To ask for the best advice you got for newborn babie?

[Winterwoollies]

Ok, ok, don’t yell at me, I know this should go in another area, but I want to tap into the full Mumsnet knowledge pool and we all know this is the most highly trafficked area of Talk.

I read a comment from someone about soothing night-time screamy babies with colic the other day and it prompted me to start a notes file with good newborn baby tips. It involved putting them upright in a baby sling and going for a really good walk before bed to soothe reflux. It seemed worth remembering!

So, with that in mind, does anyone have any nuggets of useful, even obscure, advice for newborn babies and a newborn parent?

I have an unexpected baby due in the summer and am keen for some sisterly (or brotherly) advice.

Thank you!

Again, please don’t yell.

Metanium cream for sore bums. The midwife in hospital told me about this it really is a magic cream !!

I bought dh a book about impending parenthood. Until ds he had never even held a baby!!.
Better to have a book in advance than to be shouting info /instructions at the actual time a nappy needs changing or whatever. Also a bit of a heads up on baby /parenting necessities etc.
Nowt as embarrassing as a dh shouting in a baby shop he had found the Muslim cloths....

Don’t worry if the staff at the MacDonald’s drive-thru night shift recognise you/know you by name. The night time play time will pass and they will sleep without a car drive again.

Night 1 with the baby is usually alright as their tired from birth. night 2 is the worse sleep you will ever have in your life but it will get better afterwards. I wish someone had warned me.

With breastfeeding you can wear anything just get a strappy top for underneath.

@CustardOmlet you’ve really made me fancy a chocolate milkshake now! 😆

My son was constantly screaming. If he was awake and not feeding he was screaming. A relative ( who had no kids herself) said she had read an article about white noise like someone suggested earlier. Doesn’t matter how much he was screaming once I put the white noise tape on he would stop crying and settle to sleep. I’m sure there’s an app for it now. On one occasion we had gone to visit a relative and I had forgotten the tape. My son was screaming as usual so I put on a vacuum cleaner right next to his carry cot and it acted like the white noise he was asleep in 10 seconds. You do need to start the white noise within 6 weeks or birth

From an ITU nurse practice day time sleeping while still pregnamt. Once you start mat leave go to bed at the same time every day eg: 2-4.

A tip for older babies... if they have a bad vomiting bug and can’t keep anything down, 5ml of dialoryte every five mins can get fluid into them.

(I’m not an HCP, just someone remembering a long wait in A and E with a very vomity baby. They advised this and it worked. )

That whatever phase it is, it passes.

Ds2 was my most difficult baby, he’s 16 in August. It seems like a lifetime ago I was pacing the house with him screaming his head off and vomiting all over the house. I’ve actually been repaid by the universe as whilst everyone was showing off their perfect babies I can now brag about my almost perfect, highly intelligent but so modest, kind, polite and generally lovely teenager.

So just remember it will pass

The best advice I was given was "you are his mum, and you know him better than anyone else in the world."
Simple, but it helped me at times when I felt clueless and gave me the confidence to rely on my instincts when I wasn't sure.
That and a sling/carrier - I have a local sling library where you can try out all sorts of different types with trained practitioners who can help you get the hang of it and stop you wasting money on slings you won't use.
Good luck OP (and all new mums!)

Be nice, give mum a break sometimes and love cuddles. Everyone will remember that (Aaaah! Bless), which will be in your interest for years to come on your birthday and at Chistmas. Oh and welcome to the world by the way.

Despite growing that baby for 9 month, you dont know each other straight away so it's ok not to have a clue what each cry means from day dot.

You dont have to say yes to the Bounty rep!

You can read all the baby books you want, your baby hasnt read them so go by their cues not what an author thinks their cues should be.

You absolutely cannot spoil a newborn baby.

When I had ds, we brought the steriliser and premade formula (our hospital recommends for first 6 weeks) into our room, washed up in the ensuite and basically had everything we needed in the room so could snuggle in bed until we were ready to face the world.

Saying that, getting out every day, even for 10 minutes, does your mental health wonders.

It's ok to feel like you're going to snap, all parents feel like it at some time or another. Walking out of the room to collect yourself for a few minutes wont harm your baby.

Dry vests upside down by the poppers - can fit loads more on the line!

Skin to skin is so yummy, make the most of it before you have a wriggly toddler who just wants to get down and play destroy the house

You can chose be tired and angry... or just tired.

Honestly, the tiredness and sleepless nights are a killer, they play havoc with your emotions so embrace the tiredness, accept that's how you and your partner are going to feel for a while and if your having a hard day or night just remind yourself that it's normal, you dont have to have it all together all the time, you're not the only one struggling, your baby's ace, but yes you're bloody knackered.

It's good to put baby in cot / moses basket while sleepy but still awake, so they learn to fall asleep in there and don't need to be rocked to sleep.

You are allowed to be pissed off with the crying and bored rigid with the tedium. Newborns are annoying and boring in equal measure.

Mine spent the first six weeks in bundlers and vests. The bundlers have no legs and just gave really easy access to change. I love these things. You can normally pick them up second hand or get them from John Lewis. I buy them for everyone!

Put the clothes drawer in arms reach of the changing table

Hold baby upright for a bit after the feed (even if they already burped). Significantly reduces puking.

Cuddle / feed baby in their swaddle at night, then it stays warm from your arms when you put them back in crib.

I didn’t get many people giving me advice whilst I was pregnant with my DTs.

Things I wish I’d known and have learnt from MN and having them:

-Babies can cry for absolutely no reason if they’ve a mind to do so. It’s also an ok response if your temper is frayed and you just can’t do it, to pop baby somewhere safe (even on the floor), gather yourself together and count to whatever you need to to calm down then go get on with parenting.
-It’s perfectly normal to not feel that overwhelming rush of love for your baby once you’ve given birth, it can grow slowly or hit you in the face later on.
-Top and tail buckets and baby baths are really pretty pointless unless your roof starts leaking (they’re brilliant for that!).
-Amazon prime is fantastic for random baby bits and you don’t have to leave the house.
-You might have zero idea what you’re doing, but when it comes to your baby you are the expert. Take the advice of others if it works for you, but if demanded you don’t need to explain your choices and decisions to anyone.
-All fed, nobody dead is a great motto to get you through a difficult phase (thank you MN!). Another one I’ve got from here is it’s just a phase, this too shall pass. These have got me through some awful times.
-PND is nothing to be ashamed of, and seek help ASAP should it rear its ugly head.

Enjoy your newborn snuggles, they’re brilliant!

Ohh I agree with a PP, having amazon prime was the best thing ever in the newborn days!! It brought me my breast pump, nipple shields, teets, white noise machine etc when I was too sore to walk for two weeks.

Babygro's are the best clothing for day and night - no fussy outfits needed. Dress your baby for comfort. Will also save you £££.
You will need the ££ when they want expensive trainers!

• don’t feel guilty about using a dummy - it can be so soothing
• try a swaddle - just because they wriggle out doesn’t mean they don’t like it, it might just need to be tighter (we used a miracle blanket)
• white noise is a godsend!

If you have a boy make sure their 'you know what' is pointing downwards when you change their nappy. Otherwise when they're lying down the wee goes up / round the back / through the sheets and wakes them up. Took me a few days to work that one out.

If you want to breastfeed, go to your local breastfeeding group beforehand and speak to the mums, don't assume it's natural and will therefore be easy. Breastfeeding is a learned skill, some people take to it easier than others but often it takes more than just perseverance !

Amazon Prime was a lifesaver for when you need stuff quickly. Forgot anusol from your weekly shop? No problem, order and it's there the next day.

No one has ever written a book about you and your baby.

Don't feel pressured to get out and about. My family made a huge fuss in the first six weeks about me getting used to taking my baby out for coffee and lunches. I cringe now in hindsight, it was totally intrusive and unnecessary. You won't spend the rest of your life in the house so go at your own pace.

Don't listen to any advice that makes you feel uncomfortable, even if you feel so clueless you don't know what else to do.

Quite often, you cannot make your baby happy. They are their own person and it's not within your control. You can meet their needs but you can't make them happy.

You will get to a point where you've had enough and that's ok. Just put the baby down and take a break.

Look after yourself, take time to eat, drink, wash, take a vitamin, do your hair, do the little things that make you feel human.

Everything's a phase so don't stress. Baby hates the car seat? Meh, maybe they'll hate it forever but there is a good chance it will all be different in three weeks.

Don't focus too much on mum friends and instead nurture your existing friendships.

Take videos, photos are good but videos are my favourite.

If you think you need something, check.out Facebook selling pages first.