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Postpartum and baby blues – my story

By Anthi 26/06/2019

Last week, a colleague’s daughter gave birth to her first child and she told us that she was crying all the time, even when someone asked her how she was doing, she was starting crying. I immediately told her that I was crying all the time too! And it is normal and it is ok!

But why don’t we already know that BEFORE giving birth, so that we can be mentally prepared and potentially anticipate it? I certainly was oblivious to the existence of the so called “baby blues” and how difficult the first days/weeks of the postpartum period can be for a new mom, so now whenever someone asks me how it was for me, I am being honest and tells them that for about a week I was crying all the time.

First of all I had to learn how to care for a newborn when up to that moment, I had never even held a baby before. So I had to learn everything, from changing his diaper to changing his clothes, which I had to change too almost at every changing of the diaper because I wasn’t putting the diaper correctly so his clothes were getting wet and pooped every single time. It was taking me ages to do the whole changing thing, because I was afraid not to hurt him while putting his clothes on.

And not only that, I was also recovering from an emergency c section. Imagine recovering from a major surgery, because it really is a major surgery despite the fact that it is done so often nowadays, and also having to care for a newborn.

I was thinking that I was not a good mom because it was taking me “so long” to learn, which now that I look back, I do not know why I was so harsh on myself. I gave birth on Saturday morning and by Tuesday midday I was home with a newborn. Why was I not giving myself more time before wanting to do everything perfectly on my own I do not know, I blame it on the hormones and on my stubbornness.

On Wednesday, I decided that I needed help so I took my mom up on her offer to stay with us for some days even though her offer seemed ridiculous to me prior giving birth, because she lives down the road – so why would I need her to stay with us during the night too? My husband was amazingly supportive and he was doing everything from day 1 with our son, but I also needed my mom because she was the expert with babies and I needed her, especially during the night.

So for a week she was staying the night too, she and my husband were taking care of the diaper changing during the night so that they would give me time to get out of the bed (yes it was taking me THAT long to stand up when laying down with my incision), and they were placing my son on the right position so that I could breastfeed,which again did not come easy for me but I wanted to do it. They were encouraging me and supporting me and taking care of me so that I could heal and take care of my baby.

During the day, my grandmother was coming over and she was doing the dishes and my mom was ironing the baby clothes and my dad was giving me a pep talk about how I got this, I just needed to give myself time. I had an enormous support system and 10 days postpartum, I had finally started seeing that we were going to be ok and my uncontrollable crying and weeping had completed stopped.

My incision was feeling much better, I could move much better, I learned how to properly breastfeed and we were exclusively breastfeeding, I got used to waking up for the night feeds without a problem, I even learned how to put the diaper correctly. And I came to the conclusion that there is no such a thing as a perfect mom, but I can try as hard as I can to be an awesome mom.

I hope I did not scare the shit out of you if you are reading this and you are an expectant mom, because you can be awesome from day 1 and rock motherhood. But if you struggle like I did, know that it is ok, it is normal, it passes. Ask help and accept help. It is ok to accept help, you do not have to do everything by yourself just because you are the mom. Give yourself time to learn how to mother, because the day a child is born, the mother is born too.

Yours truly

Anthi Savva Radis

You can read more about Anthi here

MiC’s #WednesdayWin – Medela Purelan Nipple Cream and Contact Shields

By MiC Carine 04/06/2019

New week, new #WednesdayWin!

After the runaway success of our previous competitions in the Marathon Trading series of brilliantly useful and totally recommendable products, here comes #WednesdayWin number 5: your chance to 1 of 3 sets of the Medela Purelan Nipple Cream and Contact Shields!

Clearly these two nipple saviours are destined to be a new mum’s best (breast) friend, as our delighted MiC Testing Team reviewer testimonial shows: breastfeeding can go on, regardless of…everything!

 

The Purelan cream has one single ingredient: medical grade lanolin, whereas the Contact Nipple Shield is made of thin silicone. Both are effective tools for mums to better handle babies with latch-on problems, or for flat, inverted and sore nipples.

To find out more about how you can improve your breastfeeding experience, have a look at our previous post on this topic.

Medela to the rescue!

Entering the draw is easy and possible as of today, but be quick, this competition is only open until Monday, June 10!

How can I win this amazing prize?

To enter the competition, simply email: carine@mumsincyprus.com with 

“Medela Purelan Nipple Cream and Contact Shields” in the subject line.

Please also provide us with:

  1. Your full name
  2. The town you reside in (in Cyprus)
  3. Your mobile telephone number

THE COMPETITION WILL CLOSE ON MONDAY, JUNE 10 2019 AT 17:00!

The winner will be drawn and announced on or after Wednesday June 12th.

The Medela products will then be sent via courier to the lucky winner!

As with our previous Medela products, the amazingly efficient electrical Swing breast pump and the high quality, indispensable breast milk storage bags, Purelan and Contact can be found at pharmacies across Cyprus, New Baby City, Mamatoto and Mothercare, as well as online with WaysExpress.com.

Good luck 🙂

 

MiC Product of the Week: Medela Purelan Nipple Cream and Contact Shields

By MiC Carine 30/05/2019

Of all the products from our Marathon Trading series of family-friendly items, this week’s are by far the most intimate ones. It can hardly get more personal than nipples, can it?

Yet, just after we give birth, our breasts – along with the nipples – get touched and squeezed by doctors, nurses, midwives and lactation consultants, making them everything but private 🙂

The breastfeeding period can be hard at first, and new mums often need all the help they can get for the newborn baby to latch properly, feed sufficiently, and for the milk production to be sustainable.

This is where this week’s two products come in: Medela’s Purelan 100 Lanolin Nipple Cream and the Medela Contact Nipple Shields.

Purelan offers natural soothing care and protection for dry, cracked and sore nipples, so that breastfeeding can go on regardless.

In line with our other ‘free from’ recommendations, the cream is made from natural medical-grade lanolin. Nothing else. No parabens, additives, preservatives nor fragrance, this is a hypoallergenic product that replenishes natural levels of lipids in the skin. It can even be used on chapped lips, dry noses and dry skin in babies – that’s how pure it is…. (Pure + Lanolin = Purelan!)

On to the Contact Nipple Shields then. Not sure what that is? As stated on Medela’s website, a nipple shield ‘is a thin, flexible piece of silicone that you place over your nipple before breastfeeding to protect it. There are holes in the tip so your milk can pass through to your baby. Some mums worry that having a ‘barrier’ between themselves and their baby may interfere with the intimacy of breastfeeding, which is why Medela Contact nipple shields have an open section to ensure you still enjoy plenty of that special skin contact.’

That’s pretty great! Our MiC Testing Team clearly thought so, too.

Najat is a mother of 4 breastfed babies and found these two products essential for her personal success in breastfeeding. ‘The gel is a must to soothe and help me get ready for each feed. The shield is also vital to help me breastfeed successfully’ Najat said in her review. She added ‘The ease of use and packaging with the box for the shields is brilliant. The Medela brand is well known and the quality has not disappointed. I found the packaging slick and easy to open. The product itself was easy to use.’ When we asked whether she would recommend it, Najat replied she only ever recommends things she has tested and used and that are helpful, ‘so I would definitely recommend these’.

Another delighted tester of the silicone nipple shields is Desi, who relies on Medela’s experience in breastfeeding. She trusts the brand and praises the quality and reliability, adding ‘especially the nipple shields, which I happened to use since before taking part in this test, allow me to breastfeed my baby.’

Due to the nature of these intimate products, our testers obviously did not send us lovely photos of their nipples, so it is our pleasure to provide a couple product shots instead.

As with our previous Medela products, the amazingly efficient electrical Swing breast pump and the high quality, indispensable breast milk storage bags,Purelan and Contact can be found at pharmacies across Cyprus, New Baby City, Mamatoto and Mothercare, as well as online with WaysExpress.com.

And yes, thanks to the endless generosity of the team at Marathon Trading, these two breastfeeding savers will be the up for grabs in our next MiC Members-Only Exclusive #WednesdayWin competition!

Aren’t you glad you’ve found us? 😊

MiC’s #WednesdayWin – Medela Swing Pump and Breast Milk Storage Bags

By MiC Carine 13/05/2019

Welcome to part 2 of our #WednesdayWin!

We’re particularly excited to announce the second installment of our #WednesdayWin series courtesy of Marathon Trading: Medela’s much loved Swing Pump and a pack of 50 breast milk storage bags to go with it! That’s a total retail value of over €200!!

Why is it much loved? Because it features a clever two-phase pumping rhythm, designed to mimic that of a baby sucking at the breast and improve efficiency of the whole process. Really quite unique!

But you don’t have to take our word for it…thanks to our MiC Testing Team, you can read for yourself what our three tester mums thought of our Product of the Week.

Spolier alert: they absolutely loved ❤️ it!!!

Enter the draw to win a Medela Swing Pump and a pack of 50 breast milk storage bags as of today, but be quick, this competition is only open until Monday, May 20!

How can I win this amazing prize?

To enter the competition, simply email: carine@mumsincyprus.com with

“Medela Swing Pump and Breast Milk Storage Bags” in the subject line.

Please also provide us with:

  1. Your full name
  2. The town you reside in (in Cyprus)
  3. Your mobile telephone number

THE COMPETITION WILL CLOSE ON MONDAY, MAY 20 2019 AT 17:00!

The winner will be drawn and announced on or after Wednesday May 22th.

The Medela Swing Pump and Breast Milk Storage Bags will then be sent via courier to the lucky winner!

Just in case you don’t want to wait until the 22th and prefer to go and buy this fantastic breast milk pump and those high quality milk storage bags for your pumping sessions right away, you can get them at Mamatoto, Mothercare, WaysExpress.com and in all pharmacies across Cyprus.

Good luck 🙂

 

MiC Product of the Week: Medela Swing Pump and Breast Milk Storage Bags

By MiC Carine 09/05/2019
Medela Product of the Week

Congratulations on the birth of your baby! If your daughter or son was born some days ago on Monday, they will forever share their birthday with Meghan and Harry’s firstborn… and with George Clooney, too! Ok, that’s the trivia out of the way, since we cannot escape the headlines this week 🙂

Jokes aside, breastfeeding is probably a big issue in your house right now. Hopefully you are managing well and enjoying this magical, bonding time with your new-born. Maybe you have even been wondering whether you will need a breast pump at some point? If you are intending to exclusively breastfeed your child, a pump and good quality storage bags for your breastmilk can be extremely useful tools.

Apart from the benefit it brings by stimulating milk production and keeping up supply, a pump allows other family members to bond with the baby over feeding sessions, as they can give your breastmilk via a bottle. Super useful, especially if you need to return to work after your maternity leave.

Pumping can also address the most common breastfeeding issues new mums can face, such as an engorged breast or the baby not latching on properly. Either way, many mothers view a good pump as an essential accessory.

As with our most recent Product of the week the NUBY Weaning Net Nibbler, we have asked our MiC Testing Team to review the Medela Swing Pump and Breast Milk Storage Bags for you.

 

Georgia told us that as far as the Swing was concerned, ‘It’s a 10! I wouldn’t change it for anything!’ With its little motor, the pump can either be used with a plug or the batteries, making it fit perfectly into your bag. The technology used actually imitates baby’s sucking behaviour and rhythm, so it feels natural to use and not awkward. Georgia added ‘also, something extra, as far as the customer service of Marathon Training, I must say they are always very kind and polite and willing to help as much as they can.’

In addition to the bottle that comes with the pump, Georgia also used the Medela Breast Milk Storage Bags. She particularly liked the ‘high quality material and that you can write important details onto the bag’ and ‘the innovative idea of creating a bag that you can store milk in the fridge or freezer with and be able to warm it up later on.’

 

Another happy MiC Tester is Erasmia. She was delighted about ‘the big box with 50bags!!!’ She found them to be ‘easy seal bags. They open easyly and pouring was easy as well. It’s a must when breastfeeding your child…breast milk is the best for our babies, so storing it is a must too, so that we are able to use it when someone else from the family needs to feed the baby’

Desi’s experience was also very positive. She strongly recommends the milk storage bags: ‘As a first-time mum I didn’t know a lot about breastfeeding. The long history of Medela actually made me trust their products. I like that the bag can stand by itself (very useful because you need to work with one hand). The label is easy to write on with any pen, you don’t need markers. The content amount indicators are more specific than other brands I have used. I like that you can write the quantity on the label. Very useful! The way that the bag is closed, which stops it from leaking, makes it east to store in a horizontal position.’ Desi added ‘I found it very useful to have stored milk for the period when I was sick, as well as for midnight feeding. And I feel better to store it in bags than bottles.’

So there you have it, happy mamas all around!

Thanks to the wonderful team at Marathon Trading, we will be offering you a chance to win these amazing breastfeeding savers next week in our next #WednesdayWin.

Yes, there will be a Medela Swing Pump worth €199 up for grabs, as well as three packs of Medela Breast Milk Storage Bags worth €19.90 each!! Really.

Stay tuned.

The Cyprus Association of Breastfeeding

By MiC Carine 13/01/2019

Supporting mothers who are breastfeeding

The Cyprus Association of Breastfeeding “Gift of life” is the evolution of “Supportive Breastfeeding Nicosia Group ‘ and was founded in 2009 by pediatricians, parents and other breastfeeding advocates in order to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

More…

Cyprus Breastfeeding Association

By MiC Carine 24/11/2017

The Cyprus Association of Breastfeeding “Gift of life” is the evolution of “Supportive Breastfeeding Nicosia Group ‘.
The Association was founded in 2009 by pediatricians, parents and other breastfeeding advocates in order to protect, promote and support breastfeeding. It carries out monthly meetings to inform pregnant women and new parents about breastfeeding and strengthen their support network to be able to offer their children the “Gift of Life” called breastfeeding. The Association also maintains a hotline to support mothers who are breastfeeding or wish to breastfeed.

Website
Telephone: 80006262
Email: nicosiabreastfeeding@cytanet.com.cy

Ο Παγκύπριος Σύνδεσμος Μητρικού Θηλασμού «Δώρο ζωής» είναι η μετεξέλιξη της “Υποστηρικτικής Ομάδας Θηλασμού Λευκωσίας’. Ο Σύνδεσμος ιδρύθηκε το 2009 από παιδίατρους, γονείς και άλλους υπέρμαχους του θηλασμού με στόχο τη προστασία, προώθηση και στήριξη του μητρικού θηλασμού. Ο Σύνδεσμος πραγματοποιεί μηνιαίες συναντήσεις με σκοπό την ενημέρωση των εγκύων και νέων γονιών για το μητρικό θηλασμό και ενδυναμώνει το δίκτυο στήριξης τους για να μπορέσουν να προσφέρουν στα παιδιά τους το «Δώρο Ζωής» που λέγεται μητρικός θηλασμός. Ο Σύνδεσμος διατηρεί επίσης γραμμή επικοινωνίας για τη στήριξη των μητέρων που θηλάζουν ή θέλουν να θηλάσουν.

Iστοσελίδα
Τηλέφωνο Επικοινωνίας: 80006262
Email: nicosiabreastfeeding@cytanet.com.cy

MiC Exclusive: Meet the Community Supporters of our 5th Mums2Be & Baby Day!

By MiC Team 18/10/2017

We are so happy to have with us again this year, three great local organisations that are doing groundbreaking work locally with pregnant mums, new parents and babies&toddlers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cyprus Breastfeeding Association (Παγκύπριος Σύνδεσμος Μητρικού Θηλασμού «Δώρο ζωής») is a pan-Cyprian Association, originally founded in 2009 by paediatricians, parents and other breastfeeding advocates in order to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.The Association carries out monthly meetings to inform pregnant women and new parents about breastfeeding and strengthen their support network to be able to offer their children the “Gift of Life” called breastfeeding.

 

 

They also host the popular annual simultaneous breastfeeding events across the island in honour of World Breastfeeding Week and offer an invaluable hotline to support mothers who are breastfeeding or wish to breastfeed: 80006262.

You can find their multilingual website online here and their Facebook page here.

 

 

 

 

Birth Forward Cyprus believes that everyone has the right to be fully prepared and educated about the creation of a family. Birth Forward empowers mothers, fathers and professionals, supporting them to make autonomous decisions with a conscious use of technology while respecting the nature of preconception, pregnancy, birth and beyond. They provide education, support and networking for parents to be and professionals, while also raising awareness, contributing to research and lobbying for change to follow EU recommendations and Rights. They are a Registered NGO (Nr. 4386) and you can find them online here and on Facebook here.

 

 

 

 

Baby Academy is a fantastic venue in Limassol, located very close to Ygia Polyclinic, that offers scientifically proven, direct, comprehensive information and support for new Mums and Dad concerning pregnancy issues, labour, childbirth, breastfeeding, neonatal care, nutrition, psychological support and first aid.

 

 

Members from all three teams will be on hand on Sunday 29th October all day from 10:00 until 18:00 to answer your questions and provide you with information and support. Make sure you stop by their tables to make take advantage of having all three organisations in the same room at the same time!

 

Click here to go to our Event page on MiC and on Facebook.

To read more about our Partners, MAM Cyprus and ISIS Clinic Nicosia, click here.

Click here to meet the women’s health and baby development teams that will be there on the day who work locally in the areas of: Physiotherapy & Clinical Pilates; Birth, Baby & Family Photography; Baby Wearing & Baby Massage; Pilates & Yoga and Nutrition!

Click here to see the fantastic range of maternity/new mum/baby & toddler products that will be on sale at our 5th Mums 2 Be and Baby Day, from our small local businesses and Work at Home Mums (WaHMs).

MiC Exclusive: Meet the Partners of our 5th Mums2Be & Baby Day!

By MiC Team

MiC’s 5th Mums2Be & Baby Day in association with

MAM Cyprus

We’re extremely pleased to be hosting the 5th in the series of our popular Mums2Be & Baby Days, this year in association with MAM Baby! Our regular readers will already be familiar with MAM Baby, the much loved international brand available locally.

The reason we are so proud to be working with such a great company is because MAM knows that being a parent is the most important job in the world – because the babies of today are the parents of tomorrow. That’s why they use all of their resources to provide babies with a bright future. Through a responsible work ethic, they take care that their products are not only of the highest quality, safe and practical to use, but they also work carefully at all stages of production to protect and preserve the environment for generations to come. They have been doing this since 1976 to make the lives of babies and their parents easier and happier.

Members of the MAM team will be there on Sunday 29th October to answer your questions about their product range and to show you a few carefully selected examples from their fantastic anti-colic collection of bottles and soothers. You can find out more about MAM Cyprus ahead of our event on their Facebook page.

 

 We are also extremely happy to have ISIS Clinic Nicosia with us for the second year running as our kind sponsor.

Isis Clinic is one of  the most modern and state-of-art gynaecology, maternity and fertility centres on the island. It is a pioneer and strong supporter of vaginal delivery and with the highest rates of success in fertility treatment, they lead the way in health care in Gynaecology and Maternity in Cyprus. Furthermore, they provide a large variety of prenatal and postnatal services from dedicated and experienced staff, such as Pregnancy Fitness classes, Antenatal Classes for couples, Massage in Pregnancy and after birth, Baby Massage courses and free classes to inform new mums about breastfeeding and pregnancy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can find them on Facebook here, their Facebook group dedicated to informing you about the range of classes available at ISIS Clinic can be found here. and their popular Pregnancy, Birth and Post-partum forum for mums in Cyprus can be found here.

Members from ISIS Clinic team will be on hand all day on the 29th October from 10:00 until 18:00 to answer your questions about the clinic and to tell you more about the classes that they provide.

 

Click here to go to our Event page on MiC and on Facebook.

Click here to meet our Supporters, the Cyprus Breastfeeding Association, Birth Forward Cyprus and Baby Academy Limassol.

Click here to meet the women’s health and baby development teams that will be there on the day who work locally in the areas of: Physiotherapy & Clinical Pilates; Birth, Baby & Family Photography; Baby Wearing & Baby Massage; Pilates & Yoga and Nutrition!

Click here to see the fantastic range of maternity/new mum/baby & toddler products that will be on sale at our 5th Mums 2 Be and Baby Day, from our small local businesses and Work at Home Mums (WaHMs).

Breastfeeding

By MiC Carine 30/09/2017

With the creation of the Cyprus Breastfeeding Association in 2009 breastfeeding has only recently been actively encouraged in the public hospitals. Nurses often routinely still give the baby a bottle, especially at night time in the first days when the baby is in their care. If you wish to have your child with you at all times and ensure it is fed only breast milk, do not hesitate to communicate your request clearly. You can then have your baby next to you in a separate baby bed throughout your stay at the hospital. The Association holds regular Breastfeeding Support Group Meetings in all major towns across Cyprus. Check our events section for details or refer to the Cyprus Breastfeeding Association’s website.

The stuff I really use with my new baby and other posts

By eleni 20/09/2016

Hi mamas.

It’s been ages since I last posted on MiC but there’s been plenty going on on the blog like this post I wrote about going dairy-free and my absolute favourite new treat that also happens to be dairy-free.

My last post may be of interest to any new mamas or mamas-to-be out there. As a second-time mummy I feel I have some experience in the area of gadgets and products that you really need so I’ve listed my ten favourite necessities that I used with Georgie and James. 

Let me know if you have anything to add. We all know having a new baby is a trying time so any help that will make our life easier is definitely welcome, right?

 

Take care mamas

eleni x

The Parent Hood

By eleni 04/07/2014

Hello!

I’m back with another bunch of links for weekend reading and seething at some points. Apparently, posting a picture of yourself breastfeeding is inappropriate. Personally, I’m too body-conscious to ever do that but inappropriate and offensive? Really? You can read about it on the blog along with an article about how babies sleep outside in Denmark.

I hope you have a relaxing and most importantly, a cool weekend.
 

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