"As our children get older, we can find ourselves routinely spending more than first planned to assist them to do well ... opting for the better tennis racquet to improve their game, paying for extra ballet lessons to do well in the exam, spending the $2000 required for orthodontic work ... Investing money in our children's potential can occur without much hesitation, as we want so much for them to be the best they can be. Yet somehow, this mindset doesn't always occur in the first weeks of life, when paradoxically it is a child's most important start. I cannot recommend highly enough parents investing in the wellbeing of a newborn's mother, for the sake of the newborn. A less-stressed mother improves everything in newbornhood! "
With thanks to KATHY FRAY : www.kathyfray.com ( North Auckland magazine columnist, entertaining speaker and author of the popular book "OH BABY...Birth, Babies & Motherhood Uncensored". )
New parents will get told "during the day rest when the baby sleeps' and "spend time with your baby bonding and establishing feeding".
This is all very well if you don't have another child at home or have good support around you to help out with daily tasks of washing, housework and cooking.
As a Childbirth Educator and Midwife I have heard from allot of new parents who have found the first weeks after having a baby exhausting.
I see Pepsicles Postnatal Home Help as being a needed service by parents nationwide.
With thanks to Helen Pulford: www.babywebnz.org ( BabyWebNZ is the brainchild of a Mother, Midwife, Childbirth Educator and Writer of Handy Web sites for Parents.)
Today's mother is generally not given the chance to enjoy her pregnancy, labour and new baby because of the pressures that society places upon her.
"Doula" (pronounced "doola") is a Greek word meaning "woman servant or caregiver". It now refers to an experienced woman who offers emotional and practical support to a woman (or couple) before, during and after childbirth. A doula believes in “mothering the mother” - enabling a woman to have the most satisfying and empowered time that she can during pregnancy, birth and the early days as a new mum. This type of support also helps the whole family to relax and enjoy the experience.
Postnatal Doulas are more and more common in the UK and the USA nowadays.
Read more: http://doula.org.uk/FAQs/whatisadoula.php
The postnatal period is defined as approximately 40 days in most cultures; most societies have special postnatal customs that include special diet, isolation, rest and help in the household. The resemblance between different cultures is striking. Many postnatal customs from rural societies that were common before 1950 have disappeared. The focus on rest and help in the household for the mother after delivery has been reduced.
Results from a Norwegian study looking into postnatal customs across cultures.Read more: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
In some countries it is normal for mums to be looked after for the first few weeks after childbirth. In the Netherlands and Belgium, for example, this is subsidised by the government for every mum.
Read more: (only useful if you can read Dutch!): http://kraamzorgzuidnederland.nl/kraamzorg.php
|