Steps to Take Care of a New Baby
Knowing when an infant is ill can be a challenge for new parents. Health care workers are so used to requests for information that a parent’s genuine concern can sometimes be treated too casually. Rather than trust her own instincts, a mother can begin to doubt herself.
It will come as a relief to know that there IS a way to objectively measure a baby’s health.
THE FIRST SEVEN DAYS
A baby should nurse a minimum of eight times each day for a period of at least a quarter of an hour each session during the first week of life. A mama can hear her baby swallow milk during feeding. Baby’s first sticky-black stool – called meconium – should pass. You should see it progress from greenish-black to a brown soft play-dough consistency. By day 4 or 5 the color will be yellow. Wet diapers will appear by the second day. By the end of this week, the frequency of wet diapers will increase to 2 or 3 per day.
An ill baby will show definite physical signs of his condition. Nursing for less than fifteen minutes fewer than 8 times per day, showing no desire to eat and having a sucking reflex that is week are all signs for a parent to be concerned. Something is likely wrong if there is a clicking sound when a baby nurses, the cheeks dimple when the baby sucks, or the baby falls asleep before nursing for 15 minutes. It is outside of a healthy range if the baby’s stools haven’t changed and there is no urination two days after the birth. Such symptoms persisting for two days mean your child should be seen by a health care provider.
THE FIRST MONTH
The signs that your baby is healthy will be pretty much the same throughout the next month. The second to fourth week, babies continue to have two to four yellow stools and nurse eight times per day. Wet diapers will likely occur between six to eight times per day with clear, not yellow, urine. The suck will strengthen, and you should see milk and continue to hear swallowing during feedings. Your baby will grow both in weight and alertness.
Continue to monitor anything out of the ordinary in weeks 2 to 4 – infrequent or bright yellow urination, stools that are small or too seldom, fewer than 8 feedings per day. You should be able to measure an increase in your baby’s weight and length. A baby that has a weak suck, doesn’t make swallowing noises during nursing, becomes sluggish and lacks quick responses and doesn’t sleep between feedings, is a reason for concern. If you observe these behaviors for more than two days in a row, contact a health provider for assistance.
THE 5TH THROUGH THE 10TH WEEK
A baby may change from 8 to 7 feedings per day during this time. This is because he is growing and can take in more milk. Again, you will notice a change in bowel movements to either several small stools per day or a large one as infrequently as every couple of days. In breastfed babies, this is normal because the body assimilates much of the milk with little waste. Six to eight wet diapers will continue daily, but check to be sure there isn’t a concentrated yellow color. Expect increased alertness, strengthened suck, audible swallows and a little milk dribbling at feeding time.
During this 5th to 10th week you may have reason for concern if your baby doesn’t nurse at least seven times per day or produce the right amount of wet (not bright yellow) diapers each day. Make a note if your child stops gaining weight or doesn’t grow in length. Babies that can’t be heard swallowing and have a weak suck are not likely to be getting enough nourishment. Seek medical assistance if your baby becomes lethargic, slow to respond or unable to sleep between nursing sessions. If you see these things for two days in a row, something is not right with your baby.
MONITORING YOUR BABY
Remembering how often and when a baby ate can be a challenge when you are well-rested. It can be overwhelming to expect a new mother to know this with reduced sleep. One simple way to remedy this is to leave a notebook and pencil near the baby’s sleeping area. Whenever mama feeds or changes the baby, note the time and what was done along with your observations. One example of an entry might be: “10:00 a.m. – BIG BM, brownish green, nursed 30 minutes.” For clarity, you may want to start a new page each day with the date written at the top.
Your detailed list will be of great value to you and your doctor should your little one become ill. This is also a good way for a new mama to bond with her baby. You may be too tired to figure out why your baby is crying, but a quick check of your notes will tell you if it’s been too long since he ate (hunger) or if he hasn’t had a bowel movement that day (constipation). This tool helps a mama learn to identify the different cries of her newborn. This goes a LONG ways towards helping a new mama learn to trust her instincts when it comes to her baby.
The BEST advice for new mamas, however, comes from not-so-new mamas. Enjoy these first few weeks to their fullest. There’s nothing more important than getting acquainted with your new baby. Too soon, they are no longer little.
Interested in more child training tips? No Greater Joy is a ministry dedicated to helping parents bring up children they enjoy. They have written a bestseller called To Train Up A Child that has helped thousands.