Joanne has just completed the HUG Teacher Certification and was eager to share one of her HUG experiences.
"I recently attended a wonderful home birth in a small community south of the Triangle. The new mother and father were well supported by extended family, but had not been able to attend any classes in preparation for their new responsibilities as parents.
When I returned for the 24 hour visit I had the opportunity to answer many questions regarding what is normal for a newborn. Towards the end of the visit we all sat down and watched the H.U.G.Your Baby DVD with plenty of pauses for more questions and observation of the beautiful little boy in our midst.
I returned for one last visit, a little over 2 weeks later. It is natural for parents to build confidence in their parenting skills over time and that was certainly the case here. This mom repeatedly mentioned how much the information she had received during our last visit had allowed her to confidently care for her baby. In particular she enjoyed the fact that she could watch for the active sleep cycles that would occur near the time for a feeding so that she could gently rouse him and bring him easily to the breast. She spoke so proudly as she said she was able to attend to his needs and that he rarely cried to signal hunger. In fact at that point he rarely cried at all. I reminded her of the crying chart…there would likely be some tears ahead. But with her ability to pay attention to his S.O.S.signals and sleep cycles she felt confident that she could minimize his distress and enjoy him to the maximum!"
Congratulations, Joanne. Thanks for Giving A HUG to Your Community.