Knowing what to expect in the hours after having a baby can help you feel more prepared.
During pregnancy, the birth of a baby – particularly if it’s your first – is something often looked forward to with a mixture of excitement and apprehension.
Prior to your birth you may find yourself reading strangers’ birth stories online, asking friends and families to share their experiences, creating playlists of push-worthy tunes and writing your dream birth-plan in detail.
However, while you might have given a lot of thought to the birth of your child and what may or may not happen, and anticipation of lots of delicious baby snuggles afterwards is high, it’s common to spend far less time learning about how you might feel directly after your baby is born.
We’ve pulled together some of the most commonly shared physical and emotional experiences of the 24 hours after a baby is born below.
Remember that how you feel after birth will be determined by the birth that you and your baby experience. Not all births go to plan and, to ensure the safety of yourself and your baby, not all birth plans can be followed Even if a birth goes exactly as hoped, or you’ve given birth multiple times, you might still feel a mix of emotions about your birth experience.
There are any number of emotions you may feel after giving birth and some of the less positive ones can take new parents by surprise or leave them feeling guilty.
You may go into your birth expecting to feel elation, joy and relief once the baby is born, and that may be what you end up feeling. But it’s also common to feel overwhelmed, underwhelmed or even distressed, especially if the birth didn’t go as you expected, or if you or your baby has been unwell. It's important to know that these are also normal emotions to feel.
After you have a baby, changes in your hormones can affect your emotions. Usually this will kick in around 3-10 days after giving birth, and might make you feel tearful, irritable or very sensitive. Some people call this experience having the ‘baby blues’.
This is a normal experience after giving birth. Usually, these feelings will pass within a few days. But if they stick around after a couple of weeks, it’s important to tell your healthcare professional.
Depression and anxiety can occur at any time in your life and can often come to the surface with major events like pregnancy or having a baby. It is important to let someone (your midwife, GP, hospital where you gave birth, trusted friend or relative) know if you (or your partner) are:
- feeling low a lot of the time, anxious or tense
- feeling scared or panicky
- are avoiding tasks related to the care of the baby
- feeling guilty
- feeling that things are hopeless
- not enjoying things you normally enjoy
- crying all the time
- irritable
- having negative flashbacks of the birth
- finding it hard to sleep, concentrate or make decisions
- wanting to harm yourself or your baby.
Don’t put off asking for help. There are dedicated services to help you feel better and enjoy your baby.
Completely in love, or not
You may instantly fall head-over-heels in love with the tiny bundle who’s likely been placed on your chest to bond and breastfeed. Or you may feel strangely guilty that you don’t feel that strong bond you’ve heard other parents speak of straight away.
Both sets of emotions are normal, and you shouldn’t feel any guilt if you don’t feel flooded with love at first. If you don’t start feeling this connection within the first few weeks, speak to your health professional.
It’s normal to feel a mixture of emotions in the hours following birth; know the signs of when you might need extra support.
Exhaustion, hunger and thirst after birth
You’re likely to feel pretty physically drained after giving birth, whether you’ve had a vaginal birth or caesarean section. Many new mothers report feeling so exhausted they struggle to keep their eyes open after giving birth to their babies. You may also find yourself feeling exceptionally hungry, thirsty or both. Resting, eating, and drinking fluids can help you regain your energy.
Good postnatal support can make all the difference to your physical and emotional wellbeing. It is important to have others care for you so you can care for yourself and your baby. Seek the help of others who can support you as you recover from giving birth, as you feel you need it.
If you have persistent fatigue you should speak to your maternity or healthcare provider, as your diet may need adjustment, or you may have bled more heavily than expected following birth. If you feel like you don’t need any sleep, or if you feel that you are exhausted but unable to sleep when you have the opportunity, it is important to mention this to your health care provider.
Welcoming visitors or saying no
While you are recovering and getting to know your baby, it is important that you do not feel like you have to see visitors. You may find having select visitors fills you up or that having visitors depletes you. Ensure you are meeting your own needs first, so you can do the important job of looking after your baby.
It can help to ask your partner or a trusted friend or family member to handle communications about visitors and tell people when they can and can’t come to see you and the baby.
Reach out if you need support; meeting your own needs helps you to care for your baby.
Vaginal bleeding
If you’ve given birth vaginally, expect some moderate to heavy bleeding, called lochia, for the first few days after the birth (like a heavy monthly period). Bleeding will continually become lighter over the next 10 days and some vaginal discharge can be expected for four to six weeks.
It is important to keep the area clean and carefully dry the perineum – the area between your vulva and your anus – after bathing. Change any sanitary pads regularly and always wash your hands before and after contact.
You will also experience bleeding and discharge after having a caesarean section, though bleeding can be less.
Regardless of how you have given birth, tell your midwife or GP if:
- you start to lose clots
- you have to change your pads more than hourly
- your blood loss becomes bright red and heavy again
- the blood loss has an offensive smell
- you are worried for any reason.
Remember to bring maternity pads to hospital with you.
After-birth pains
Unfortunately, the pain doesn’t end once the baby and placenta have been born. Regardless of how you give birth, you can experience after-birth pains, caused your uterus contracting to return to its normal size.
Generally, these feel like mild or moderate period cramps. They’re likely to be stronger for second, third (and further) pregnancies. They’re often more intense when you’re breastfeeding – in fact, many people report the pains intensifying as soon as their baby latches on and starts feeding.
A painful perineum
It probably comes as no surprise that the process of birthing a baby can take a toll on your body. If you’ve given birth vaginally, you can expect your perineum – the area between your vulva and your anus – to be sore for days afterwards. You may find it difficult to sit or lie in certain positions. If you had stitches to your perineum post-birth, your midwife or doctor will likely want to monitor the area and may ask you to check it’s healing with a mirror, too.
You might find yourself worried about doing your first poo post-baby, thanks to how tender the area feels. Keeping your poo as soft as possible is important to minimising any pain. Prune or pear juice can help, as can over-the-counter medications.
Pain after a caesarean section
If you have a caesarean section, you will likely experience some discomfort and pain in the days after giving birth. Your health professional should work with you to manage your pain and may prescribe different pain medications. If your pain gets worse, make sure you let your midwife know.
For the first 24 hours, you’ll most likely stay in bed with a catheter and rest, focusing on bonding and breastfeeding with your new baby. To lower the chance of experiencing more pain, ask for help from a partner, visitors or midwife to bring your baby to you for feeds and to change and care for the baby.
Your midwife will let you know when it is time to start to go for short walks to the bathroom or shower and a physiotherapist can help you learn how to get in and out of bed safely.
Sore breasts
Generally, your baby will be placed on your chest directly after birth to breastfeed. If it’s your first time breastfeeding, you may need to try a couple of positions to make sure you are comfortable.
Your midwife or a lactation consultant can give you advice about how to hold the baby and assess their latch – ensuring your baby is latched correctly can make a big difference when it comes to reducing pain or tenderness.
Even if you and your baby both find breastfeeding easy to learn or you’ve breastfed before, you may still experience some tenderness in your nipples when you start breastfeeding. There are various topical creams and gels that can help – talk to your midwife or lactation consultant about what they recommend.
Going home
In most cases you can expect to take your baby home between 6 and 48 hours following an uncomplicated vaginal birth, or 48 and 72 hours following a caesarean section.
Once you get home, remember that there is support available to you if you’re concerned about your health, your baby or anyone in your family. If you are in a continuity of midwifery care model, call your midwife or the midwife at the hospital where you gave birth. If you want further medical advice, contact 13 Health (13 43 25 84) or your GP.