did not even think about before. For example, clipping baby’s nails. Did you see how tiny they are? Compared to them even the smallest baby scissors will look like gardener’s tools!
The following list will help you care for your baby since the first days of his life. The following pieces of advice can hardly be considered unique lifehacks. It is just some useful tips for those who became parents for the first time.
І. Caring for a newborn
1. Bathing
You can, and in fact should, bathe your baby since birth. Of course, until umbilical wound is not fully healed, do it very delicately. Try not to let any water get inside it. It is enough to use only a wet sponge, you do not need to fully submerge your baby in the water. By the way, for these first days it is better to use filtered, boiled or settled water (it is enough to let it stay for one hour).
Some pediatricians recommend adding pre-made solution of potassium permanganate, some – an herbal infusion of beggarticks. Later, when the umbilical wound heals, you can use simple tap water and bathe a baby in a big bath.
Baby soap is used in beginning only for washing the baby’s bottom after he makes big toilet. There is no need to bathe your baby with soap since birth. It is enough to wash the baby’s head one time a week.
Make sure that you support baby’s head and neck with your hand while bathing. It is much more comfortable to support the head with the crease of your elbow.
Water temperature should be comfortable for your baby. I am not a fan of reckless cold water training since birth. It is recommended that the water temperature for first baths should be around 36—38 °С.
How to easily check the water temperature without thermometer? Dip your elbow in the water. You should feel neither too hot nor too cold. This will be the ideal temperature. Some days later you can start gradually lowering the temperature (and it will be ideal if you go down to 30 °С).
During bathing pay special attention to all skin folds. Newborn babies have very deep skin folds. They are found in armpits, groin, neck (which appears absent in beginning) and skin behind the ears. I remember that breast milk regularly trickled down behind my baby’s ears, so when I saw this white coating of uncertain origin behind his ears, I thought it was some skin condition.
First few months every time after bathing put on a light cotton cap on your baby’s head to avoid hypothermia. Do not forget to close the window in the baby’s room before exiting the bathroom. However, do not deliberately heat up the room, in fear that your baby will feel cold.
2. Umbilicus
It is very easy to care for the umbilical wound. After bathing you can gently dab it with a cotton ball wetted with hydrogen peroxide.
3. Nose
The tiny nose needs everyday cleaning. It is done with handmade cotton swabs that you roll from medical cotton wool. Wet it with liquid paraffin. Every nostril needs a separate small cotton swab. Gently give it a twist inside a nostril.
Remember that the most important thing for that tiny nose’s health (and all other body parts) is a clean humid air. That is why your first purchase for the bedroom should be the air humidifier. Wet cleaning is an important everyday ritual as well, along with nose cleaning.
4. Nails
One of my most vivid impressions right after birth was seeing my son with long nails. While pregnant I pictured his cute little face and chubby baby legs and arms. But that manicure!.. For a long time I postponed nail clipping and the first time it was done by a child doctor who came to check up on my son. Eventually, I got the hang of it and started cutting these tiny nails while breastfeeding.
By the way, some find it easier to use special baby nail clippers for that purpose, not scissors.
5. Diapers
I think we have used up tons of diapers. In the beginning I was wondering how often I should change them. It turned out that in the beginning your baby will regulate the frequency of diaper changing. More specifically, it is his\her big toilet after almost every breastfeeding session. And I should say my son was feeding on demand and with great appetite.
Many modern diapers have a special wetness indicator. I actually noticed it by the sixth month.
If you need approximate numbers, I would say that in 24 hours we were using around 8—10 pieces, considering that we changed it every 2—3 hours and were leaving the baby naked for a while. Speaking of this, try to leave your baby naked as much as possible to let his skin breathe without a diaper, when he is not sleeping. At this time, you can put your baby on his belly (knees apart, like a frog). Like this you get him\her used to lower temperatures, air the skin folds between the legs and prevent colic.
Baby powder is considered to be an essential part of baby care by many, but it can actually form pellets and cause irritation in the skin folds. It is better to use modern nappy creams if you notice any rash. If your baby’s skin is fine, you do not need to use any cream at all, not even as a preventive measure.
6. Infant seborrhea (cradle cap)
It is not uncommon to encounter infant seborrhea. It is yellowish patches that form on a baby’s head and eyebrows. It is not hard to get rid of it, but necessary. Just apply some mineral oil on these scales a couple of hours before bathing and put on a cotton cap on your baby’s head. After that wash the baby’s head thoroughly with the baby shampoo and gently brush the hair with a soft hairbrush. Two or three days of such procedures, and the seborrhea will disappear.
I remember that once, in this fight with cradle cap, I applied mineral oil to Matvey’s head. But my son did not wait for his evening bath and suddenly fell asleep. With mineral oil in his hair. I asked my husband: “So what do we do now?” Without a word, he brought a bowl of warm water and a sponge. Together, sitting in a dark room, we were washing our sleeping son’s head. Matvey was peacefully asleep during the whole procedure and did not even make a sound.
ІІ. Baby’s health
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