The Postpartum Visit: What Happens at Your Checkup After Birth

Postpartum care is a process, not one visit

• ACOG recommends contact with your OB, midwife or family doctor within the first 3 weeks after birth, more care as needed, and a full visit no later than 12 weeks.
• If you had high blood pressure or preeclampsia, you should have a blood pressure check within about 3-10 days of birth, sometimes sooner, or monitor at home and report the numbers.
• Visits can be in person, by phone or by video. Ask what your practice offers.

What the visit usually covers

• Mood: a short questionnaire about depression and anxiety. Answer honestly; it's there to get you help, not to judge you.
• Body: blood pressure, weight, bleeding, the perineum or C-section incision, breasts if you have concerns, and sometimes a pelvic exam.
• Feeding: how breastfeeding, pumping or formula is going, nipple pain, supply.
• Bladder, bowels and pelvic floor: leaking, pain, heaviness. Ask about pelvic floor physical therapy.
• Sex and birth control: when you feel ready, and the options (see the sex and birth control guide).
• Sleep, support and safety: who helps you at home, and whether you feel safe in your relationship.
• Long-term health: follow-up for pregnancy conditions. After gestational diabetes, a blood sugar test at 4-12 weeks. After preeclampsia, your heart risk is higher later in life, so plan regular checks with a primary care provider.
• Vaccines and screenings you're due for, such as a Pap test.
• The birth itself: a chance to ask what happened and why.

How to get the most out of it

• Write your questions down beforehand; it's easy to forget with a baby in your arms.
• Bring a list of your medicines and supplements, and note how many pads you use and how you sleep.
• Bringing the baby is usually fine. A support person can hold them while you talk.
• If something's been bothering you, say it first so it isn't rushed at the end.

Questions people often ask

• When can I exercise, have sex, drive or lift heavier things?
• Is this bleeding, leaking or pain normal at this point?
• What does my birth mean for a future pregnancy?
• Who do I see for my health from now on?

The baby's checkups count too

Pediatricians often screen the birthing parent for depression at the baby's 1-, 2-, 4- and 6-month visits. It's fine to raise your own health there too.

Coverage

Most U.S. states now extend Medicaid coverage for 12 months after birth. Ask your plan what's covered, including therapy and pelvic floor care.

When to check in

• Book the full visit before you leave the hospital, and reach out sooner for anything that worries you.
• Contact your provider the same day for a fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or more, a severe headache or vision changes, or a red, painful leg.
• If you have chest pain, trouble breathing, a seizure or thoughts of harming yourself or your baby, call 911.