New Mother Care

Soon after the baby arrives, all your energy and attention will be focused on caring for the baby and making him/her comfortable. You may consciously want to focus on the baby and not pay much attention to taking care of yourself. In spite of your busy schedule, you will have to take time out to take care of yourself. Your health, both physical and psychological, is undergoing a healing process after delivery and you will have to pay attention to it. Once the baby has arrived, all your family and friends will want to visit you and your newborn baby. Having too many visitors just after delivery and with the new baby can be very stressful and extremely difficult to handle, whether in the hospital or at home.

During the initial weeks after delivery, it is best to accept all the help you can get in doing the various chores around the house. It would be ideal if you could get your mother, mother-in-law, any relative or friend to stay with you, at least, for the first month. This will definitely ease the pressure off you and will help you get used to having the baby as part of your routine. The first few weeks can be overwhelming and some new mothers just cannot cope with the pressures of having a new baby. This is also the reason why they become irritable and crabby. As much as the newborn requires care and comfort, so do the new mother. Read through our related sections to find valuable tips and advice for the new mother.

Post Delivery Stitches
When asked about their experience of delivering a baby, most women will tell you that it was like rebirth. There is no doubt about the fact that having a baby is one of the most exhilarating experiences in the world. But there is as much pain, as there is joy in this experience and a lot of people overlook this fact. A new mother not only has to care for her newborn baby, but also has to take care of herself to ensure that she heals well.

Postnatal Depression
Postnatal depression, or postpartum depression, is a form of clinical depression which can affect both men and women after child birth. However, it is very less frequent in men as compared to women, in whom the prevalence rate may vary from 5% to 25%. If a new mother in your family is suffering from postnatal depression, it is difficult to deal with her as she may not even want to admit that she is depressed.

Postnatal Exercises
Childbirth and care of the newborn are both physically exhausting tasks. Most new mothers' find that they do not have the same energy level, which they had before their baby was born. In the first few months, the mother's night sleep is disturbed and this adds to the exhaustion. The pressures of taking care of a newborn and managing the house leaves the mother mentally and physically drained.

Postnatal Period
A woman's body undergoes tremendous and several changes during pregnancy. As soon as the baby is out of womb, the body begins its physical healing process, so as to restore its pre-pregnancy state. The uterus, which contains four-and-half liters of water during pregnancy, begins to reduce in size almost immediately after delivery.

Postpartum Depression
There is an enormous feeling of relief and gratitude, once the delivery is over. After months of waiting and apprehension, when the child is born healthy, the sense of fulfillment is immense. But the first few weeks, even months after childbirth, with the baby can be confusing and emotionally draining. There maybe other reasons for distress as well.