Lisa O Engelhardt - New Baby Therapy

New Baby Therapy Lisa O. Engelhardt Illustrated by R. W. Alley Abbey Press Foreword Congratulations on your new little bundle of blessing! No one could have prepared you for the wonder and joy you feel at this miracle of life and love. Neither could anyone prepare you for the fatigue and disruption and worry! Like many new parents, you might agree that this is the best of times and the worst of times. Change is the order of the day: not just the diapers, of course, but your entire life.

Your roles and responsibilities and priorities are changingas are your schedule and your relationship with each other. Your baby is changing rapidly, too, growing and developing almost right before your eyes. Soon you will wonder where this precious newborn time went. New Baby Therapy helps you to make the mostand cope with the worstof this special time. Written by a mother of three, this little volume empathizes with the bewildering experience of having a new baby in the house, while offering tips for nurturing your infant and yourselves. May it help you to find the patience to endure, the peace to enjoy this baby who wont be a baby for long! 1. A new baby is a miracle of love and life.

Congratulations on this blessed event! 2. God called you to be parents to this special baby, because no other parents can do the job better. Have faith in God and yourselves. 3. The moment you hold your new baby, you will know that any pain or anxiety that preceded your babys arrival was worth it. Enjoy! 4. Savor the smells and sounds and feel of your baby: the powder-fresh sweetness, the gurgles and coos, the velvety softness of her skin. Take time just to be with your babyto hold her, to love her. 5. Sing to your baby, rock her, dance with her, talk to her, answer her babble.

She will thrive in body, mind, and spirit, and know from her earliest days how much she is loved and cherished. 6. A new baby is utterly dependent on youfor nourishment, care, and affection. You may be amazed at the strong protectiveness and deep tenderness this brings out in you. Let your natural, God-given instincts help you to lovingly nurture your child. 7. At the same time, a newborns fragileness and helplessness can make the responsibility of caring for him somewhat scary. 8. Some parents do not experience instant maternal or paternal instinct. 8. Some parents do not experience instant maternal or paternal instinct.

Dont add to your stress by worrying needlessly or judging yourself. With time and practice, youll feel like a natural. 9. Your babys arrival has been preceded by months of preparation and anticipation. You may feel overjoyed or overwhelmed, ecstatic or exhausted. All of these feelings are natural. 10. Even if you carried this baby in your womb for nine months, he is still a newcomer to your family, a stranger that you need to get acquainted with. 10. Even if you carried this baby in your womb for nine months, he is still a newcomer to your family, a stranger that you need to get acquainted with.

Give yourself time to get to know him, his temperament and schedule, his likes and dislikes. 11. Right from the start, your baby will have his own unique personality, different from any other child. Treat him as the individual that he is, giving him the special care and love he requires. Delight in his uniqueness. 12. Give yourself permission to let the dishes pile up, let the dust bunnies multiply, let the housework go. 13. Taking care of this new little person can be exhausting. 13. Taking care of this new little person can be exhausting.

You may be sore from delivery, tired from not enough sleep, worn out from all the excitement. Sleep when the baby sleeps. Snatch a nap whenever you can. 14. The best way to guarantee a happy, healthy baby is to nurture yourselves as happy, healthy parents. Try to get your minimum daily requirement of nutritious food, sleep (as much as possible), exercise, prayer, hugs, relaxation, and fun. 15. Though you may not believe it when youre feeling tired and cranky, someday youll wish you had this newborn time back again.

Seize the day! Hug your baby! 16. Your family is undergoing rapid change right now. The changes in your baby, from day to day, are dramatic. You are changing and growing tooin your new identities as the parents of this baby. Change can be stressful. Be patient and tolerant as you adjust. 17. Baby-tending can be a full-time jobfor Mom and Dad.

Take as much leave from work as possible, so that you can share the blessings and the burdens of this time. Be a team twenty-four hours a day, and be sure to remember the three most caring words you can say in the middle of the night: Ill get up.