Taking care of mothers and babies in the first week after birth

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A woman's body after giving birth will have to go through a lot of great changes and the baby must also try to adapt to the living environment outside the womb, if it is given the right attention and care. Standards will help mothers and babies quickly return to their normal state, and the care process in the first week after birth must also ensure certain requirements.

1. Instructions for taking care of babies in the first week after birth

Child care in the first week after birth must include breastfeeding, sleep, general health, urination, and defecation.
Care in the first 24 hours The first month after birth, also known as the perinatal period, is a very important time, when children are cared for and well cared for, creating a premise for their development. after that. Within the first 24 hours, if the health of the mother and the baby are stable, the baby should be skin-to-skin with the mother to strengthen the mother-mother connection and help the child feel more secure in the process of adjusting to life. outside, especially for premature babies.
Maybe the mother doesn't know, but within the first hour after birth, the baby has a reflex to find and suck on the mother's breast, if separated from the mother for a long time, this reflex will gradually disappear. In the first day after birth, the baby will not be bathed because when he was born, he was wiped clean, in case the navel is normal and there is no swelling, the mother just needs to wipe around the baby's navel with a clean towel dipped in it. physiological saline or cooled boiled water.
The mother's health in the first day after birth will also be very weak, so all postpartum care will depend on relatives, the mother needs to be monitored for blood pressure, pulse and bleeding to ensure her health. strong.

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The 2nd day after birth On the 2nd day, there are times when the baby will not sleep anymore but opens his eyes and stares at the other person's face, but the baby can only see between 15 - 25cm, the baby will start to cry a lot and ask for breast milk, to make sure the baby is always full, feed the baby every 2 hours and remember to feed the baby at the right time. So to avoid choking on milk, at this time the baby's stomach is still small, so just feeding the baby on demand is enough.
In the process of postpartum care until the 2nd day, in addition to feeding, the mother also needs to pay attention to the baby's diaper because at this time the baby can wet the diaper more, when it is too wet, sometimes the baby will cry. .
3rd day after birth By the 2nd day after birth, the baby may have signs that help the mother know that the baby is hungry such as crying or pressing his head on the mother's chest....the baby will also feed the mother. softer and deeper. When they are close to their mother, they will be happier, they will get used to being pampered by their mother and recognize their mother by the voice from the days they were still in the womb.
Because the baby has eaten more, the bowel movement and urination will also be more, the meconium has also disappeared and may be replaced by yellow viscous stools, during this perinatal period, the mother needs to replace the baby every day. about 4 diapers.
At the same time, bathing the baby during this time will also help relax and be more comfortable, the mother can massage the baby before bathing to help the child easily fall into a deep sleep.
4th and 5th day care

On the 4th and 5th day of the perinatal period, the baby's suckling movements are much more mature and the sucking force will be stronger, more milk will be produced. To help increase milk production, the mother should feed the baby evenly on both sides and maintain each feeding for 30 minutes.
Children suck a lot, so they also need a lot of hygiene, so mothers need to pay attention to change the baby's diaper regularly every 2 hours, the baby's stool will be yellow lilac yellow and viscous, when it takes a long time to wash it, Babies need to use clean water to avoid infections in the first week after birth.
In addition, children also need to be bathed every day and should choose the time with the highest temperature.

6th and 7th day When entering the 6th and 7th day, the baby needs to increase the feeding from 60 - 90ml, the baby may have a sleep disturbance compared to usual and sometimes the baby will "sleep during the day". plowing at night", so mothers also need to prepare psychologically to receive and adapt to the baby in the first week after birth.
When the child is fussy, the mother should pick the child up and cuddle, but do not be afraid to catch her breath or refuse to leave her mother, at this time the child is too young and afraid of external changes, so it is very necessary to have her mother by her side.
The child still has regular bowel movements every day, but if the child's stools are hard and only once every 2-3 days, please review the mother's nutritional intake and change accordingly.
On the 7th day, the baby's umbilical cord has also begun to dry and should be maintained with physiological saline every day, some babies may lose the umbilical cord within the first week after birth, but there are also child lasts up to 15 days, if the baby's navel is on the 7th day but it is still not dry and oozing, red, swollen, you should take the child to the doctor for timely treatment because it is most likely a sign of infection or infection. umbilical cord.

2. Taking care of mothers in the first week after giving birth

Maternal care in the first week after birth must include: Daily diet, general health, fever, oozing or leaking stools, defecation and urination, abdominal pain and discharge such as What is the state of pain, milk secretion, breast erection, whether there is enough milk or not, what is the mental state...
Not only the child but also the mother needs postnatal care, instructions on daily body hygiene. days to avoid infection. After giving birth for 2-3 days, the mother can take a quick bath with warm water, the mother needs to pay attention to breast care so that she can breastfeed her baby completely, if the milk duct is blocked, it needs to be handled to avoid inflammation. breast, breast abscess.
During this perinatal period, absolutely do not give the baby any other food or drink. The perineal stitches, if any, need to be washed thoroughly after defecating and urinating and then patting dry.
Postpartum mothers also need to have a reasonable diet and activities, do not need to be too abstinent, but must ensure enough substances to have milk for breastfeeding, mothers need to ask family members to take care of the baby to get enough sleep. hours every day.
Whether it's a natural birth or a cesarean section, the mother also needs to move around soon after giving birth, if there is a psychological problem, it needs to be shared with everyone so that it can be relieved. to ensure health and safety.
In case the mother has difficulty breastfeeding, someone should guide the mother to breastfeed properly.

Postpartum care needs to be done by the mother's relatives because in the first week, the health of both mother and child cannot return to normal. Taking care of the mother after cesarean section in particular and postpartum in general is a continuous process and follow-up examination after cesarean section is essential to ensure the mother's health.
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