The 9 Instinctive Stages Every Newborn Goes Through After Birth

When a baby is born, many things are happening at once. Mom has just went through a traumatic event with giving birth. Dad, her partner, family member, or friend is nearby for support, and all are excited to see the new bundle of joy. At the same time the nurses and doctors are cleaning baby up, weighing and measuring him, and getting his APGAR score. Mom is patiently waiting to get the chance to hold her beautiful baby.

Sometimes babies are cleaned up and given right back to mom, sometimes they're taken to the NICU, and sometimes they're put right up onto Mom's belly immediately after birth. No matter how a baby is brought into the world, what happens next is universal and truly amazing.

In order to see what happens next, baby will need to be "skin-to-skin" with mom (Note: baby could do this with dad but the breastfeeding part would be a little awkward!). If given the chance (ie no NICU, mom is healthy and ready to receive baby), all babies go through 9 instinctive stages immediately following birth...

1. Birth cry – that beautiful sound parents hear when a baby is first born 

2. Relaxation – no mouth or hand movements
3. Awakening – small thrust of head and shoulders (approx. 3mins after birth)
4. Activity – more mouth and sucking movements (ie rooting); touching mom’s breasts; possibly looks at mom
5. Rest
6. Crawling/sliding – approaches breast, sliding, leaping (around 35mins after birth)
7. Familiarization – looking at mom, massaging mom’s breasts, licking nipples (40mins after birth)
8. Suckling – usually happens around the 1hr mark
9. Sleeping – usually happens around 1.5hr mark

Even though I wish I would have known about these stages when I gave birth to my kids, I have seen videos of it and it's amazing. Newborns are so smart! New moms are often directed to begin a breastfeeding session within an hour of giving birth which is great. What's not so great is that these babies aren't usually given the opportunity to find the breast themselves, but instead are forcefully thrust onto the breast and expected to happily feed. It's no wonder moms and babies are initially distressed with the process! 

When I had my first daughter, I was young and naive about breastfeeding and parenting in general. Even though it was almost 16 years ago, I still remember my first breastfeeding experience like it was yesterday. Being my first pregnancy, I still wasn't used to a lot of nurses and doctors seeing any part of me naked. So when the nurse brought my daughter to me an hour or two after birth and proceeded to thrust her head onto my breast with a "screwing" back and forth motion, I was shocked and humiliated to say the least! And of course my daughter was not too thrilled with this process either. I was embarrassed and in pain, and she was upset and crying. It was certainly not the introduction to breastfeeding that I was hoping for. Needless to say that after a bad start, and subsequent crying and latching problems, I sadly gave up and just gave her formula before we even left the hospital. It's a decision that I immediately regretted, but I didn't know what else to do or how to be successful with nursing her. If I would have known about these 9 stages and other breastfeeding techniques, she and I could have had a different initial bonding relationship and a good breastfeeding one!

While this information is extremely useful for a breastfeeding baby, it's just as important for a baby who might be formula fed. Going "skin-to-skin" and bonding with your baby is important regardless of the method you choose for feeding. Dads and other caregivers can also practice this method with the baby (minus the breastfeeding part) by just having baby lay on the top part of the adult's bare chest. Also important to note about doing skin-to-skin contact is that it's something you can do anytime not just after birth. 

If your baby is fussy and crying, it works great to soothe them first before a feeding! One of the worst things you can do is try to nurse your baby when they are crying. Calm them down first by going skin-to-skin and the feeding will go much better. So if you're pregnant, or know someone that is, please share this blog with them so they can understand what is happening with their newborn and they will take the time to get to know them.

Happy New Year,

Ronee Welch

Sleeptastic Solutions

Certified Pediatric Sleep Consultant and Lactation Counselor (CLC)

*If you're interested in learning more about skin-to-skin contact, these 9 instinctive stages, breastfeeding, newborn sleep, and much more, I offer a fabulous Prenatal/Newborn Package (for prenatal through 7wks old)! There is both a combination package for breastfeeding and sleep or you can purchase them separately.  This is the perfect gift for anyone expecting a baby...or two! Since I also have twins, I have the special knowledge it takes to help parents-to-be of multiples, too! And if your child is 8wks or over, and already experiencing sleep issues, I have child sleep packages for you too! Just click here to set up your FREE no-obligation 15min phone assessment!