Parenting Advise – Tips for New Parents (baby upto 6 months) Part 1
MOTHERHOOD TALES PART 1
My little boy just turned 2! I can hardly believe it. To celebrate it, this month I am launching the motherhood section of my blog.
I intend to share tips & tricks, and stories of my mommy life. The first couple of parts are about the baby stage upto 6 months. Then we move on to the baby stage upto 2 years and after that, comes the toddler stage of so-called terrible twos which I will share as we go on.
This first part hopefully helps out new moms, soothe the anxieties and help guide through the new challenges.
The main question - How Do You Know?
And the simple answer: Well, you don’t.
So, don’t panic!
You guess or you develop an instinct. This basically goes for almost any question under the sun regarding your newborn. Is my baby hungry? Is he full yet? Is my baby sleepy? Is he cold or is he hot? Should I pick him up or not? Shall I let him sleep in my lap or should I put him down? Is he in pain or is he just cranky? If so, WHY is he cranky?
It’s almost impossible to tell, because, of course, your baby can’t tell you what he wants or what his ailment is. But, there are certain pointers which I will be sharing here which can give you a hint as to what can keep your baby happy and healthy. Otherwise, as a mother and, in fact, as a parent all you can do is gauge reactions and learn and improvise.
It's a Learning Curve
Motherhood is a learning curve, one where you learn something new every day. Babies are unpredictable but there are atleast some things you can note and learn and then adapt accordingly. Ofcourse, there are people to guide you – doctors, parents, friends and family who are parents already – but, those are just guidelines which can act as pointers. In the end, decisions have to he taken by you and whatever good or bad (touchwood it doesn’t) happens, the responsibility is yours and your spouse’s.
You will gradually learn to distinguish which cry of your baby means he’s sleepy, which is a tantrum to be picked up, or which one means he is simply hungry. Incessant crying, though, usually means he’s in pain or is uneasy.
When something works, keep in mind for next time what did the trick and got him/her to be soothed.
Does Motherhood Really Mean Sleepless Nights?
The other all important question which you might have – is your precious sleep no more?
If you’re lucky, it doesn’t have to be. But for very very few people have I heard so.
Yes, there will be sleepless nights, night after night when the baby will be crying and you won’t know why he just won’t sleep. Then, he’ll be sleeping throughout the day when you need to eat and bathe and do your household activities. That leaves you precious little time to sleep. And then the cycle starts again. The saying “you should sleep when the baby sleeps” is just a myth. That said, you should still take atleast a couple hours nap because you need to rest and heal; a sick you is no help to the baby.
How long till Baby's sleep cycle normalizes?
The consensus is, apparently, that it takes 3 months to stabilize and come to a proper routine. But here again there are various opinions and experiences; some say 4 months, some say 6 while others say it was never an issue!
Well, for me, up to 5 months, my baby slept at dawn and woke at noon! So, it’s all different from baby to baby.
But rest assured, the hardest part is upto 6 months, there-on it gets better sleep-wise.
Is It Worth It?
Of course it is!
The pregnancy, the birth and then the sleepless nights, the endless worry, the hyper-awareness and the zero me-time – are all of these worth it? One simple answer – yes!
Every time I look at the tiny bundle I created, it fills me with joy and wonder. Every time I do something that makes him smile, I’m incandescent. Every time he does something new, I feel so proud! So yes, it is worth it.
In my next post...
How did you like the introduction? Drop me a line to let me know your thoughts.
In my next post, I will share the advise – in actual numbers and names – as received from my well wishers and which were my guidelines in those first 6 months of new-mommyhood.
Stay tuned.
I am looking forward to more from this series. Its great to get to know your perspective…
Excellent
Excellent writing
Excellent
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