Читать книгу Sister Lilian’s Babycare Companion: Complimentary and traditional care - Lilian Paramor - Страница 8

Baby will still be quiet today and you will feel tired, but deep sleep might continue to elude you. If you had your baby in a maternity clinic and are feeling well, you might even go home today. Daunting as this prospect may be, one often feels more relaxed at home and recovery and adjustment are easier. Wherever you are, take things slowly today. Baby focuses at about 25 to 30 cm, the perfect distance between being cradled at your breast and your face. He will still lie tightly curled and feel one with his environment, not sure where he ends and his mom or the world begins.

About Baby

•Clean Baby’s navel at each nappy change to prevent infection – use calendula lotion or surgical spirits on cotton wool and clean the clamp, the length of the cord and around the base. The cord will gradually dry and then you should clean the crevices of the navel with a cotton bud dipped in calendula.

•Baby may become a bit jaundiced today or tomorrow. If the bilirubin (yellow pigment) levels are very high, you might be advised to have phototherapy treatment in which your baby’s eyes are closed and her body is exposed to ultraviolet light, which breaks down the bilirubin more quickly. Feed Baby more frequently from the breast, as she becomes tired under the heat and sucks less. She will need plenty of fluids to help wash out the bilirubin. Exposing Baby to sunlight for five to ten minutes while protecting the eyes also works very well. This type of jaundice is not dangerous and can be treated at home, either under hired lights (with the help of a private midwife) or in the sun. Some clinics use wrap-around body light devices which is far better, or more desirable, and Baby is easier to handle.

•If your baby is in need of special care you will feel quite sad today. Spend as much time as you can in the nursery or high-care unit and massage Baby’s feet and hands, or simply place your hand on his tummy. Speak and hum too.

•Nursing will be much the same as the first day: don’t restrict feeds, ensure correct latching and simply enjoy the experience.

•Handling Baby will be a little easier but do not worry if you still feel more thumbs than fingers.

Tips for Mom

•If your nipples are tender ask for help with latching. You can moisten a rooibos teabag with two teaspoons of boiling water, cool and place over the sore nipple to ease the pain – wear inside your breastpad until the next feed.

•Add a handful of coarse salt to your bath water today to protect against infection of the perineum.

•Wrap an icepack in a facecloth and place against your perineum to reduce swelling and pain.

•Continue with Rescue Birth & Recovery and Arnica D6 tablets but take three-hourly while awake.

•If your bowels do not move spontaneously, use a glycerine suppository today. After insertion into the anus, ignore the initial urge this causes, lie down and wait for ten to fifteen minutes to allow the suppository to dissolve. If you go to the loo immediately, the suppository will not have had time to melt.