Right after birth

A few minutes after your baby is born, we’ll check his or her heart rate, breathing, muscle tone, reflex response, and color.

We’ll also check you frequently to look for signs that your body is going through the correct changes and that you don’t have any complications.

During the first hours after the birth, a member of your health care team will:

• Cover you with a warm blanket. Shaking chills are common right after delivery.
• Rub your lower abdomen about every 15 minutes to help tighten your uterus and stop bleeding.
• Ask you to urinate. If you can’t urinate, a tube (catheter) can be used to empty your bladder.
• Check your blood pressure frequently.
• Repair the area between your vagina and anus (perineum) if it tore or if you had an incision (episiotomy).
• Remove the small tube in your back if you had epidural anesthesia.

You may also have:

• Certain immunizations.
• If you have Rh-negative blood, you may get a shot of Rh immunoglobulin (such as RhoGAM) after delivery if your newborn is Rh-positive. Click on Rh Sensitization During Pregnancy for more information.