Bringing Your Newborn Home from Hospital: Tips from a Postpartum Doula

Are you worried about bringing your newborn home from the hospital? We get it! You may have spent your entire pregnancy dreaming of the moment when you get to put your little baby in the beautiful nursery you crafted for them, but as the date draws closer a fear can creep in. The reality of bringing home a tiny human for the first (or second, or third) time can be scary. Don’t worry, you are not alone. There are ways to prepare yourself and your home for bringing your newborn home. 

Let’s be honest, preparing for a newborn is more than deciding the theme of a nursery or hosting a baby shower. It’s what comes after those events that will make it easier to have a good foundation for bringing your baby home. 

Before Birth:

Preparing your home for the baby is an important step. Figuring out where the baby will sleep is the first step. Will the baby be with you in a bedside bassinet? Will you and your partner split shifts in the nursery? The AAP recommends sharing a room with your baby for at least the first six months of their lives, but ideally a year. If your heart is set on the baby sleeping in their crib from day one, it can be set up in your room or a bed can be placed in the nursery if there’s room. That way you’re able to room share and be comfortable yourself! Remember babies should rest on a flat surface with only a tight sheet in the crib. Save those cute blankets and stuffies for play time and keep your little one safe in their sleep environment! 

Speaking of sleep environments, creating one early on will help everyone get better sleep. Not just having a dedicated space for nighttime sleep such as a crib or bassinet, but creating an atmosphere. An ideal sleep environment will include the correct temperature, between 68-72 degrees fahrenheit, a sound machine that emulates the sound of being in the womb, blackout curtains to help regulate circadian rhythms and more! A baby monitor is also a great idea to have set up before they come!

Another thing to consider is that you won’t just be living in your baby’s sleep space. Having safe spaces to place your baby in so you can run and grab a snack, take a bathroom break or just have some space is very helpful! When you get home from the hospital, you may feel a bit frenzied. Having an extra bassinet next to the couch in the living room can help you take a beat to put the baby down, take a deep breath and plan the next few hours. 

It’s a great idea to also have a rolling cart stocked with supplies! We recommend having one for each floor of the house. This could include pumps, pump parts, burp cloths (so, so many burp cloths), nipple cream,extra outfits, swaddle blankets, diapers and wipes and snacks for you! As time goes on you’ll figure out what your cart needs, but having that mobile station is a lifesaver at 3 a.m. when your baby is cluster feeding and you have puke on your shirt and need a snack break. 

Meal Prep Before Bringing Baby Home from the Hospital:

Cooking meals while pregnant and storing them for when the baby arrives is a key for success! You will be starving all the time and having premade meals you can pop in the oven is a lifesaver. Consider also starting a meal train or registering for doordash or delivery service gift cards for those days where even boiling a pot of water seems like too monumental of a task! 

Everyone will also want to bring you food, take them up on it (and it is okay to only say yes to food and no to seeing the baby!)

Preparing Your Car to Bring Newborn Home from the Hospital

Choose a safe car seat for your newborn

With so many options available, choosing the right infant car seat for your family can feel overwhelming. A variety of sizes, ease of installation, and safety features are available. Thankfully, rigorous standards set forth by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration ensure that all car seats sold in the US pass crash test requirements. However, safety comes down to other features as well, such as ease of installation and chemical-free fabrics. We highly recommend having your car seat installed and/or checked by a certified technician. Visit the NHTSA’s directory for a safety technician near you.

Get Your Infant Car Seat Professional Installed

Having a car seat for your baby may seem like a no-brainer but did you know that it will need to be installed before the baby arrives and that you won’t be able to leave the hospital without one present? We recommend installing the car seat and base about 3-4 weeks before your estimated due date. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has tips on how to install your car seat properly, and many fire stations have days that a Child Passenger Safety technician will be available to check the car seat and make sure it’s installed properly. 

Car Seat Safety Guidelines for Newborns

Having a mirror or camera to see your baby is also a great way to put your mind at ease, and a sun shade on the window is something many parents don’t think about until the sun is shining in their newborns eyes! 

Create your postpartum care plan for your whole family

Book your overnight Postpartum Doula or Newborn Care Specialist

Before you or your partner give birth, think about a care plan for your newborn. This could mean splitting sleeping shifts between parents (newborns are very noisy!) so each parent has a dedicated time to sleep. It could also mean having a family member come stay with you to make sure you have someone to help take care of you as well as your baby. 

It can also include getting professional help, such as overnight in-home newborn care or 24/7 live-in care from a Newborn Care Specialist, also referred to as a Night Nurse (though they often aren’t nurses.) A Newborn Care Specialist, or NCS, is an individual who comes to your home and saves your life. Just kidding! Well, kind of. An NCS is a professional who is highly experienced in working with newborns. Every NCS should have an accredited course under their belts and years of hands-on experience working with newborns. They not only come to help your baby sleep, change diapers, soothe and love on your baby overnight, but they come to help YOU. Sleep deprivation is real, it is hard and it doesn’t have to control your life. 

Hiring an NCS can help you get some much needed sleep between breastfeeding sessions or full stop if you are bottle or formula feeding. An NCS is there to make sure that you get some great sleep overnight so your time during the day with your baby is more valuable and less laced with a desperation for a nap. They allow you to enjoy your baby and support your family through one of the toughest times in your parenting journey. 

At The Hospital 

Congrats! Your baby is here! One of the best things about being at the hospital is the resources you are surrounded by. Say yes to the lactation consultant! Ask all the questions, even if they seem silly! Those maternity nurses? They know what they’re talking about, let them show you how to feed, swaddle, hold and love on your baby. 

Let them show you how to take care of you. It’s not just the baby that will be learning how to be a person, you’ll be learning who you are as a parent too (and what a beautiful thing that is!) 

It will feel bizarre when you’re discharged. It can be emotional, leaving the safe haven of the hospital, but you are beginning your new life! 

At Home:

When arriving at home you might feel somewhat displaced. Luckily, you have prepped all the things! You’re ready! Once you get into a good feeding schedule, life will fall into place. The biggest thing to remember is to take it easy on yourself. Chances are, at least one of you is healing not only physically, but emotionally from giving birth. You don’t have to have all the answers, or know everything. Love your baby, focus on that love, and you’ll already be on the path to being the best parent you can be. 

Don’t forget, if all else fails, Well Supported Family by Nightingales is always here for you.