Sameera Reddy who recently became a mother for the second time has been quite active on social media, sharing her experiences and some serious life lessons about motherhood and childbirth. With World Breastfeeding Week going on, Sameera has been religiously sharing inspirational posts about breastfeeding on Instagram. For those who don't know WBW started on the August 1st and will last till the 7th of the same month and the day aims at highlighting the importance of breastfeeding for both for the mom and the baby. Sameera recently shared another post where she spoke about the importance of fathers participating effectively in breastfeeding. She dedicated the post to the new dads and loved ones and said, "New dads & loved ones listen up! Its World Breastfeeding week and this post are for you to know that you can be the biggest support and encouragement to a new mom!" World Breastfeeding Week 2019: Foods to Improve Milk Production in Breastfeeding Moms.

She further threw some light on the struggles faced by new moms by saying, " A mother may be depressed, lacking in confidence, worried, or stressed and it affects breastfeeding. These factors do not directly affect her milk production, but can interfere with the way in which she responds to her baby." She urged the new dads and loved one to "be there for her," and said that, "understanding the pressure on her physically and emotionally is the best thing you can do. Nothing like feeling loved at such an overwhelming time." Sameera made this post with a beautiful picture of her having her little baby girl in her arms. World Breastfeeding Week 2019: Where Does India Stand on WHO and UNICEF-Recommended Policies for New Moms?

Take a look at Sameera Reddy's post:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

New dads & loved ones listen up! Its World Breast feeding week and this post is for you to know that you can be the biggest support and encouragement to a new mom! A mother may be depressed, lacking in confidence, worried, or stressed and it affects breastfeeding. These factors do not directly affect her milk production, but can interfere with the way in which she responds to her baby. This can result in the baby taking less milk, and failing to stimulate milk production. So be there for her . ❤️ Understanding the pressure on her physically and emotionally is the best thing you can do. Nothing like feeling loved at such an overwhelming time. 🙌🏻 . I would also like to give a shoutout to moms who have struggled with low milk production . This could happen due to a pathological reason including endocrine problems or a host of other factors .A few mothers have a physiological low breast-milk production, for no apparent reason, and production does not increase when the breastfeeding technique and pattern improve. There is no reason to shame them or make them feel any pressure in not being able to BF. we need to support all mothers and show love and respect 🍼. . #worldbreastfeedingweek2019 . @WABA_global @who @unicefindia

A post shared by Sameera Reddy (@reddysameera) on

Dads can indeed make a lot of difference when it comes to mothers breastfeeding. First of all, breastfeeding isn't easy and the struggles that accompany are unimaginable. Fathers can do a lot to help mothers in their breastfeeding period. Even though fathers cannot physically breastfeed the baby they can help in many other ways.

Here are ways dads can help during breastfeeding:

  1. Hold your baby or carry them in a sling to give the skin to skin contact.

  2. Bath, massage or just caress your baby while the mother can rest for a while.

  3. Help her get rid of excess breast milk if the baby has not suckled enough.

  4. Calm the baby down when she is irritated.

  5. Helo your baby with a burp.

  6. Take your baby for nappy change breastfeeding is over.

  7. Help your partner when she is visibly exhausted, wake up with her when the baby cries midnight. It strengthens her psychologically.

  8. Bottle-feed your baby preserved breastmilk sometimes.

WHO and UNICEF have this year planned to join hands this year and have collectively laid down some policies to improve breastfeeding conditions. Some of the policies include paid maternity leave, paid paternity leave and parent-friendly workplace.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 03, 2019 04:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).