Tips for First-Time Moms

Being a first-time mom can be overwhelming, especially the first year! From post-partum recovery, adjusting to a new sleep schedule (or lack thereof!) to learning to recognize your baby’s cries and wants, the first year is a struggle for even the strongest of women. To help make baby’s first year a memorable one for you and baby, these tips will get you through the first milestones with ease. Take a Postnatal Vitamin

Most new moms walk around in a state of exhaustion. Eating well can be tough when caring for a newborn, so taking a postnatal vitamin can fill in any nutritional gaps and help give you and baby what you need when nursing. First Response Prenatal & Postnatal Gummy Multivitamins are a go-to. They come in an easy to take gummy format – perfect for pregnancy and beyond to provide calcium, and other essential nutrients, like B vitamins and folate.

Recognize and Treat a Gassy Tummy

Babies can be quite gassy, passing gas more than 20 times a day! With plenty of opportunity to swallow air whenever they feed, or suck on a pacifier and cry, it can be challenging to prevent gas buildup. But keeping the baby’s head higher than its stomach when feeding, and burping them often can help minimize it. Using a slow flow nipple if bottle feeding or working it out through a gentle massage also works, but in a pinch, try Ovol Drops. They provide gentle and fast relief of colic, bloating or gas by helping to break up gas bubbles that causes the discomfort. You should only use Ovol Drops on the advice of a doctor.

Baby’s first tooth? Ensure a good sleep for you and baby

As early as 3-months, babies can begin teething, causing discomfort and disrupted sleep for both mom and baby. A trick I swear by is Baby Orajel Homeopathic Teething Gel. With the soothing power of Chamomile, this teething gel offers safe, effective and naturally-derived medicinal ingredients for your baby to treat you both to a full night’s rest.

Give new moms the support they need

Being exhausted and a teething or gassy baby are all things new moms struggle with but don’t mind admitting to or talking about, but what about those unspoken issues that you’d rather keep to yourself, things like, um, postpartum hemorrhoids? Did you know that around 25 per cent of women who develop hemorrhoids after giving birth still have them at six months postpartum[1]? Although it may be embarrassing, that doesn’t mean that you should suffer in silence since there are things you can do to help you relieve the symptoms.

TIP: Try applying an ice pack (with a soft covering) to the affected area several times a day or soak your bottom for 10 to 15 minutes in a warm and relaxing bath to decrease swelling and discomfort. You can also try an over-the-counter medication such as Anusol Plus* ointment or suppositories to soothe and ease the burning sensation, and help reduce the swelling of hemorrhoid tissue. Anusol Plus* even has an anesthetic to help provide that extra pain relief over other over-the-counter treatments. It’s important to note that you should always consult your doctor or pharmacist before using Anusol products. Moms must unite, so next time you meet a new mom, don’t be afraid to have those real conversations and share some of these tips – I’m sure they’ll thank you for it.  What advice can you offer new moms to help make baby’s first year a little less stressful?  *Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before use.

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Church & Dwight. All opinions are mine.