5 Top Tips For Surviving The First Few Weeks

Try to give your baby a full feed at every feed rather than just a snack. If they fall asleep after a short time then wake them by burping, a nappy change or taking a layer of clothes off so they wake up fully and then encourage them to have more milk. The restaurant is open for 1 hour and encourage them to feed as well as possible and then hopefully sleep as well as possible between feeds.

Get early help from a lactation consultant if the feeding isn’t going smoothly.

Emotional support is really important so surround yourself with supportive friends and family. They can bring food round, look after the baby while you take a shower or take the baby for a walk in the pram so you can have a sleep. You can be doing the cuddling and they can help with the house. 

Eating healthy nutritious food and staying hydrated are really important to help you recover from the birth and cope with the disturbed sleep and to have a good milk supply.

Get as much rest as you can. If your first morning feed is very early, try to go back to bed for a few extra hours sleep. Then get up and do some chores then have an early lunch, feed the baby then both of you have an afternoon siesta. Your circadian rhythm includes a period of decreased alertness in the afternoon so it’s a good time to have a nap. If you are really tired in the early evening then go t bed early. Try to avoid waiting up for the baby to do a late feed – make the most of an early night. Lack of sleep is debilitating and small problems feel like huge ones so try to get as much sleep in the early weeks as you can to help you and also to help reduce the risk of postnatal depression.

You are doing a great job –take it one day at a time – even one feed at a time. Parenting is hardest job that I have ever done but also the most rewarding.

Milk transfer is the key to successful breastfeeding followed by a Happy Mummy and a Happy Baby.

• The latch is as pain free as possible for the mother
• Baby doesn’t lose more than 10% on day 5
• Back to birth weight at 2 week; the daily weight gain range is between 15g – 60g 
• Double their birth weight by about four months when weight gain slows dramatically
• The breast(s) is/are draining at each feed reducing the risk of block ducks and mastitis
• Sleep
• To reduce the risk of postnatal depression we're aiming for the mother to get five hours of uninterrupted sleep every night with more shorter periods of sleep before or after that too.