A great parent is basically someone who can strive to make the right decisions in the best interest of their kids. What makes a person a good parent is not just defined by their actions. A parent’s intentions also define it.
Good parents don’t have to be perfect in everything. And no child is perfect, either. Bearing this in your mind is vital when setting your expectations.
While successful parenting is not all about achieving that perfection, it doesn’t mean you should work towards the goal. With the help of the following tips from experts like John De Ruiter, you will be the best parent, even when you are new to parenting:
1. Know How to Bond and Sooth
Bonding, perhaps, is a pleasurable part of caring for a baby. It happens during those first days and hours after giving birth and when parents make a deeper connection with their babies. Physical closeness usually promotes emotional attachment.
For newborn babies, this connection contributes a lot to their emotional growth, affecting their development in different areas, including physical growth.
Start bonding by cradling your newborn baby and stroking them gently in different patterns. You and your partner need to as well take that opportunity to skin-to-skin hold your baby against your skin as you cradle and feed them.
2. Get Help
Never in history have parents been expected to take care of their infants all by themselves. Even in the past, they have always reached out to the family to offer them help.
But these days, this has changed, leaving new parents all alone struggling to adopt. And if both parents are working, they get pressed even more.
So as a new parent, the best thing to do is to never hesitate to get help. By all means, don’t feel guilty about paying for the support and help you want – you really deserve it.
Whether it’s a nanny, leaning on friends/family, meal kit delivery, or postpartum doula, all these will definitely go a long way to ease your parenting load.
3. Create Enough Time for Your Partner
Following childbirth, it can take some time for couples to get under the sheets together. Other romantic gestures, such as holding hands, can unconsciously be taken to the backseat.
Because of this, some dads may feel neglected as new moms dote on a newborn baby, while some moms take more time to cope with postpartum problems.
Support from your partner is always important, and deliberating on parenting and personal issues can help to make better correctional decisions.
4. Sleep When the Baby Sleeps
Since infants are a piece of work when awake, be sure to sleep when they do. You won’t be able to take a nap when your newborn baby is awake.
It might be tempting to stay up late so you can binge your favorite TV show. But the truth is that struggling to take care of your baby during day time if you are sleep-deprived can make you miserable. So avoid this misery and get some sleep.
In a Nutshell!
You are the best parent to your newborn baby, regardless of what is going on in your life. Even when things are tough, you will always have a way around it as you were created for this.