During this appointment, your health care provider will check your mood and emotional well-being, discuss contraception and timing of future pregnancies and review information about infant care and feeding. If the thought of traveling to the doctor's office seems overwhelming, consider asking someone to go with you. Delay going back to work for at least 6 weeks after delivery. Read copyright and permissions information. Connecting with support. An Approach to the Postpartum Office Visit | AAFP But if you have any other questions or concerns before your appointment, don't. These include professional support by physicians, midwives, or lactation counselors; peer support; or formal education sessions. Many women may benefit from physical therapy, such as pelvic floor physical therapy, especially if you had (or have) significant perineal tearing, a forceps delivery, diastasis recti, or urinary incontinence, for example. Don't worry if you dont feel up to having sex yet, despite your clearance. If all is well with your health and well-being, your doctor will likely give the all-clear to resume normal activities, which might include exercising, driving, and lifting heavy objects. See permissionsforcopyrightquestions and/or permission requests. Now, you should have your first contact with your practitionereither by phone or an office visitby three weeks after giving birth. You can clarify what happened or ask questions about things that occurredespecially if you aren't sure or didn't understand what was happening at the time. It's important to let your provider know if you're feeling overwhelmed, anxious, ordepressed. Outpatient postpartum care should be initiated within three weeks after delivery in person or by phone, and may require multiple contacts with the patient to fully address needs and concerns. Whether your care is online or in person, what matters is just that you have itfor your own health and that of your baby, now and in the future. However, many doctors now advise people to take it slow but go with their own comfort level and judgment to know when they're ready to have sex again. Postpartum Hormone Changes: What to Expect - Parents Plus, postpartum depression is a very treatable condition, and most women begin feeling better soon after starting treatment. You may not have an easy way to get to your ob-gyns office. Complications that occur during the prenatal period may reveal areas for intervention and surveillance.20,21, Secondary postpartum hemorrhage is defined as significant vaginal bleeding that occurs beyond 24 hours postpartum. In one large cohort study, 28.5% of women reported moderate or severe urinary incontinence in the first year postpartum.32 Bladder training, fluid management, body weight loss, and pelvic floor muscle exercises improve symptoms for all types of urinary incontinence, but studies have included women who are perimenopausal and not postpartum.34 It is uncertain whether pelvic floor muscle training during the postpartum period has an effect on urinary incontinence; however, it does reduce postpartum urinary incontinence by about one-third when initiated prenatally.33. Date of postpartum visit - The postpartum visit should occur 4-6 weeks after delivery. What to Expect at Your Postpartum Checkup - Verywell Family PDF The postpartum visit - Royal Australian College of General Practitioners But don't let this deter you. Your GP surgery should offer and provide you with a postnatal check. Sometimes physical or emotional issues come up that need immediate attention, like excessive bleeding, a potential postpartum infection, and any feelings that may lead you to think you might have postpartum depression or another postpartum mood disorder. You can ask your ob-gyns office about having a phone or video call instead of an in-person visit. Likewise, they will check your uterus for tenderness or a possible infection. It helps to jot down the questions you want to ask and any other issues you'd like to discuss ahead of time. Your Postpartum Body: 20 Ways It Changes After Baby, It's Time To Embrace Your Postpartum Belly. During the checkup, your doctor will assess your physical and emotional well-being in the period after labour. Taking the time to keep these appointments can pay off in many ways, physically and emotionally. Its common to not be in the mood as much as you were before having a baby. Rundown (7AM) | ANC (1 May 2023) | May - Facebook The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Staying healthy involves ongoing ob-gyn visits, even after the postpartum period. Many women mistakenly assume that this appointment is just a formality, and they end up not getting the postpartum care they need. Note that, if you've had a. Sometimes it's helpful to make a list of all the things you want to discuss. Those with special health conditions during pregnancy will likely need follow-up care. If that didn't happen, it's highly recommended that you get vaccinated now.) For example, if you had a cesarean section, you might want to ask whether you can have a vaginal birth next time. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2034562/table/T1/, https://www.aafp.org/afp/2016/1015/p646.html#afp20161015p646-t2, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and World Health Organization expert consensus, Longitudinal cohort studies and expert consensus, Ultrasonography to look for retained placental fragments, Occurs in up to 2% of women in the postpartum period, Fever with no other source, may be accompanied by uterine tenderness and vaginal discharge, Usually requires intravenous antibiotics, most evidence for clindamycin and gentamicin, Higher likelihood of anaerobic infection or chlamydia in late infections, Risk is five times higher during postpartum period than pregnancy, Avoid direct thrombin inhibitors and direct oral anticoagulants in women who are breastfeeding, Highest risk is < 48 hours after delivery, Treat if blood pressure 150/100 mm Hg, can use oral nifedipine or labetalol, Occurs in up to 10% of women in postpartum period, 75-g, 2-hour fasting oral glucose tolerance test 4 to 12 weeks postpartum to detect type 2 diabetes mellitus, then screening every 1 to 3 years, Recommend lifestyle changes and annual follow-up, 5% to 10% of women with gestational diabetes continue to have type 2 diabetes after delivery, Can have symptoms of hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism, Hyperthyroidism is transient and usually not treated, Up to 10% of women develop postpartum thyroiditis, Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and Patient Health Questionnaire-2/9 are valid diagnostic tools for postpartum depression, Use HARK (humiliation, afraid, rape, kick) or HITS (hurt, insult, threaten, scream) tools to evaluate for intimate partner violence, Consider counseling, home visits, and parenting support, Prioritize patient safety, consider referral to intimate partner violence prevention organizations, Evaluation includes history, examination including cough stress test with a full bladder and assessment of urethral mobility, urinalysis, and measurement of postvoid residual urinary volume, Bladder training, weight loss, pelvic floor muscle exercises effective as first-line treatment, More than one-fourth ofwomen experience moderate or severe urinary incontinence in the first year postpartum, Consider effects of medications and supplements such as iron, Constipation may affect up to 17% of women in the first year postpartum, Evaluate latch, swallow, nipple type and condition, and hold of the infant, Interventions include professional support, peer support, and formal education, Postpartum weight retention/metabolic risk, Women with higher gestational weight gain, black race, and lower socioeconomic status are at higher risk, Dietary changes, or diet and exercise in combination are effective, Increased risk of future obesity and type 2 diabetes, Symptoms of low postpartum libido and reduced sexual function likely caused by low estrogen levels and multiple psychosocial factors, Address earlier return of sexual activity with contraception to avoid unintended closely spaced pregnancies, For women who are breastfeeding: progestin-only methods can be used immediately postpartum (e.g., etonogestrel implant [Nexplanon], levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system [Mirena], medroxyprogesterone [Depo-Provera]), Immediate use is not harmful to the infant, Adolescents: begin motivational interviewing, discussion of long-acting reversible contraception during pregnancy, Intervention during pregnancy is superior to postpartum period, Timing: offer progestin-only methods immediately (no estrogen until three weeks postpartum) to all women regardless of lactation.