Post-delivery, every mother looks forward to meeting the soul she carried in her womb for nine months. Many women opt for a caesarean section, willingly or unwillingly. It is a procedure that requires time to recover. The following tips might help in a quick recovery.
Plenty of rest
Caesarean section, being a major surgery, requires hospitalisation for 2 to 4 days, which might extend if complications arise. It takes almost 6 to 8 weeks for the wound to heal completely.
Take it easy, as the popular saying goes, “Sleep when the baby sleeps,” i.e., follow the baby’s sleeping routine.
Always ask for help, whether changing the baby’s diapers or doing household chores. Rest whenever possible.
Pay special attention to your body.
Special care is required for the body to heal faster.
Do not climb stairs or sit on the floor. Any kind of pressure on the abdominal muscles should be avoided.
Frequently used items such as diapers, food, and snacks should be kept within reach.
Avoid lifting things heavier than the baby and ask for help whenever required.
Hold a pillow over the belly to avoid pressure while sneezing or coughing.
It can take up to 8 weeks to return to one’s usual routine. A doctor’s consultation is a must for all activities such as exercising, driving, or starting work.
Walking is recommended for the body to heal faster and for the prevention of constipation and blood clots.
Avoid physical contact as well as the use of tampons and douches.
Relieve pain
Only a doctor’s prescribed pain medications are to be taken, especially while breastfeeding.
A hot bag may be used to relieve discomfort, while special care and hygiene must be maintained.
Postpartum bleeding should be monitored. If it continues beyond 6 weeks, consult the doctor.
Good Nutrition
The mother should drink lots of water while breastfeeding to promote milk supply and avoid constipation. This reduces pressure on the abdomen and the chances of injury. Additionally, a variety of fruits and vegetables are to be consumed for the body’s recovery.
Postpartum check-ups are a must
Visit the doctor regularly for post-delivery check-ups. These help in the diagnosis of physical and mental health, energy level, chronic diseases, and other pregnancy-related complications like hypertension, diabetes, etc.
Time to call a doctor.
Some degree of pain, bleeding, or discharge at the incision site is usual within 6 weeks of a caesarean section.
The doctor should be consulted immediately if the following symptoms occur, as these could point to an impending infection:
Redness, swelling, pus discharge, or pain at the incision site.
Temperatures above 100.4°F (38°C)
Foul-smelling discharge of or heavy bleeding from the vagina
Redness, swelling, or pain in the leg.
Difficulty breathing or chest pain.
Also consult the doctor if the new mother feels sad, depressed, or feels like hurting the baby or herself.
Dear MoMsters don’t compare your own recovery with others’, as it varies with every individual and their body.
Focus on your self-healing by giving your body the time it needs to recover.
Hello dear MoMsters your baby is 6 months old? Wohoooo 🙂 🙂 Congratulations for achieving this milestone, now this is the right time for your baby to start semi-solid foods!
For all nuclear families, who are a little bit confused about how to introduce solids to a 6-month baby, then keep calm, and read this blog.
Few tips to be taken care of while starting Solids for the first time.
Make sure you are not stopping the breastfed as it is still the major diet for 6 months old.
Use stainless steel or silver cup for feeding; do not use any plastic product.
Make sure that your baby’s feeding utensils are clean and sterilized with hot water, because your baby’s immune system is still weak and baby is vulnerable to infection, hence maintain hygiene.
Prefer homemade foods over buying packaged or ready-made foods available in the market, because homemade is the safest and the healthiest.
While feeding avoids giving gadgets like mobile or other radiation-emitting substances, which is not good for the baby’s overall development.
All about food tips:
Baby’s first food should be semi-liquid, gradually move to a thick consistency as your baby learned to eat.
At 6 months, do not introduce non-veg and dairy products.
Avoid biscuits, sugar, salt, honey, cow milk till 1 year.
Do not mix 2 fruits or 2 veggies.
Initially, the purees must be in flowing consistency.
After feeding food, give warm water; do not give water from feeding bottles. Use a small cup or glass.
You should introduce one new food at a time for your baby, and wait for a minimum of 2 to 3 days before starting another item. This will also help you to understand about any food item that is causing allergy/indigestion in your baby.
How do you know that your baby has an allergy to a particular food?
If a food doesn’t suit your baby, your baby may show the following symptoms:
Diarrhea
Runny nose
Rashes
Constipation
Vomiting
Colic (stomach pain)
If any of the above symptoms are seen, stop using that food and consult your child’s doctor.
Quantity of food:
2 tbsp. of fruit or veg puree, you can gradually increase to 3 tbsp. in the second week.
2 tbsp. of cereal, you can gradually increase to 1/4 cup.
It’s always better to be guided with your baby’s hunger, as appetite varies from day to day.
First 2 weeks just stick to Breakfast and Lunch. Observe how does his digestive system react and 3rd week onwards start adding semi-solid food for dinner too.
Slowly by 7th month you will get a little idea of his hunger pattern.
Food Plan:
After baby wakes up in the morning, breastfeeding is necessary and provides breakfast only after 1 and half hour gap.
Breakfast: 8 AM fruit Puree or veg puree
You can give mashed banana [Banana variety: I usually give baby (Nino) banana variety which is short chubby banana, because elders say bigger thick-skinned banana can cause wheezing and phlegm problem in babies], / steamed and peeled apple puree / steamed & mashed chikku / steamed pear puree / mashed papaya / ripen avocado mashed / carrot puree.
After 2 – 3 hours gap breastfeeding.
Lunch: 1 PM.
1st week – Rice porridge (the consistency of food should be flowing type not thicker one).
2nd week – clear moong dal soup.
3rd week – ragi porridge.
4th week – Semolina/Suji/Rava + banana porridge.
After 2 – 3 hours gap breastfed.
4th week onwards repeat any of these recipes for dinner, but do not give moong dal soup for dinner in order to avoid digestion issues.
Suggested Daily Milk Intakes for Babies:
0-3 Months of age: breastfeed every 1-2 hours once.
4-5 Months of age: breastfeed every 2 hours once.
6-8 Months of age: breastfeed or formula feed every 3-4 hours.
9-12 Months of age: breastfeed or formula feed every 4-5 hours once.
“Dear MoMsters these are just guidelines that might give you an idea about introducing solid food, when & what to feed. And these are hourly routines, check the appetite of your baby and feed accordingly.
If the baby doesn’t like food, wait for a few weeks before introducing it again. Don’t force your baby to complete the entire cup; it will take some couple of months to adjust with the food.”
Semolina/Suji/Rava + banana porridge:
Ingredients:
Roasted fine rava/suji – 2 tbsp.
Hot Water – ½ cup.
Banana – ¼ pieces.
Method:
(If your baby doesn’t like the texture of suji, make it to a powder by grinding in a blender.)
Sterilize the feeding bowl and spoon in a hot water for 5 mins.
Take 2 tbsp. of roasted suji in a saucepan to add the required amount of hot water to the suji and mix slowly. Make sure that there are no lumps formed. Cook the suji in medium flame until cooked completely.
At last step, you can add a natural sweetener like mashed banana, to the porridge. Mix well and feed the baby.
Ragi porridge:
Ragi is a rich source of iron and calcium. It is one of the best baby foods which is easily digestible and enhances immunity.
Ingredients:
The required amount of Ragi seeds to make powder.
Formula milk as needed.
½ cup of water.
Method:
Take ragi seeds, wash them thoroughly, and put them under sun dry.
Roast the dried seeds in a medium flame, cool them, and then grind it finely to make a powder.
In a cooking pan add 2 tbsp. of ragi powder and sauté for about one minute.
Then pour a half cup of water and break the lumps by continuously stirring.
Cook till it reaches semi-thick consistency.
Cool and mix formula milk as needed.
Serve immediately as formula milk mixed.
You can also skip formula milk, just prepare with the help of water for consistency.
Hope, this information might have given you all some idea about introducing solid to your baby.
These are very exciting phases. Make it more memorable by adding more delicious food for your baby.
Great, so you have been through our articles and now you are here to know the “how” part about the benefits of breastfeeding for both Mother and the kid.
Till now, the most common sentence we would have heard is “Breastfeeding is good for kids, Breastfeeding is very important for kids, etc” But, it is very rare to hear that you should breastfeed because it is important and very advantageous for you too, Mommy !!
Go through our article and let us know if you knew these points or not !! 🙂
Benefits of breastfeeding for the mother are:
It decreases the risk of breast cancer and ovarian cancer.
Prevents postpartum depression.
Breastfeed can help bond with her child.
It helps your body to get back to its pre-pregnancy state. (I reduced 8 kg).
It also helps the uterus to get back to its original size.
Breastfeeding delays the return of normal ovulation & menstrual cycles. (However, for safer side talk to a doctor regarding birth control choices).
Breastfeeding helps to relax at night. You do not have to use formula feed to measure and mix, there are no bottles to warm in the middle of the night when your baby cries out of hunger! You can soothe your baby immediately by providing your breastmilk.
Benefits of Breastfeeding for the babies are:
Mother’s milk helps in better development of sensory and cognitive abilities, leading to better IQ.
Rich in vitamin and antibiotics, which helps the baby in protection from infection and give them better immunity.
Reduces incidences of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and obesity.
Formula feed irritates your baby intestines, but breastmilk is easily digested.
“Hence breastfeeding is best for the overall health of the baby”
Very precisely all points are covered. I hope you might have got more motivation and positive energy to breastfeed your kid.
Hearty congratulations Momsters on entering into the Motherhood world.
If you are reading this article that means you need suggestions or insight about breastfeeding.
You might be feeling guilty, sad or hopeless if you are not able to breastfeed your baby. You might be thinking something has gone wrong with you. Many doubts haunt the mind and eventually turn the thought into negative emotions.
But. we will say… Don’t you worry Momster. It is not new or any doubtful situation. All new mom has to go through a lot of new experiences, one among that is breastfeeding. Our momster community will help you with your further doubts on our Question Answer forum
There is a lack of awareness regarding exclusive breastfeeding, and the diet to be followed during this period.
I know it’s a tough time, because lots of suggestion and instruction by many people, you will be in a state of confusion now.
First of all, a breastfeeding mom relax, your stress plays an important role in decreasing breast milk (BM)
“The only mammals who use a top feed to their babies are human beings”
“Breastfeeding of an infant for the first 6 months is compulsory”, there is no need for additional food or water during these 6 months.
re-pregnancy state. (I reduced 8 kg). 
