Before you go home - maternity discharge video

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Hello, my name's Jody.

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And I'm one of the discharge coordinators.

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Congratulations on the birth of your baby.

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Before you get home with your baby, there are some things we'd like to

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tell you about how to help you take care of yourself and your baby.

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If you have any questions, please ask the midwife or one of the

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team on the maternity unit.

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You can watch this video again on the hospital website or via

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the MOMA app when you get home.

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So don't worry about remembering everything now.

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Once you and your baby are fit to go home there are a number of things that we

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need to do before you can leave hospital.

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The midwife will give you your discharge paperwork, including those postnatal

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notes and phone numbers for you if you have any concerns when you get home.

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We will give you a child health record book for your baby, which is used to

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keep track of your baby's progress.

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Your baby's weight and immunisations are recorded here,

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as well as other milestones.

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We will provide any medications you may need to take home with you.

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We will check with you that we have the correct address, phone

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number and GP details for you.

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Once these are complete, you are ready to go home.

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This can happen at any time, day or night.

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When you get home, our team of community midwives will continue

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to care for you for up to 28 days.

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We offer a combination of home visits and telephone calls tailored

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to yours and your baby's needs.

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In some areas you can choose to see a midwife at a local postnatal clinic.

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On your first full day at home from hospital, a community

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midwife will visit you at home.

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Usually a midwife you've met before.

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If a midwife has not visited you by 3PM that day, please contact

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the Maternity Liaison office.

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The midwife will ask you about you and your baby and share with you information

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about recovering from childbirth, common health concerns after birth, such as

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tiredness, discomfort, and mood changes, how to assess your baby's health and

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where to go for help feeding your baby caring for your baby, including skincare

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and cord care and contraception.

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Your midwife will check both of you, for example, by undressing baby and seeing how

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you are healing if you have any stitches.

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You can discuss your birth experience with the midwife who can answer

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any questions you may have about your care during labour and birth.

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If you're not expecting a visit or phone call from your midwife,

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but you have concerns and need to speak to them,

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please don't hesitate to phone their mobile phone.

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If your midwife's not available, then please phone the Maternity

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Liaison Office who will get in touch with a midwife for you.

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Their office is open between 9 AM and 3:15 PM from Monday to Sunday.

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It's really important to look after yourself as well as your baby.

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Sometimes it may feel like there's no time to eat or sleep.

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If you do not take care of yourself, you may tend to end up run down and exhausted.

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It can be really common to feel tearful, anxious, or sad.

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This is often called baby blues.

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The symptoms often go away on their own.

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If you or your family notice changes in your mood or emotions that last longer

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than a couple of weeks, then let your midwife, health, visitor or GP know.

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In the immediate days after having a baby, there is increased chance

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of infection in the vaginal area.

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And very occasionally this can lead to the life-threatening

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infectious disease called sepsis.

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It's so important to wash your hands both before and after going to the

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toilet or changing your sanitary pads, this is especially necessary when

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you or someone close to you, such as a family member or close friend has

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a sore throat or chest infection.

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Having a baby increases the risk of you developing deep vein thrombosis, a DVT.

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This is a serious condition where a blood clot forms in a deep vein

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in the body, usually in the leg.

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It's really important you call your midwife GP or maternity unit immediately

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if you have pain, swelling, tenderness in one leg, usually at the back of

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your lower leg, the pain may be worse.

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When you bend your foot forwards,

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a heavy ache or warm skin in the affected area

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or red skin, particularly at the back of your leg below the knee.

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You must call 999 immediately if you have sudden difficulty breathing, have

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pain or tightness in your chest or upper back,

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or you're coughing blood.

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If you have any of the following contact, your midwife, GP, or

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local maternity unit immediately.

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You can contact your nearest maternity unit anytime of the day or night.

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Phone numbers for the maternity unit are at the end of this video, and

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they're in the written information you will take home with you.

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Symptoms to watch out for include feeling unwell with a high temperature

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with, or without shivers.

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Very heavy vaginal bleeding or passing blood clots.

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Smelly vaginal discharge, dizziness, fainting, breathlessness,

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palpitations, or chest pain.

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Severe abdominal pain, visual disturbances - changes to your sight for example.

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Nausea or vomiting, pain in one of your calves in your lower leg.

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Severe anxiety, paranoia, extreme depression or bizarre thoughts.

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Most people who give birth vaginally will sustain some tears and grazes

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to the perineum, the area between the vaginal opening and the back passage.

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A tear happens as the baby stretches the vagina and pelvic floor during birth.

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Sometimes they need stitches to help heal.

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If you have stitches, these are dissolvable and they can take up to

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four months to be absorbed completely.

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If you've chosen not to have stitches, then the tear may take longer to heal.

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You can speed up the healing process by keeping the area really clean, have a

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bath or shower at least once a day and change your sanitary pads regularly.

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Washing your hands remember both before and afterwards.

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Make sure you're drinking at least two to three litres of water every day.

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Eat a really healthy, balanced diet, including fruit, vegetables,

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cereals, wholemeal, bread, and pasta.

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This will help prevent you from becoming constipated.

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You may need to take regular pain relief, such as paracetamol and

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ibuprofen to help with any discomfort.

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This will help you to move more easily.

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Walking also helps prevent stiffness and reduces swelling.

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If you've sustained a third degree tear, you'll be sent home with a few things

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antibiotics to reduce the chances of infection and medication called

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lactulose which helps soften your stools.

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We'll do a referral to physiotherapy and you'll have a follow-up

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appointment with the obstetric team.

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If you've had a caesarean birth, you'll need to look after the wound.

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The dressing will stay on for five days.

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You can still shower with the dressing on.

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The wound dressing and non dissolvable stitches or staples

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will be usually taken out by your midwife after five to seven days.

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Once the dressing has been removed, gently clean and dry the wound every day.

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Wear loose, comfortable clothing and cotton underwear, and watch

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out for the signs of infection.

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These can include swelling, redness, pain, a high temperature, pus or

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just generally feeling unwell.

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When you're feeling tired, being active may seem like the last

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thing you want to do, but regular activity can relax you, keep you fit

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and help you feel more energetic.

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It can also help your body recover after childbirth, and it may help

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prevent postnatal depression.

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If you had a straightforward birth, you can start gentle exercise

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as soon as you feel up to it.

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This can include walking, gentle stretches, pelvic

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floor and tummy exercises.

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Please refer to your postnatal exercises leaflet that you've been given.

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If you've had a caesarean birth, there are some special considerations

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to be taken into account so that you recover from your operation safely.

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Please refer to the caesarean birth leaflet that you have been given.

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Your pelvic floor muscles help control your bladder function and play a

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really important role in your sex life.

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During pregnancy hormonal changes and the extra weight we carry causes

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them to weaken, it's vital that we make them strong again, just like any

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other muscle that we need to tone up.

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If you have a catheter wait until it is removed before you do those exercises.

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Remember it is possible to become pregnant again very soon

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after the birth of the baby.

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Even if you are breast or chest feeding.

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And even if your periods have not returned it's important to

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plan contraception in advance.

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You can discuss your contraception at any time with your health visitor, your

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midwife, your GP, a doctor, or nurse or contraception or sexual health clinic.

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Not all methods of contraception are safe for everyone, you can

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discuss with your doctor or nurse which methods are suitable to you.

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Between 10 and 28 postnatal days, the midwife will discharge you to

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the care of your health visitor.

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Health visitors are nurses and midwives who are qualified in the care and

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development of preschool children.

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Your health visitor will continue to support you and they will

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monitor your baby's wellbeing.

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They will also give you information about your baby's immunisations,

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local baby groups and clinics.

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Your local children's center might also offer these baby groups.

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You can find more information about house visiting service online.

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If you have any unresolved concerns or questions about your

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pregnancy or your birth experience

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You can discuss this with our team of experienced midwives who lead

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our birth afterthought service.

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Your birth partner can take part too.

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If you've had a caesarean delivery, and you're thinking about delivery options

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for the next time, you can speak to the midwives in the birth after cesarean team.

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Sessions are available at William Harvey hospital in Ashford, the Royal

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Victoria hospital in Folkestone, the Buckland hospital in Dover,

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Kent and Canterbury Hospital,

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and at QEQM in Margate.