After delivery: your postpartum instructions

Warning signs after birth: get care right away

Serious problems can happen up to a year after delivery, most often in the first 6 weeks.

• Bleeding that soaks a pad in an hour or less, or clots larger than an egg
• Severe headache that does not go away, vision changes, or a severe pain under the right ribs — these can be signs of high blood pressure (preeclampsia), which can start after delivery
• Fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher
• Pain, redness, or swelling in one leg
• An incision that is opening, draining pus, or increasingly red, hot, or painful
• Severe belly pain, or foul-smelling vaginal discharge
• A red, painful, hot area of the breast with fever or flu-like feelings (mastitis)
• Feeling extremely sad, hopeless, or anxious, or unable to care for yourself or your baby

Bleeding and discharge

Bleeding is heaviest in the first few days and slowly turns pink, then brown, then yellow-white over about 4 to 6 weeks. It may briefly increase with more activity or breastfeeding. Use pads, not tampons, until we have checked you at your postpartum visit.

After a vaginal birth

• Use the squirt bottle with warm water each time you use the bathroom, and pat dry front to back.
• Cold packs in the first day, then warm sitz baths, can ease swelling and soreness. Stitches dissolve on their own.
• Take a stool softener if you were given one, drink plenty of water, and do not strain.

After a cesarean birth

• You can shower; let soapy water run over the incision and pat it dry. Do not soak in a bath, pool, or hot tub until we say the incision has healed.
• Do not lift anything heavier than your baby for the first several weeks.
• Walk a little several times a day — it lowers the risk of blood clots and helps with gas pain.
• Do not drive while taking opioid pain medicine, or until you can brake suddenly without pain.

Pain relief

Take pain medicine as prescribed at discharge. Most patients use ibuprofen and acetaminophen on a schedule, with stronger medicine only if needed for a short time. Ask us before taking anything not on your discharge list. Most common pain medicines are compatible with breastfeeding.

Activity, sex, and birth control

• Rest when your baby sleeps, and accept help with meals and chores.
• Gentle walking is good. Return to exercise gradually, based on how you feel and what we discuss at your visit.
• Wait to have sex or use tampons until we have checked you at your postpartum visit, unless we tell you otherwise.
• You can get pregnant before your first period returns, even while breastfeeding. Let’s talk about birth control before you need it.

Breastfeeding and feeding

Feed your baby on demand, usually 8 to 12 times in 24 hours in the first weeks. Sore nipples, engorgement, and latch problems are common and treatable. Breastfeeding guide.

Your mood

Feeling weepy or overwhelmed in the first two weeks (“baby blues”) is common. Sadness, anxiety, or trouble sleeping that lasts longer than two weeks, or feels severe, may be postpartum depression or anxiety — it is common and treatable. Baby blues or postpartum depression?

Need to talk now? Call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline, 1-833-852-6262 (1-833-TLC-MAMA), free and available 24/7 in English and Spanish. If you are in crisis, call or text 988, or call 911.

Your postpartum visits

• After a cesarean: an incision check about 1 to 2 weeks after delivery.
• If you had high blood pressure in pregnancy: keep any blood pressure check you were given, usually within a few days of going home.
• Everyone: a full postpartum visit about 4 to 6 weeks after delivery to check your recovery, mood, feeding, and birth-control plans.

Call 954-880-1010 to schedule if your visit was not booked before you left the hospital.

Medically reviewed by Rahil Malik, MD, FACOG, board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist. Last reviewed: October 2026. This page is general information and does not replace a visit with your doctor.