Postpartum

Your baby todayIn this image, the arm is positioned near head and is partly outside of the 3D view. This allows the ultrasound scan to look within the arm. Part of the bones in the forearm are seen here as bright reflections. ...

Your baby todayYou can see from this image just how much amniotic fluid is around your baby at this time. Ultrasound displays the fluid as black on the screen. Sometimes there will be speckles within the fluid: these represent skin and hair cells...

Managing Your Maternity Leave A United Nations survey found that out of 152 countries, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Lesotho, Switzerland, and Papua New Guinea were the only ones one that did not have a national policy requiring paid...

Your baby todayIn this image the hands are folded over beneath the chin and there's a foot up by the mouth and nose. It can look as if your baby is quite a contortionist but because he is still quite skinny, the joints allow for a great deal of f...

Your baby todayThis week is something of a landmark in your baby's development. Although a baby born at this stage would still need help with breathing, the lungs have matured to an extent that survival chances outside the uterus are significantl...

Your baby todayHere the skin looks almost loose around the neck as the baby has turned his head slightly. This is normal at this stage: the lack of fat beneath the skin and the need to grow rapidly can make your baby appear as if he needs time to...

Your baby todayYour baby will be able to recall and recognize the frequency and pattern of the most familiar sounds he hears within the uterus-your voice. Also, you might have noticed that loud noises may startle your baby during these final week...

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Your baby todayFrom this week, brown fat is laid down in your baby's neck, chest, and back to be used after birth to produce heat and energy. At the moment he has no control over his temperature, which is efficiently maintained at a perfect level...

You and Your New Body After Childbirth You're no longer pregnant, but your body just isn't the same as it was. You've changed, and it takes time to get back into shape. For example, your breasts are still large (whether you intend to breast-feed...

It wasn't so long ago that there were no laws to protect pregnant women on the job. If an employer didn't want a pregnant woman at work, he or she could fire her. If a woman wanted to come back to work after delivering her child, there was no gua...

Your baby todayHere the skin looks almost loose around the neck as the baby has turned his head slightly. This is normal at this stage: the lack of fat beneath the skin and the need to grow rapidly can make your baby appear as if he needs time to...

Negotiating Maternity Leave Baby Talk A maternity leave is time off from work due to the medical and personal needs of pregnancy and childbirth. This leave might be paid or unpaid depending on company policy. Daddy Alert! If financial concerns ...

Staying at Home: Finances The money issue is often the deciding factor for most families when it comes to deciding if a parent should stay at home. Even if you desperately want to stay home, it may not be clear how your family can survive with...

The New Mom Dilemma: Stay at Home or Return to Work? Perhaps you've always been the working type but now that you've had a baby, you've changed your mind. Maybe you've always wanted to stay home, but you didn't feel like your circumstances wou...

Your baby todayAt this stage it is simply no longer possible to see the whole baby on a scan. The ultrasound scan cannot not step far enough back to include the whole baby in a single view. Instead it is necessary to move the probe around, to exa...

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First Toys: Faces and Voices Toys aren't always colorful plastic shapes you buy at the store. Almost anything can seem like a toy to your newborn. Before she can even hold a conventional toy in her hand, she'll become infatuated with two toys yo...