You should pee within four to six hours after giving birth or after a catheter is removed, as your bladder needs to start functioning normally again to prevent complications like overdistension. Midwives will monitor this first urination, often by measuring the volume, and may use techniques like running water or gentle pressure if you have trouble. Factors like epidurals can delay sensation, making it important to try urinating regularly (every 3-4 hours) and alert staff if you feel no urge or can't go.
After birth, or after a catheter has been removed, you should feel a normal urge to pass urine within four hours.
Postnatal contractions
You may have some tummy pain and cramping after giving birth. This is because your womb (uterus) is contracting and going back to its normal size. These pains usually last for 2 or 3 days.
The 5-5-5 rule is a postpartum guideline for the first 15 days of recovery, emphasizing rest to help the new parent heal and bond with the baby, by spending 5 days in bed, followed by 5 days on the bed, and then 5 days near the bed, gradually increasing activity while prioritizing rest, nourishment, and self-care over chores or visitors. It's a framework for creating boundaries and slowing down to prevent overexertion, though individual recovery needs should guide the pace.
Things to Avoid After Giving Birth
In those first few weeks postpartum, your cervix is still somewhat dilated, regardless of whether you had a vaginal delivery or a c-section. There's a theory – though no research has confirmed this – that tub water could travel into your uterus, introduce bacteria, and cause an infection.
The first six to 12 hours after you give birth is considered the acute phase of postpartum recovery. Within this window parents are at their highest risk for conditions like postpartum eclampsia, postpartum hemorrhage, and certain medical emergencies.
On the second night, babies often nurse on and off for hours. Many new parents are caught off guard by this pattern, and some assume that their babies are starving.
The 40-day rule after birth, often called confinement or "The Golden Month," is a widespread cultural tradition emphasizing a mother's deep rest, healing, and bonding with her newborn, with family often handling chores and visitors, promoting physical recovery (like stopping bleeding) and mental well-being, rooted in ancient practices from Asia, Latin America, and religious traditions like Judaism and Christianity. Key aspects involve nourishing the mother, sheltering her from stress, and focusing solely on resting and bonding, a stark contrast to Western pressures to "bounce back" quickly.
On average, new parents lose about 13 pounds (6 kg) right after giving birth—thanks to the baby, placenta, and amniotic fluid. In the first week postpartum, many shed another 5 to 8 pounds (2 to 3.5 kg) as their body naturally eliminates retained fluids, like excess blood and water weight.
The 2-hour rule for babies means they shouldn't stay in a car seat (or travel system seat) for more than two hours at a time, whether in or out of the car, because the semi-upright position can strain their developing spine and restrict their breathing, increasing the risk of low oxygen levels, especially for newborns and preemies. For long journeys, parents should take breaks every two hours to take the baby out, allow them to lie flat for a while, stretch, and feed, ensuring they get proper head/neck support and circulation.
Postpartum rage can affect anyone who recently gave birth. It's most common within the first six weeks to one year after you give birth. It may be more common in people with mental health conditions like bipolar disorder or in people who also have symptoms of postpartum depression.
Bleeding in the first two weeks after delivery is considerably heavy as tissues from the pregnancy are being shed. This gradually decreases as the material gets sloughed off with time. Light bleeding or spotting after delivery can continue for up to six weeks after delivery, although it varies from person to person.
It is important to increase fluid intake after giving birth, especially if you are breastfeeding. It will help in producing more urine. Try taking a warm bath. If urination is difficult and painful for days, your doctor might recommend a test for urinary tract infection.
Before about 6 weeks, babies will have at least 3 poos a day, sometimes one after each feed. If your newborn has less than one poo a day, you may need to feed them more often. After 6 weeks, the number of poos may vary from day to day and from baby to baby. Some babies continue to poo very frequently – at each feed.
The hardest week with a newborn is often considered the first six weeks, especially weeks 2-3, due to extreme sleep deprivation, constant feeding demands, learning baby's cues, postpartum recovery, and a peak in inconsolable crying (the "witching hour"), making parents feel overwhelmed as they adjust to a new, exhausting routine. While the first week is tough, the challenges often intensify as the baby becomes more alert but still fussy, with major developmental hurdles like cluster feeding and increased fussiness peaking around 6-8 weeks.
The 5-3-3 rule is a loose guideline for structuring a baby's sleep schedule: 5 hours of wake time before the first nap, 3 hours of wake time before the second nap, and 3 hours before bedtime.
Newborns only worry about whether someone is meeting their needs, and it doesn't matter who that person is. It isn't until they're between five and eight months old that they begin to miss you. Object permanence is why your baby misses you when you're not there.
The newborn 5-5-5 rule is a postpartum guideline for new mothers to focus on healing and bonding in the first 15 days home, dividing rest into 5 days in bed, followed by 5 days on the bed, and then 5 days near the bed, encouraging minimal chores, visitors, and activity to prioritize recovery from childbirth and establishing the new family unit, drawing on traditional postpartum rest practices.
It can last a few minutes to a couple of hours. For most babies, the witching hour starts to occur around 2-3 weeks and peaks at 6 weeks. It will typically completely resolve by 3-4 months.
The first hour after birth, the “Golden Hour”, when a healthy baby is calmly placed skin-to-skin on the mother's chest, not only facilitates a smooth transition from the womb to the outside world, stabilising the baby physiologically, but also offers a unique opportunity for the mother and baby to connect emotionally ( ...
Why Does SIDS Peak at 2-4 Months? The widely accepted explanation for the SIDS peak has to do with the timeline of brain development. “Up to 4 months old, the part of the brain that controls breathing and wakefulness is under a lot of development,” Juliet explains.
Infant Sleep
TEN MINUTE RULE
If the baby cries for 10 minutes straight (a break is considered 10 seconds of them not crying), then you go in and reassure them (WITHOUT PICKING THEM UP!) that everything is okay, he's safe, and you're going to be there when he wakes up.