The wonderful journey of pregnancy and delivery.

Delivery is not just the birth of a baby but a new mother is born too.

Over the next few blogs, I am going to talk about the most beautiful and fulfilling experience of childbirth and becoming a mother. It's the most unique gift of nature to women to nurture and give birth to a new life.

The seventh month of your pregnancy is the time you should ask your doctor about what to expect during labor and delivery. Try to understand the process of normal delivery and the Caesarian section. This will help to reduce your fears and anxiety and relax you before D Day. Ask your doctor to examine your breasts and nipples. If you have flat or inverted nipples, your doctor will suggest some techniques to correct them. A word of caution, please don't overdo these exercises as that may start premature contractions of the uterus. Prepare yourself mentally for breastfeeding and try to learn the correct technique, different positions, correct latch of the baby, etc.

Once your baby is born the pediatrician will quickly dry the baby and wrap him /her in a warm cloth.

Then the baby is put on the mother's chest for direct SKIN-TO-SKIN (STS) contact. Baby should be naked and in direct contact with mother's skin. A warm cloth is put on the baby to prevent it from getting cold.Baby should be kept there as long as possible.

Gives warmth to the baby. No need for an artificial warmer or heater. Baby starts to suckle at the breast so feeding is established early. There will be reduced need for formula or animal milk. The bonding of mother and child releases the good hormones in the mother which relax her and also reduce her pain and also improve her milk production and milk ejection. Baby feels warm and cozy and gets relaxed after its tortuous journey through the birth canal.

This is the most amazing creation of nature. Babies are born with this instinct to find their mother's breast.

Here after a normal delivery, we quickly dry & wipe the baby and put it on the mother's tummy. Gradually and slowly the baby finds its way and reachesthe mother's breast and finds the nipple and latches on it. Lovely videos of breast crawl are available on the Internet.

All expectant mothers ask their doctor to do STS contact and also allow the baby to crawl to the breast in case of normal delivery.

Direct STS contact can also be done by fathers or any other relative.

For any Pregnancy queries, You can contact our expert at: www.Pregnancy101.in