Understanding Newborn Care
It's much easier to take care of older children than a newborn baby. Newborn care can be quite difficult, because a baby has certain needs which he is not able to tell you about. It is important to remember from the beginning that all babies are delicate and need special attention.
What do you need to know about newborn baby care?
There are plenty of old wives tales telling you what you should do to look after your baby. If you listen to all of these suggestions, it can become very confusing, and be outright wrong.
For example, there is an old wives tale that you should not take a newborn baby outside because it's bad for the baby. However this just isn't true, lots of babies need sunshine to get over jaundice. It's fine to take a baby outside of the house just a few weeks after it is born. Use blankets during the winter, and cool clothes during the summer months.
Your baby's skin may change when she is a few weeks old; some babies even shed some of their skin. This is nothing to worry about and is completely normal.
Many babies also have some rashes on their skin, don't immediately panic. It well could be your baby has sensitive skin and is adjusting to her new surroundings. However, if the rash seems to be getting worse then take her to see your doctor.
Another very common problem with newborn care is whether or not you should pick your baby up when she starts to cry. There is quite a debate over whether or not you should immediately respond when a baby cries, as this could be spoiling the baby. Yet, you should keep in mind that at this age, babies cry when they need something, so you should check on the baby to try and figure out what she needs.
The Stump
Many mothers do not like the look of their baby's umbilical cord and don't know what they should do with it. However the stump is nothing to worry about, it's just dead cells which will drop off eventually. Don't worry, touching it won't cause any damage.
You should keep the stump dry, if it does get wet when bathing your baby then use cotton wool and alcohol to clean the cord.
The stump should fall off by itself after around 2 weeks. Once this happens wait a couple of days before bathing your baby to make sure the cord heals properly.
Michelle Lee lives with her husband and son in Vero Beach, Florida. She has been an independent writer for 16 years.
