- In the hours after baby’s birth, spend as much time as possible in skin-to-skin contact with your baby. Place her on your naked chest without any clothing on. Using a cotton towel or blanket, cover both of you. In this position, your baby will be soothed by the familiar smells and sounds of mom.
- Latch your baby as soon after birth as possible and demand feed your little one in the early days.
- Do not wear strong fragrances or wash your clothes or those of your baby in strong smelling detergents. The sense of smell is very sensitive in newborns.
- Hold your baby 20cm from your face, which is the perfect distance from which she can focus on your eyes. Seeing your face will calm her, especially if you talk gently while holding her.
- After the soothing movement of the womb, you may well find your baby wants to be held a good deal of the time in the early days. Hold and cuddle her and do not worry about “spoiling” your baby.
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