I've been a caretaker of an elderly woman with dementia for over two years. I've seen the effects of this mental affliction, and how devastating it can be to loved ones. This is why I am a firm believer in seeking a professional diagnosis, so the patient may receive necessary care and treatment. Once diagnosed at the onset of symptoms, a plan can be devised. Through social interaction and daily care, my charge has achieved a higher quality of life. If your loved one has been diagnosed with dementia or Alzheimer's disease, you can make a difference. Love will find a way.
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Dementia and Your Loved One
Parenting Done Right: What You Should Learn When Expecting Your First Child
Vickie Armstrong
When you are expecting your first child, you feel a constant mixture of excitement and fear. After all, you are no longer just responsible for yourself, but for the child you are about to bring into the world. As such, you are trying to do all that you can to prepare yourself for your child's birth. In order to be the best parent you can possibly be, there are certain skills that you should learn before your child is born. All you need to do is learn what those skills are and get to learning everything you need to know before your new child arrives.
Skill One: CPR
The first skill you need to learn to be a safe and effective parent is CPR. CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) is a skill that can be used to revive a person who has stopped breathing and/or whose heart has stopped beating.
This skill is vital for a parent in the event that their baby or older child suddenly stops breathing for any reason. To learn this skill, you need to sign up for a certification course. These classes take an entire day, or eight hours, and will teach you all of the theoretical and practical skills you need to be able to resuscitate a baby, child, and adult (each skill is different). Groups like Respond Systems Alaska offer these courses.
Skill Two: Basic First Aid
First aid, though it can include CPR as a skill, is a completely different type of coursework. Learning first aid will help you to treat any wounds your baby or child may sustain. You will also learn how to help your child if he or she chokes on a piece of food or an object.
Basic first aid courses can be extensive taking several hours, or can be brief (as short as four hours). You can also pair your first aid training with CPR training and get both certifications at once if the combined course is offered in your area.
Skill Three: Proper Diaper-Changing and Holding Techniques
One of the biggest fears new parents have is that they will do something wrong in those first few days or weeks with their newborn baby. The errors that inexperienced parents may make are most often in changing diapers and in holding the baby.
When holding your newborn, you have to keep in mind that their muscle strength is largely undeveloped. You must support their head at all times as their neck muscles cannot support the weight of their head yet.
To properly change a diaper, you need to know both how to clean your baby and how to fit a diaper on them. If the diaper is too tight, it may cut off circulation and cause discomfort, while a diaper that is too loose will chafe or fall off completely. To learn these skills, you can take a parenting or infant care course.
When you are about to become a new parent, you may feel nervous and worried along with excited. However, if you learn a few new skills to prepare for the arrival of your new baby, you will be well on your way to being the best parent possible.
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