Visitors are a part and parcel of a newborn’s life. They will be flocking in the hospital ward or showing up at regular intervals once the baby is brought home. It is not really possible to keep the friends and family away but there are certain rules that need to be set by the mother.

Letting Visitors Hold Your Baby In Hospital

A newborn is very susceptible to germs. Hence, it is not wise to let anyone and everyone hold the baby. This discretion has to be made by the mother. The mother has to make sure that the hands of the visitors are sanitized and clean before they are allowed to hold the baby. Also, anyone having contagious diseases shouldn’t be let close to the infant. It is advisable that too many visitors should not crowd the hospital ward. The mother requires rest at this time and may not feel like having visitors to hold her baby. One should respect the mother’s wishes.

Bringing The Newborn Home

Once the newborn is brought home, friends and family will want to visit. It is natural as the birth of the baby has been equally exciting for them. Everyone might be enthusiastic about holding the child but the following needs to be kept in mind.

1. If the child is less than 2 months old, then they are still very vulnerable to diseases and germs. Every visitor who wants to hold the child must be properly sanitized.
2. There shouldn’t be any wheezing or coughing near the child. The child easily catches the germs and being vulnerable the infant might get very sick. For the same reasons there should be no smoking near the infant.
3. The frequency of breastfeeding should not be compromised for the sake of entertaining the visitors. The baby and the mother
4. should be given their share of privacy for breastfeeding.
5. If an infant is made to do rounds, from one visitor’s arms to the other, then the child may get fussy and start crying. The infant is still very delicate and should be kept as much as possible with the mother.
6. When the child is more than 2 months old, it is safer to let people hold them as by this time they are less susceptible to germs.

The bottom-line is that, it is completely the mother’s decision as to when the visitors should be let in. It is always better to politely ask the relatives to wait till the mother recovers from childbirth and the baby is strong enough before they can make their frequent visits. There is nothing to feel guilty about it as the interest of the baby comes first. At this stage, if not careful, the infant’s susceptibility to germs may prove to be extremely harmful. Hence, visitors may hold the baby after the baby is brought home provided they are careful and are properly sanitized.

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