There’s no doubt about it: motherhood can be overwhelming especially when it’s brand new. Once you’re sent home from the hospital, it can be hard for a mother to know if they are bonding with their baby enough.
We are offering some tips on how you can bond with your baby and foster a healthy and strong relationship.
When you and your baby begin to bond, you create an instinctive attachment with your child upon meeting for the first time. But sometimes, it takes a bit of work to create a bond. Neither situation is right or wrong; it just means that it takes some parents a little bit of work to form their bond. Right after the birth, have the baby sleep in the same room as you. Sometimes, if you give birth at a hospital, the babies will sleep in the nursery but being separated may delay the formation of a bond. If your baby is sick and needs to stay in the NICU for a day or two, visit, touch, and hold your baby as much as possible.
When you get home, spend as much time making skin contact with your baby as possible. If you’re cooking dinner, hold your baby in a sling at your belly.
Breastfeeding can also help to create a strong bond with your baby. Listening to your baby’s cries and learning to distinguish the different types of cries he or she has (one for hungry and maybe another for a wet diaper) can help to solidify your bond.
Connecting with the newest member of your family might seem like a complicated hurdle to overcome, but the truth is, if you spend quality time together and express constant love and affection, you’ll bond in no time.
For collaborative midwifery and obstetrical care, contact Integrative Obstetrics.
Author New Jersey Midwifery
