[I posted this in March Due Date board and will post here, too]

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Hello soon to be Mommies,

I thought of sharing some tips/ advice with you moms living in the US. I have a 6 months old daughter.

It´ s a long message and hope some of you will find it useful/helpful.


1. This is very very important….SAVE all your receipts from your doctor’s office, example your co-pay receipt. If they don’t give you the receipt ASK THEM to give you one for your record. Believe me insurance companies/ doctor’s office will try to get money from you even if you paid . So make a habit of saving receipts for all your medical related expenses. (I had to spend hours over the phone saying I paid my co-payment…thank God, after searching I had my proof of the receipt). Because the last thing you want is waste your precious time on these phone calls rather than on your baby.


2. Make sure you register in advance at the hospital you are planning to deliver…this saves you time / headache when you actually go in the day of the delivery. You’ll need to provide information about insurance…they’ll make a copy of your insurance card.

3. Pick your pediatrician as soon as possible. Call the baby’s doctor’s office to make sure he/she does accept your insurance.

4. When you go to the hospital, let then know if you are vegetarian. If you are non-veg. they’ll give you pork and other stuff normally Indian non-veg. don’t eat. It is safe to say vegetarian then (just a suggestion).

5. Also be firm when you say that you are planning to breastfeed your baby and make it very clear to them.

6. If you are breastfeeding your baby…they have this excellent ointment (pure lanolin) for you to apply when it hurts after feeding your baby. Even if it doesn’t hurt when you are at the hospital, ask for it so you can take it home for later use.

7. IF you get stitches after a normal delivery (Episiotomy)… use DERMOPLAST (they’ll give you this spray) To get the stitches healed fast , when you are home in the restroom, place your one foot on the edge of the bath tub---as if you are taking a step and then spray on the stitches. This way all the stitches get sprayed by Dermoplast.


8. If you live in a cold place with heather on 24 hrs and it makes the air dry. One of the best investments you came make is by buying a HUMIDIFIER. This keeps the air in the baby’s room moist so the baby can breath easier. [You can get humidifier at any Wal-Mart , K-Mart , Target store, etc.]


9. Also if you have time before delivery, try to go to a store and buy those BIG pads. Regular period pads are not enough for bleeding post delivery. The bigger the pad the better!


10. After you delivered your baby, hospital wraps the baby in their white cotton blankets and these blankets are of very good quality. When I was discharged my daughter was still wrapped in the hospital given blankets and now I use them as towels for her. The blankets are very soft and absorbent when drying the baby after the bath. Take those blankets home with you.

I hope this post was of some help to you moms and I wish you all a safe and quick delivery.

Take care,
Aisha

[Feel free to share this post with other moms]
Madhuri replied. Hi Aisha I' m Madhuri staying in US CA, expecting a Baby Girl on April 2nd.The info you gave is very very helpful,thanks a lot for taking time to send that email.
Take Care,
More soon cheers Madhu. amy replied. Hi Aisah

it is usefull post.. I am expecting my son in this April 23 and has so much confusion - my parents may or may not come after delivery so - was just curuious is it ok to handle baby alone?