Building relationship with your baby

During Pregnancy

Taking time out during pregnancy to bond with your bump can help to improve your baby’s brain development.

Saying “hello” to your baby can start today

During pregnancy it is important to form a relationship with your baby:

• Take time out to relax
• Stroke your bump, talk to baby and notice and respond to movements
• Involve partners and/or siblings

A warm welcome after birth

Your midwife will talk to you about skin-to-skin contact, which:

• Calming effect at birth for both you and your baby
• Helps to form a close bond due to surges of hormones
• Helps baby to stay warm and regulate their heartrate and breathing
• Helps mum and baby get feeding off to the best start

Having conversations with your baby from day one

Your midwife will explore what you already know about your baby’s development and how to make them feel secure and she will give you information about:

• Responsive parenting assists healthy brain connections, feelings of safety and comfort
• Keeping baby close to enable you to recognise your baby’s needs
• How responding to your baby will not spoil them

Feeding your baby

Your midwife will explore what you already know about feeding your baby and will ask you about your feelings and expectations about breastfeeding and help you to understand the value of breastfeeding as food, protection and comfort:

• Remember staff will be around to support you during the early days
• You do not have to decide how you want to feed your baby until your baby is born

Preparation for breastfeeding

The trust helps to run breastfeeding workshops for mums who want support with breastfeeding.

After Pregnancy

Holding your baby close and looking into his eyes will help you to bond.

The warm welcome continues

Most parents feel instinctively that they want to keep their baby close so that they can respond to their needs. You will be supported to achieve this by:

• Having skin-to-skin contact following birth for as long as you wish
• Recognising the early feeding cues
• Offering the first feed in skin contact

Closeness is the key

Responsive parenting relies on your baby being close to you, so that you can get to know your baby and notice what they are telling you. You will be supported to achieve this by:

• Keeping baby close to you at all times
• Recognising your baby’s needs and responding to them
• Not leaving your baby to cry

Skin-to-skin contact

• Stimulates release of hormones
• Calms and relaxes baby and mother
• Regulates baby’s heart rate and breathing
• Regulates baby’s temperature
• Stimulates breast-seeking behaviour and interest in feeding
• Stimulates endorphin release (body’s natural response to pain)
• Protects baby from infection

Partners can help too

Partners can sometimes feel left out when their significant other decides to breastfeed.

Breastfeeding, however is only one aspect of caring for your new baby and there are lots of other ways that you can get involved.

• Bath time can be lots of fun and partners are really good at this
• Cuddles are always important and a good way of building your relationship with your baby
• There may be a small amount of wind after a feed so sitting baby upright or resting baby’s head on your shoulder may help
• Taking baby out for a walk in the pram will also give you time to get to know them
• Changing babies nappy or just talking and playing with your baby while on the changing mat will help you to get closer
• Partners are particularly good at getting baby off to sleep
• The more support you give your partner the longer she is likely to breastfeed for
• Getting involved in caring for your baby can also give your partner a break
• You can help by making your partner a sandwich or simple meal and ensuring they have plenty of drinks throughout the day particularly when they sit down to breastfeed
• Try and share the load so help out with some of the household chores
• Your partner will find it easier to breastfeed if they are free from stress so try to take things easy, don’t worry about “getting back to normal” and make sure your partner doesn’t have more visitors than they can cope with