What happens after the birth?

Bringing your baby home for the first time can be emotional, exciting and a bit intimidating. Knowing what to expect and who will be there to support you can help.  

On this page

Your care after the birth (postnatal care)

If you gave birth in hospital

Care for you and your baby at home

Your child's health record

Meeting your health visitor

During your postnatal checks

Seeing your GP

Your care after the birth (postnatal care)

In the first few days after giving birth, your midwife, doctor, and maternity team will make sure you are recovering well and that your baby is healthy. They will feel your tummy to check your womb is going back to its normal size. They’ll also take your temperature, pulse and blood pressure.  

Learn more about your baby’s check-ups after they are born. These include a thorough check in the first 72 hours.

Your healthcare team will also help you with things like feeding your baby.

After you’ve given birth, your midwife will talk to you about your postnatal care and what this means for you and your baby. They should ask you about your needs or preferences and let you know what support is available. This will include contact details for the health professionals who can help you if you have any worries about yourself or your baby. 

If you gave birth in hospital

Some women and birthing people can leave after 6 hours and others may stay a few days before going home with their baby. You may have to stay longer if you had a caesarean section or if you had a complicated labour, for example if your baby was premature (born before 37 weeks).

Care for you and your baby at home

A midwife should visit you in the first 36 hours after you've been discharged from the hospital or after a home birth. This is to check on you and your baby. Call the hospital if this doesn’t happen.

There is no set number of visits you will have from your midwife. They will visit you or see you in a postnatal clinic for as long as they think you need their support. However, you will usually have a minimum of 3 visits in the first couple of weeks. 

Your child's health record

Shortly before or after your baby is born, you'll be given a personal child health record (PCHR). This is known as the ‘red book’ because it usually has a red cover. It is used to record your child's weight and height, vaccinations and other important information. In some areas, the red book will be digital.

You can also add information into the red book yourself. For example, you should make a note of any illnesses or accidents your baby has, as well as any medicines they take.

You may find it helpful to keep this book with any other information you’ve been given about your pregnancy and labour. This can make it easier to find the right information during any postnatal appointments.  

It’s a good idea to take your baby’s red book with you every time you visit the GP, midwife, or baby clinic. You will be offered regular checks to support you and your baby and make sure your baby’s development is on track.

Meeting your health visitor

You’ll start seeing your health visitor around 10 to 14 days after your baby is born. A health visitor is a qualified nurse or midwife who has had extra training. Health visitors can give you help and advice on anything from feeding and routines to your own health and wellbeing.  

Your health visitor can visit you at home or you can see them at your local child health clinic, GP surgery or health centre. You’ll be given their contact details in case you need any support outside appointment times.

During your postnatal checks

You should be asked about you and your baby’s general health and your mental health at every postnatal check. You can ask questions or talk about any concerns at any point. Postnatal checks are also a good opportunity to reflect on your birth experience with your midwife or health visitor.

During your postnatal checks, your health visitor or midwife will likely chat to you about lots of other things, for example:

• your baby’s health and when to seek help from your maternity unit, health visitor or GP
• how your baby is sleeping, including safe sleeping advice, and how you are coping
• how your relationship with your baby is developing  
• what support you have from family and friends
• your physical recovery from birth, including vaginal discharge or bleeding and how your wound is healing if you had a tear or cut during birth
• the importance of pelvic floor exercises and how to do them
• your nutrition  
• contraception and your sexual health
• how you’re getting on with feeding, whether you’re breast, combined or formula feeding, and whether you have any breast or nipple discomfort
• any concerns you might have around domestic abuse or your safety. 

Your midwife or health visitor will make sure you know the  signs and symptoms which might mean you need more medical help. These include pain, redness and/or swelling in the calf muscle of one leg, which could be signs of deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Learn more about your body after the birth.

They should also share details about local child health clinics, parent and baby groups and family information services.  These can be good places to go for additional support.

“It helps to have someone to speak to who understands that it’s normal to feel overwhelmed and need a little bit of time to adjust.”
Stephanie

Don’t be afraid to ask any questions during this time, even if you think you’ve asked it before. You’ll be given a lot of information after giving birth, and the first few days and weeks can be overwhelming. It’s very easy to forget things. Your midwife and health visitor will understand this and do what they can to support you.  

Seeing your GP

Around 6 to 8 weeks after your baby’s birth, you should have a postnatal check with a GP to make sure you are well and recovering properly. Your baby’s health will also be checked by a GP at around this time (known as the 6 to 8 week check). Your GP surgery should offer you an appointment, but you can also call and book one yourself.