Friday Faves: New Mom Edition
As a Doula I’m always looking for ways to help new moms and new again moms make life with a newborn manageable. Quarantine has changed how we are interacting as a society but one thing that remains the same is the needs of a newborn and their mama.
Here are my favorite registry items/must-haves to suggest that can be used for all moms:
Haaka
If you are breastfeeding, you want to avoid pumping with the electric pump in the early weeks to allow milk supply to establish. This silicone, handsfree breast pump is an “early days of breastfeeding game-changer”. You can nurse the baby on one side and attach the Haaka to the other side to collect any milk that would runoff. This allows you to collect milk and establish milk supply safely early on, so be sure to use it correctly.
Baby Wrap
There are so many benefits to babywearing, and keeping new baby close and protecting them from germs is one of them. Nobody can touch or hold a baby that you’re wearing and you get your hands back for everyday tasks. I always wear babies (with parent permission) on postpartum shifts and find the fabric wraps better for smaller babies. Some other benefits to babywearing are lowering chances of SIDS, postpartum depression, and it aids in the growth and development of the baby. You can wear babies of all sizes too!
Postpartum Doula
Add a cash fund to your registry to be able to pay for a few hours of in-home support weekly. A postpartum Doula can do household tasks for you like cleaning, cooking (even meal prepping), baby room organization, and so much more. Shifts range hourly from $20-$40 depending on the Doula and what they offer, so swap out a few of those onesies and Montesorri toys for this must-have support.
Yoga Ball
You can use a yoga ball to ease pregnancy aches and take some pressure off the pelvic floor. You can also use a yoga ball during labor to manage pain during contractions or help the baby get into position. But what many moms don’t know is you can use the same yoga ball to calm your new baby. Simply bounce up and down on the ball with your fussy baby and voila! Your ball is free to return to purely exercise purposes once you are cleared to workout by your provider.
Wifi + sound-enabled baby camera
Avoid getting up every 5 seconds to check if your new baby is breathing by using a camera with sound and temperature sensors. The Google Nest is a great system to see and hear baby/ siblings without actually having to see them. It can also connect to an app on your phone to see the baby when you are away from home.
There are quite a few more things you will need, like a meal train for friends and family to drop off meals or pick up groceries for you to keep you nourished, a car seat that grows with baby and ensures safety while traveling, a postpartum cart stocked with supplies to limit your searching all over the house, and a side slide sleeper bassinet for co-sleeping safely in the early days to name a few. This should go without saying (but I’m going to say it) you could have all these items and still experience the lows of motherhood; there is no escaping that, but you can get back to highs quicker with these supports or others.
