The first week with the baby

Lots of moms say they can’t quite believe the hospital has let them go home with this precious bundle-in-a-car-seat – shouldn’t you have to sign on the dotted line, like a parcel?

Arriving home can be unsettling – it’s exciting but slightly unnerving to have another presence in your house. You’ll probably find your mood yo-yos between elated and tearful in the next week – this is completely normal. Most moms get the Baby Blues, which usually strike three or four days after the birth when your milk is coming in and your hormones are swinging wildly.

As the week goes on and you both get used to your new life, it pays to take it easy: don’t clean the house for visitors (get them to do it instead!), don’t feel you have to hold your baby all the time – put them down when they’re asleep. Try to rest when your baby sleeps as you’ve got a minimum of eight to 12 weeks of broken nights ahead of you so it’s important to pace yourself! A newborn baby sleeps an average of 18 hours a day, but it may not feel like it right now because they don’t necessarily choose to sleep at night-time yet.

Don’t rush to give the first bath if you don’t feel confident: they’ll be fine with top and tail washing for the first week.

Above all, take time to relax and enjoy simply holding your baby. It can be so busy in that first week with visitors coming and going, flowers arriving and the postman knocking on the door with yet more presents that your forget to have a few minutes a day to simply ‘be’ with your baby, just the two of you.

Make your family photos, upload to the App. Write about your feelings and impressions of being parents.