Postnatal - West Auckland Midwives

After baby is born

Congratulations on your new arrival, some women choose to go home from delivery suite, but most will have a hospital stay.

Whether you stay a Waitakere Maternity Unit or transfer to Helensville Birthing Unit http://www.birthcentre.co.nz/ after delivery, you can expect to be seen by a midwife daily while in hospital to ensure you are getting off to a good start. We will also be visiting you at home for the first four or five weeks to make sure all is going well.

Our speciality is feeding and growing, once we have your baby putting on weight well, and we have no concerns about your healing after the birth, we will hand you over the your well child carer of your choice.

Things you wish people had told you

Bleeding

After baby is born you will bleed reasonably heavily for the first 24 hours, it is normal for you to saturate a full sanitary pad every 1-2 hours… remember to get those Home Brand Super Sanitary pads!

After pains

These are like mini contractions after the baby has been born. The more children you have, the worse the after pains get. Try drinking pineapple juice, if that is not effective, ask your midwife for pain relief.

Stitches

Not every woman has stitches, let’s hope you are one of them! If you do get stitches, try some Tea Tree Oil diluted in cooled boiled water, in a misting bottle after each toilet visit. This will help speed healing.

Postnatal Blues

80% of women get a little tearful about day three after baby is born, probably due to hormone fluctuations. However, if feeling down continues on for some time, speak with us so we can help.

Breastfeeding

Most women breastfeed their babies, it is important to have a discussion with your midwife antenatally if you have any concerns about breastfeeding. We are very supportive and want to help you achieve your goals. We have a wonderful community base support network to help with any problems also:

Breastfeeding mothers and medicines
Not all medicines are safe to use while you are breastfeeding.

Vitamin K

This is a healthy vitamin given to babies to stop them bleeding into their internal organs.
In the first week of baby’s life, one baby in 10,000 will have a serious bleed into an internal organ and cause brain damage or death.

One baby in 400 will have a minor bleed from an orifice. You cannot tell by looking at a baby which ones will bleed.

Vitamin K can be given by injection or three oral doses at birth, five days and six weeks.

PKU

Most kiwi babies have a blood test, taken from their foot at least 48 hours after they have been born, it tests for very rare diseases. If we pick them up early we can make a big difference to your baby’s quality of life.

Hearing Test

At Waitakere you will be offered a free hearing test for your baby, this can pick up any early problems with hearing.

Jaundice

Many newborn babies have a slight yellow colour by day three after they are born, this is called Jaundice. Most babies cope well with this and it causes no problems, however if we are concerned we will order a blood test, to ensure that your baby does not need treatment.

Immunisation

At six weeks it is recommended that your baby starts their immunisations. Please read these websites to be fully aware of the vaccinations your baby will be given.

Contraception

The most important thing about having a new baby is to enjoy him or her! Often there is no hurry to have another baby, even though we enjoy seeing you. Whether you are breastfeeding or not, we are able to prescribe most contraception for you after your baby is born.