Rooming-In After Your Hospital or Birth Center Birth
Having a newborn is an exciting time filled with joy and anticipation. After spending nine months eagerly awaiting your baby’s arrival, they are finally here! Rooming-in with your baby 24/7 after birth helps you build a strong bond and quickly learn about caring for their needs.1 By understanding what to expect, you can more fully enjoy this special time and feel confident in your new role as a mom. With love, patience, and helpful resources, you’ll create a warm and nurturing space for both you and your little one.
Benefits of Rooming-In
- Improved Breastfeeding: Continuous skin-to-skin contact and keeping your baby close through rooming-in help you get to know your baby and provide more opportunities for breastfeeding.2
- Research: Many studies show that rooming-in has been associated with higher rates of exclusive breastfeeding at hospital discharge and at follow-up visits.1,2
- Help and Support: While rooming-in, the new family receives around-the-clock assistance, education, and hands-on support from nursing and lactation staff.
- Better Sleep: When parents can respond quickly to their babies’ needs, this helps everyone – mom, baby, and partner – get better rest.
- Family-Centered Care: Rooming-in supports the entire family unit by involving partners, family members, and older siblings.1
What to Expect
- Skin-to-Skin: Almost all hospitals support “The Golden Hour”, the time immediately following your baby’s birth, when all non-urgent procedures are delayed until after their first feeding.2
- Enhanced Bonding: Continuing to stay close to your baby, with ongoing skin-to-skin contact and rooming-in, fosters emotional attachment and helps you learn your baby’s cues2.
- Initial Days: After birth, expect frequent feedings, usually every 1.5 to 3 hours.1 Babies may sleep a lot but will wake for feeding and connection.
- Crying: Crying is the primary way newborns communicate. Babies can cry for many reasons or what may seem like no reason at all! With time, you may begin to better understand what their different cries mean.
- Sleep Patterns: Newborns sleep around 16 to 18 hours a day, often in short bursts as they wake frequently to feed. This is completely normal.1
Guidelines for Successful Rooming-In
- Create a Comfortable Environment
- Feel free to bring snacks and/or a cooler from home. Not all hospitals feed partners, and relying on the hospital cafeteria isn’t always convenient.
- It’s okay to bring your favorite pillow or blanket too.
- Have all the essentials (diapers, wipes, clothing) close by. This is especially helpful for middle-of-the-night feedings and diaper changes.
- Keep the room quiet, dimly lit, and at a comfortable temperature so everyone can get as much rest as possible.
- Communicate with your nurse when you are planning to nap or when you wake in the middle of the night, so any necessary tests or procedures can be coordinated while you are still awake, minimizing sleep interruptions.
- Some hospitals offer “Do Not Disturb” signs or “Quiet Hours” so moms can rest.
- Establish a Routine
- Hold your baby skin-to-skin as often as you can, especially in the first few days, to help regulate their temperature and support frequent breastfeeding.
- Try to follow your baby’s natural rhythms for feeding and sleeping.
- During the first week or so, keep track of what time your baby’s feedings start and their daily wet and dirty diaper count. Your nurse and pediatrician will want to know this information.
- This information can also offer you reassurance that your baby is on track or let you know that you need to wake them more often for feedings.
- Breastfeeding Basics
- Newborns typically feed every 1.5 to 3 hours.3
- Be responsive to baby’s early feeding cues.
- Crying is a late hunger cue and can make latching more difficult.
- Changing your baby’s diaper in between breasts is a good wake up “tool”.
- Get as much help from your nurse and lactation consultant as possible while you’re still in the hospital or birth center.
- Support Your Well-Being
- Take care of yourself by resting when your baby sleeps.
- Don’t hesitate to ask for help from healthcare providers, family, or friends.
- Consider joining a local or online breastfeeding support for encouragement and advice.
- A Lactation Consultant can provide invaluable support in overcoming breastfeeding challenges and help you achieve your breastfeeding goals.
- What if I or my Partner Need a Break?
- While 24/7 rooming-in is standard practice at most US hospitals, there can absolutely be exceptions made due to medical necessity, including maternal exhaustion.
- Your hospital staff will support you and care for your baby until you are well enough to resume rooming-in full time.
What If I Have Questions?
If you are interested in learning more, these Aeroflow classes expand on some of the topics discussed above:
- Birth and Breastfeeding
- Ultimate Breastfeeding Prep
- Babycare for the Breastfed Baby
To register for these classes, log into your portal or click here.
Want More Info?
For a directory of Aeroflow’s other Care Guides offering information on pregnancy, baby care, and more, browse our comprehensive list of titles:
https://www.hersourcehealth.com/aeroflow-care-guides/
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