Officially a Mumtist!

On the 30th of April 2024 - exactly 3 months ago- I became proud mum to the sweetest baby girl Sophie ( I attach her photo, grinning with her daddy).

One month into motherhood, my wonderful husband (and best Daddy) coined the term 'Mumtist' - when I decided to cut my maternity leave short to start work. One of my patients even accused me for leaving my baby to fend for herself..

For those who know me - I can not be a SAHM. I would not say I am a workaholic, but balance keeps me emotionally healthy. My awesome staff organised a warm welcome. I was happy to be back!

3.5-4 days of work a week is a sweet balance, at least for the short term. It takes a village to raise a child. She has been spending a lot of time with her amazing grandparents.

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Night Shifts

I often get asked how Sophie copes at night. Thankfully, my night shifts in Maxillofacial Surgery have honed me into a night owl. I initially thought sleepless nights will affect my daytime duties delivering better oral health to my patients. Turns out I underestimated my capabilities. At work, my priority has always been and will always be the patient on the chair.

Pacifiers

As an undergrad, we were whipped into thinking of long term treatment plans. Pacifiers have earned a notorious reputation for causing a very typical anomaly in jaw development. Due to constant (over) sucking action, the top jaw -known as the maxilla- becomes narrower. This can also lead to a gap between the front upper and lower teeth called an Anterior Open Bite (AOB). See picture below as reference.

Sophie could not latch and was formula fed from the beginning. I faced a major conundrum when my two month old baby could not get herself to sleep in the middle of the night. As a tired and desperate parent- I used a pacifier for the first time. Sophie slept within a minute. It worked wonders. My husband and I were finally able to have some well needed sleep.

Whilst the guilt crept in, I decided to get some scientific data. Pacifiers, it turns out, are recommended by paediatricians. It prevents SIDS, provides deep relaxation and helps control pain in infants. However, babies develop an emotional attachment to their pacifiers after 9 months of age & some by 6 months of age. Luckily, Sophie has now latched and breastfeeding puts her to sleep pretty easily. We are needing the pacifier much less frequently.

Whilst my view around pacifiers has changed with personal experience, I do recommend early weaning to prevent the above problems in jaw development.

Update : https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_Ai6xuyLxF/?igsh=MWc1eGFibzFjd2VzMg==

See above video for more info on how to use pacifiers and which one to choose!

New routine

Wake-baby-gym-work-baby on repeat