First 24 hours at home with your baby...

We are on week two of the #newmumseries. The series is all about things that are going to help and things that are good to know.

Coming home with your baby will feel amazing and a little bit daunting too so I wanted to cover things you might be feeling and find yourself doing.

(I've chosen to focus on the 24 hours at home because there are lots of variables to your birth - you maybe in and out really quickly, or there maybe a reason why you are in there for a little longer. And let's not forget, not every woman births in a hospital) ******************************************************************

Here we go:

· You will be running on adrenaline for a start. Make sure you have the support in place (friends, family or paid for) who can make those short gaps of rest happen for you.

Babies will feed often. Babies stomach are the size of marbles. Babies also feed for comfort. Your milk will come in between day 2-5. Your boobs will get hard. Babies will be sleepy straight after birth. You may have to work at keeping them awake for a feed. (Babies sleep in shorter cycles than us adults. Babies woke not just for food. Babies are ‘active’ sleepers, and a little bit noisy 😊) Check out safe sleeping so you have peace of mind when you are doing it yourself at home – lullaby trust or basis online are good sources. It’s likely you will check baby a zillion-times the first night. Baby’s poo will change from a black colour (meconium) and end up a mustard yellow. If you had a c-section – then I have a blog for you.

A top tip would be to get planned and prepared so you can focus on yourself and your baby, and have the peace of mind to know you have gone through a series of steps to get properly planned. As always, if you need help, head back to the website and there is a page for this stuff – Postnatal Planning

Have a fabulous Easter break – lots of chocolate and films required.

Best wishes,

April