Welcome to my blog! Here are some tips for celebrating with your newborn.
Getting Together
Today is traditionally a time to celebrate with families and friends, with most of us getting together to share food, fun, and fireworks. If you have a newborn, here are some tips for you.
Sharing Your Baby
When you get together with family and friends you can count on everyone wanting to hold your new baby. That's just the natural response to being in the presence of new life, so tiny and precious. And thank goodness, because babies love to be held. Not only that, but it's good for them. You'll find some of the important benefits of holding your baby in an earlier post "Mother Nature Designed Babies to Be Held." Sharing your baby, in general, is a good thing for both of you.
Germs
While your baby is still a newborn, that is 28 days old or less, you should make sure that the person who holds your baby washes their hands first. Hand washing is the best way to prevent the spread of germs.
As you probably learned when your baby was born, hand washing is actually recommended for the first two months of life, not only for the first 28 days. And of course, your baby should not be around anyone who is sick.
Peace of Mind
The medical recommendation for taking your newborn out to be with others has two parts to consider.
One, if you are going to be with family and friends, following the above recommendations should be safe for your baby and should give you the peace of mind you desire.
And two, taking your newborn to a public place such as the movies, or the mall, is not recommended until after your baby is two months old. You are not able to know who might be sick when you are out in the general public, therefore it is not worth the risk.
Happy celebrating!
For you and yours,
D. Fravert, RN
