Nothing prepares you fully for the first week with a newborn. Not the books, not the antenatal classes, not advice from friends. The baby arrives and everything you thought you understood dissolves into a blur of exhaustion, joy, confusion, and the most intense love you have ever felt. Here is a clear guide to what to expect and what to do in the first seven days.
Feeding in the First 48 Hours
In the first 48 to 72 hours, a breastfeeding mother produces colostrum — the thick, yellowish, concentrated first milk. Colostrum is often called liquid gold because of its extraordinary concentration of antibodies, white blood cells, and growth factors. It is produced in very small amounts — sometimes only a few millilitres per feed — which is exactly right for a newborn's tiny stomach. Many Indian families worry that there is not enough milk in the early days and offer formula or sugar water, which is almost never necessary for a healthy full-term baby and can interfere with establishing breastfeeding.
Feed your newborn 8 to 12 times in 24 hours. Watch for hunger cues — rooting, sucking fists, turning the head. Crying is a late hunger cue. Adequate feeding is confirmed by 6 or more wet nappies per day from day 4 to 5 when milk volume increases, and by weight regain to birth weight by 10 to 14 days.
Umbilical Cord Care
The umbilical cord stump will dry, shrink, and fall off between 1 and 3 weeks after birth. The WHO recommendation is dry cord care — keep the stump clean and dry, fold the nappy below the stump to allow air exposure, and let it dry naturally. Do not apply oil, turmeric, or any substance to the cord stump — these can introduce infection. Do not attempt to remove the stump. See your doctor if the skin around the base of the stump becomes red and inflamed, if there is discharge with an unpleasant smell, or if the stump bleeds significantly.
Newborn Jaundice
Jaundice — the yellowish colouring of skin and whites of the eyes — is extremely common in newborns, affecting up to 60 percent of full-term babies and 80 percent of premature babies in the first week. It is caused by the breakdown of foetal red blood cells and the immature liver's limited ability to clear the resulting bilirubin. Most physiological newborn jaundice peaks at day 3 to 5 and resolves by 2 weeks without treatment. Frequent feeding helps clear bilirubin through the stool.
See your paediatrician if jaundice appears in the first 24 hours (this is always pathological), if the yellow colouring extends below the belly button (suggesting higher bilirubin levels), if your baby is very sleepy and feeding poorly, or if jaundice persists beyond 2 weeks. Most hospital newborn units check bilirubin levels before discharge.
The First Week in an Indian Joint Family
The first week in an Indian joint family can be simultaneously wonderful and overwhelming. Family support is genuine and valuable. The constant stream of visitors, however, is exhausting for a recovering mother and potentially overwhelming for a newborn. It is completely reasonable and medically appropriate to limit visitors in the first week to immediate family only, to ask that everyone wash hands before holding the baby, and to insist on rest time. Saying the doctor recommended it makes it easier to enforce.