When a baby enters your life, you have to make serious lifestyle changes to accommodate for the beautiful new bundle of joy. You must not forget that although the child looks and feels like any other normal human body, they are in fact incredibly fragile. If you don’t know your own strength, you could end up hurting or possibly damaging the baby. Becoming a parent is a blessing, but it’s also a full-time job the second your bring the child home. They are solely your responsibility, and the choices you make will impact the baby directly. Everyone runs into challenges, but those who are unprepared often experience the most difficulty when trying to settle in to regularly caring for the baby. There are a few things you should consider, to make your job easier and safer for your little one.
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Make regular night checks
One of the most vulnerable times for any baby is when they’re left completely alone. Of course, this happens when the baby is sleeping at night. If you don’t have enough room in your bedroom to have the baby’s cot next to your bed, there’s no other reliable way to check up on him or her without a baby sound machine. You can hear any distressing calls or cries during the night, while the baby is in the next room or at the opposite end of the home from your bedroom. The sound machine will alert you according to the decibel level, whereby you can then go and physically check up on your baby to soothe them of any stress or discomfort the baby might be feeling. Sound machines are also portable, so whether you’re going on holiday or a trip to a domestic resort, you can always take them with you.
Photo credit – RachelBostwick
Train the family dog
If you have a family pet, this new arrival into the home is going to greatly intrigue them. It’s very rare that pets become hostile to newborn babies, but it has been known to happen. When you bring in the baby, keep the dog outside of the room and the house. Rest the baby in the cot or in a buggy, and then let the dog in a while keeping control of it with either a hand on the collar or blocking its path as you get closer to the baby. It will want to sniff and smell the baby and try to familiarise itself with this new creature that it has never met. Allow the dog to sniff the baby from a distance but don’t allow it to lick or touch the baby just yet. Slowly but surely the dog will calm down, and just see the baby as another one of the family. However, don’t leave the baby and the dog alone together and always make sure your pet is not being aggressive to the child.
Many young and first-time parents fall into obvious safety traps when caring for their newborn baby. However, you have to change the way you think and your lifestyle so that you can accommodate the baby into your lifestyle. Integrating the dog to be careful around the baby takes time and constant vigilance. Monitoring the baby’s comfort level during the night is crucial to help you avoid things like cot rash.