Warning signs after birth
The signs in the six weeks after birth that mean you or your baby need to be seen urgently.
- Heavy bleeding or clots after birth is an emergency
- Fever or foul-smelling discharge may mean infection
- Calf pain, chest pain or breathlessness may mean a blood clot
- A newborn who feeds poorly or is hard to wake must be seen immediately
The weeks after birth carry real risks that are easy to miss when you are exhausted and focused on your baby.
For you, seek care the same day for: soaking more than one pad an hour or passing clots larger than a plum, foul-smelling vaginal discharge, fever above 38 °C, severe headache with blurred vision, fits, severe abdominal or wound pain, a wound that is red, swollen, leaking or opening, pain, redness or swelling in one calf, chest pain or breathlessness, difficulty passing urine, a hot painful breast with fever, or thoughts of harming yourself or your baby.
For your baby, seek care immediately for: difficulty or fast breathing, fever or a baby that stays cold, poor feeding or being very sleepy and hard to wake, yellow skin in the first day or yellow palms and soles, fits, stiff or floppy movements, redness or pus around the cord, no urine for a day, or persistent vomiting.
Heavy bleeding, fits, chest pain, breathlessness, a fitting or unresponsive baby, or thoughts of harm are emergencies — call 10177 or go to the nearest emergency unit now.
Attend your postnatal visits even if you feel well.
- Soaking more than a pad an hour or large clots
- Fever above 38 °C or foul-smelling discharge
- Severe headache, blurred vision or fits
- Wound or abdominal pain, redness or a wound that opens
- Calf pain or swelling, chest pain or breathlessness
- Hot, painful breast with fever
- Thoughts of harming yourself or your baby
- Baby: breathing difficulty, fever, poor feeding, jaundice, fits or no urine
Go to your nearest facility the same day for any of these. For heavy bleeding, fits, chest pain, breathlessness or an unresponsive baby, call 10177 or go to the nearest emergency unit immediately.
This information is general health education and does not replace advice from your nurse, midwife or doctor. In an emergency go to your nearest facility.