Newborn care, first lessons

Taking care of a newborn takes more effort and time than I expected.

The first night was brutal. My wife and I barely slept — the baby cried all night. The milk supply hadn’t come in yet, and the baby was probably just hungry.

We talked to the nurses and the lactation specialist about using a pump. In the first days, the milk system isn’t fully established, so we had to supplement with formula. That’s when it got tricky — it turns out sucking from a bottle is a lot easier than sucking from the breast, and babies, naturally, pick the easier path.

On the lactation specialist’s advice, we switched to a “breastfeeding-friendly” way of giving the formula — paced bottle feeding, holding the baby in a breastfeeding position, letting her work for the milk the same way she would at the breast.

Things have improved a lot since then. Mom’s supply is catching up, the baby is latching better, and there’s a lot less crying.

Day by day.