Skin-to-skin is very important because it helps humans transition from the womb to the world. It happens during what is called the Golden Hour – or the first hour or two after your baby is born, and it is the very foundation of the breastfeeding relationship. Read on to learn more about skin-to-skin and how a doula can help support your breastfeeding journey.
Why is skin-to-skin so important?
There is an emotional bond that is made during skin-to-skin that kicks off great things that happen to you and your baby’s body. Skin-to-skin helps steady your baby’s breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar, and body temperature. Touch in general is really important for development and skin-to-skin is an important way to create this bond with your baby.
Why is skin-to-skin important to breastfeeding?
Skin-to-skin plays an important role in breastfeeding for the parent and baby. For milk production, the act of the baby being skin-to-skin sends signals to the mother’s brain to make and send milk. Oxytocin (a natural hormone in the body) begins to flow. Oxytocin is responsible for helping the milk ducts deliver milk.
For the baby, being skin-to-skin helps them learn how to look for the breast. A mother’s breast gives off a specific smell that helps the baby find their way to the breast and look for the nipple to latch. These are called Montgomery glands and they’re found around the areola, or nipple.
How can a doula support skin-to-skin in the delivery room?
A doula’s role in the delivery or recovery room or in early postpartum is to help you and your baby have skin-to-skin time. Depending on the birth (vaginal or cesarean) and the hospital procedures, sometimes the staff is more focused on getting the hospital’s standard postpartum exams done. Skin-to-skin may not be included if you or your doula do not advocate for it.
Your doula can remind staff that skin-to-skin time is important to you.
They can use pillows and change your position to make sure you are comfortable. They may help position the baby. But the goal is to have the baby go through the motions of finding the nipple on their own which helps make their instincts stronger but sometimes babies need a little help, especially if they are born 37 weeks or before!
How can a doula help a mom during the golden hour?
The golden hour is a blissful time when you and your baby get to bond, for the first time, outside of the womb. During the golden hour skin-to-skin and breastfeeding often begins.
Emotional support is going to be the most important kind of support a doula can provide during the golden hour. During the golden hour, there isn’t very much hands-on work that a doula needs to do. There shouldn’t be a need for much physical touch from the doula. In fact, this can be something the doula reminds hospital staff to not interfere.
If the parent and baby are doing okay and are considered medically healthy, the best thing a doula can do is let nature take its course. There are times when a doula can be hands-on. if the parent feels pressure for the baby to latch quickly or the parent is anxious about the baby eating. A doula can also show you how to use a spoon or syringe to feed baby their first milk, colostrum. Your doula can also (with permission) support the lactating parent by hand expressing for them to help get milk flow started. There are many ways a doula can support you as you begin breastfeeding!
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