What happens immediately after birth

The first hour or so after birth — sometimes called the “golden hour” — is a busy but precious stretch, with a few things happening for both you and your baby at once. Knowing the rough sequence helps it feel less like a blur, though every birth is a little different.

Meeting your baby. In an uncomplicated birth, your baby is usually lifted straight onto your chest for skin-to-skin contact. This keeps them warm, calms you both, helps kick-start feeding, and is a lovely first cuddle. They’ll likely be a bit wet, possibly covered in some vernix (the waxy coating), and may not look exactly like the movies — all completely normal.

The cord. The umbilical cord is usually left to pulse for a little while (delayed cord clamping) before it’s clamped and cut — often a moment your partner can be part of if they’d like.

Delivering the placenta. The birth isn’t quite over until the placenta comes away — the “third stage”. You’ll usually be offered an injection to help this happen faster and reduce bleeding, or you can discuss a natural approach; either way it typically comes within an hour, with a final push or two.

Checks for your baby. While your baby is with you, they’ll be observed for how they’re breathing, their colour and tone (the Apgar score at 1 and 5 minutes), and kept warm. They’ll be weighed and measured (this can wait a little so your first cuddle isn’t rushed), and offered a vitamin K injection to help their blood clot, plus the first feed if you’re breastfeeding — early skin-to-skin helps with this.

Care for you. Your midwife will check your bleeding and that your uterus is contracting down, and examine you for any tears or grazes that need stitching — done with local anaesthetic (or an epidural top-up). You’ll be cleaned up and made comfortable, and offered something to eat and drink, which is often very welcome after the effort of labour.

If your baby needs a little help. Occasionally a baby needs some assistance to breathe or warm up, and may be taken to a warmer or to special care for a while. This can be frightening in the moment, but it’s often brief and precautionary, and your team will keep you informed and reunite you as soon as they can.

After a caesarean, it looks a little different. The sequence is similar — your baby is lifted out, the cord is clamped and cut, and the placenta is removed by the surgical team — but it happens in theatre while your incision is closed (which takes a while). Many hospitals support skin-to-skin in theatre or in recovery soon after, and your partner is usually right there with you and the baby. You’ll be watched closely in recovery for a time before heading to the ward.

The first feed and observations. If you’re planning to breastfeed, that first hour is a lovely time to offer the breast — newborns are often alert and ready to feed, and early skin-to-skin helps. Your baby’s temperature and breathing are kept an eye on, and they’ll have an identification band put on. It’s all designed to fit around, not interrupt, your time together where possible — so don’t be afraid to say if you’d like a moment before the weighing and measuring.

Every birth setting handles the details a little differently, so if there’s something you’d particularly like in these first moments — immediate skin-to-skin, delayed cord clamping, who announces the sex, who cuts the cord — it’s worth noting in your birth plan so your team can help make it happen where it’s safe to.

Amid all the practical care, try to soak it in — the first hold, the first feed, the wave of relief and love (or, for some, a slower dawning that’s just as normal). Keep your support person close, and don’t be shy to ask your midwife what’s happening as they go. You’ve done something enormous, and now the getting-to-know-you begins.