Becoming a mother is the busiest, happiest time in a woman's life. After labor and delivery begins a whole new adventure full of surprises and rewarding moments that make motherhood worth it all. Here are some tips to help a woman slide easily into her new role of "mom".
Before Bringing Baby Home
After delivery, a mother has a few more medical options to consider before baby can be cleared to go home. Babies need to receive certain immunizations and check-ups to help ensure a healthy transition into the post-womb world. Some mothers may choose additional options that could potentially have an impact on the baby’s future health. Utilizing
umbilical cord blood banking is one such option that is planned for well before birth and occurs immediately following delivery. This is when the cord blood is collected and saved for its potential future use in a medical treatment. Another optional choice for male babies is circumcision. After these processes have been attended to and the observation time is over, mom and baby are ready to head home.
Physical and Emotional Changes
After a woman has a baby, she may go through some highs and lows emotionally that she has never experienced. This is normal because her hormones are readjusting to her new non-pregnant body. The sadness a woman feels is known as the "
baby blues." If a new mother feels sad or overwhelmed, she can talk to loved ones and, most importantly, her doctor. These key people can help the new mom work through her feelings.
A common physical change is feeling tired from a lack of sleep. Babies will start to develop a sleep schedule after some time and with help from their mother. Until a schedule is formed, a mother should plan to sleep when baby is sleeping so she doesn’t feel poorly.
Supportive Network
A new mom needs a network of supportive friends and family. She should never be afraid to ask for help. The more people a new mom has to turn to for babysitting, advice and camaraderie, the happier and more adjusted she will feel. Moms may find that their social network adjusts a bit after having a baby to include more mothers to lean on for support.
Baby Explorer
Before a mother knows it, her baby will begin to crawl and toddle. This is when babies really begin to explore their environment. It is never too soon for a mother to begin
childproofing her house. Mothers will spend less time redirecting their babies away from things that are not safe and spends more time watching her baby learn new skills like reaching, touching and grabbing safely.
Returning to Work
Most new moms return to work after their maternity leave. In the beginning, it is common for a working mom to feel guilty about leaving her baby in the care of another. But gradually, these feelings leave and the new mom experiences purpose, direction and gratification from both motherhood and her job. As long as a mom provides her child with safe, nurturing childcare, there are only positive effects.
With all the changes a mother will experience, having a great support system to surround her and help her through this exciting change will make motherhood a time full of excitement.
This article was written by Katie Moore. Katie is an active writer within the blogging community who discusses maternity, motherhood, prenatal health, childbirth and other topics within this niche. If you have any questions or would like to connect with Katie please contact by visiting her blog, Moore From Katie or her twitter @moorekm26.
Today we all should do a little something to give back to the earth. Plant flowers, recycle, pick up litter in your neighborhood or walk to your local store instead of driving.
Why not start Spring by cleaning up your health! Ever notice the gym is always super busy after New Year's and as the week pass by it slows down more and more? We all get into this mode that we are going to be healthy for the New Year and then we slowly change our tune and before you know it our gym card is covered in dust. 
Like every morning I wake up, get my daughter ready for school, make breakfast let the dogs out, get dressed etc...Well today I look down at one of my dogs and notice his mouth is swollen. I have been down this road, actually 3rd time since January, so I am now a pro. I knew immediately he got stung and needed benadryl before the reaction spread along his lymph nodes making it hard for him to breath. As his face is growing in size I break down the tablet and stick in his mouth. 
