Postpartum Care & Recovery
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Baby's Here. Now What?
After labor and delivery, your focus immediately shifts to caring for your new baby. But it’s important to make sure you tend to your own physical and emotional wellbeing too!
AtlantiCare’s maternity services are here to take care of you throughout your birthing and postpartum experience. All of our private birthing suites at the Robert B Hansen Center for Childbirth are labor, delivery and recovery suites. That means that instead of being moved around the center for different steps, you’ll be in one comfortable place while you labor, deliver, and recover for the first two hours after birth.
Once you’ve recovered, you’ll move to the Maternal Newborn floor, where you and your little miracle with finish your stay together in a newly renovated private suite. This gives time for you and your family to bond with your new baby, and for you to learn how to care for yourself and your newborn.
Caring for Yourself After Delivery
During your stay, our doctors, midwives, nursing staff, social workers and international board-certified lactation consultants will provide personalized guidance to help you manage any postpartum concerns like breastfeeding issues, unexpected aches and pains or mental and emotional changes.
As you leave the hospital, we’ll educate you and your family on both baby care and self-care, and provide written instructions you can always refer back to as a reminder. We’re just a phone call away if you have any questions or concerns – 1-888-569-1000.
Postpartum Recovery and Symptoms
The first six weeks after giving birth is considered your recovery period. During this time, you may experience postpartum symptoms while your body and hormones work to restore themselves. Common symptoms include:
- Back pains and aches
- Sore nipples and breasts
- Bleeding and cramping
- Perineal pain, if you had a vaginal birth or pain around your C-section incision
- Difficulty with toileting, including constipation and incontinence
- Hemorrhoids
- Exhaustion
- Hair loss and skin changes
- Night sweats
- Depression and mood changes
Not Feeling Yourself?
Welcoming your new one to your family can be very exciting and challenging at the same time. As the physical symptoms following childbirth improve, you may find yourself having feelings of being tearful, anxious, sadness, or difficulty sleeping. Baby blues are common within the first 2-3 weeks after delivery. If they persist beyond 2 weeks, you may be experiencing symptoms of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders or PMADS. AtlantiCare has Perinatal Mental Health trained and certified Women’s Health Therapists available to help you. Ask your OB provider for a referral or contact us at (609) 833-9864.
Postpartum Anxiety and Depression (PMADs)
PMADs such as postpartum anxiety (PPA) and postpartum depression (PPD) affect 1 in 7 women with symptoms that range from mild to severe. They are the most common complications of childbirth, and they are temporary and treatable.
Symptoms of PMADS:
- Excessive irritability, anger, rage
- Anxiety or feelings of panic
- Excessive feelings of guilt or shame
- Difficulty sleeping or sleeping too much
- Frequent sadness/crying
- Loss of pleasure or interest in things you enjoy
- Feeling that you are not good enough for your baby
- Obsessive, racing, or scary thoughts
- Difficulty bonding with your baby