Men & Skin to Skin : No Breast Just Chest
Men! You play a vital role in skin to skin with your infant!
Undoubtedly, a question I ask moms during teaching is, do they have a birth plan?
Rather they do or not, more specifically I inquire if they want their infant on their chest post birth?
The answer is always yes!
In the scheme of things & knowing this day is all about mom & baby 𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚, we sometimes forget to pause for dad.
So, with gentle encouragement, I inform dad’s they can do a sacred hour with their newborn when holding their baby.
Often when we hear the statement skin to skin we think mother & baby only.
However, this can be applied towards fathers too.
For men this means placing your dried newborn with only a diaper on, chest down against your bear chest, with a warm blanket or towel covering your newborn’s back.
Keep a blanket over your infant for warmth.
𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒔!
First, here are key terms that men should be aware of;
The golden hour, which is the first hour post birth for the newborn.
The sacred & magical hour, are used interchangeably, uninterrupted skin to skin.
Dad’s you can request for a sacred hour for you and your infant, after the golden hour between mom and baby.
Dad’s do embrace this call to action like a challenge!
Whereas, others may shy away in fear of not knowing what to do, or how to allow themselves to be comfortable holding someone so small.
Especially first time dad’s.
The key to the sacred hour is just, holding your baby next to your chest,
Allow the bonding to take place in the stillness of holding.
Hold your baby next to your chest
𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲 & 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬
Now that you’ve gained knowledge on what skin to skin is for men,
Next, lets’ dive in on the 3 Benefits.
3 Benefits of Skin to Skin for Men
𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆
It should be noted, that at times, dad passes the infant along to mom when he / she gets fussy.
Not knowing how to console the infant or not knowing that maybe, just what the newborn wants, dad can give.
Nevertheless, post reading this that will not be you!
You will know what to do.
When placing your newborn on your chest, your body adjust its temperature to your baby’s’ needs.
At this time, you become an incubator for your baby’s temperature control.
This also helps control glucose regulation which is vital, for when the baby needs to be fed.
So your paternal body warmth is comforting for your baby!
Snuggling your baby decreases the infants crying. Yep the love hormone oxytocin helps with this!
You will be more confident as a father in snuggling your infant.
Oxytocin exchanges between father & baby, just as mother & baby does.
This hormone decreases stress & crying due to the stabilization of warmth from your body, simultaneously increasing bonding.
This leads me to my next point.
Skin 𝑩𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈
Oxytocin, prolactin and endorphins are natural hormones, that are released when cuddling.
The same hormones at work when bonding with your wife are the same hormones used to help you emotionally bond with your baby.
More importantly this initiates feelings of love and protection.
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈.
𝑺𝒂𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒚
Take delight in knowing, when your newborn is against your chest and in your arms, a sense of security for your infant takes hold.
In addition to security, reassurance unfolds in your warmth, & safety is now obvious, not just from mom but from dad too!
As you hold your infant, he or she is getting to know the sound of your heartbeat and voice, along with the scent of your body and warmth.
𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒑
Men! You play a vital role in the sacred hour!
If mom is not able to provide skin to skin for medical reasons during the delivery process, you can provide this.
In particularly, those times mom is needing to rest or too exhausted to hold baby, seize that opportunity to step in and take hold of your magical hour in bonding.
You help your family by allowing mom to rest and allowing the baby to get to know you.
Without a doubt, this will build confidence, the instinct of safety arises and you get to bond with your little one.
The early bonding will help you in the long run when left alone with your infant.
Subsequently, the juice of all juices is knowing that, if your infant normally gets breastfed and mom is not present to feed the baby,
You can bottle feed your infant with the packaged breast milk, left behind for you to give.
In that moment you have just mastered skin to skin while bottle feeding breast milk!
A standing ovation the world gives to you!
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