Preparing for the post-partum: the six-weeks-before-your-due-date checklist

There is what we prepare for the baby: the nursery, the washed clothes, the car seat. And there is what we forget to prepare for ourselves. You arrive home with a newborn in your arms, a body that is still bleeding, and an empty fridge. Nobody planned dinner.

Preparing for the post-partum is not about buying more. It is about organising the house, the meals and the people around you so that the weeks after the birth are gentler. This work is best done six weeks before your due date, while you still have the energy. Here is the checklist, week by week.

Why prepare for the post-partum before the birth

We prepare for the birth with care: classes, birth plan, nursery ready. The post-partum, on the other hand, often arrives without a plan. Yet it is the longer period: several weeks during which the uterus contracts, the bleeding runs its course, the perineum or the scar heals, and nights become fragmented.

Preparing for the post-partum means deciding in advance what you will not have to decide later. Who does the shopping. Who gets up at night. Who to call if something worries you. These questions seem simple today. They will be far less so at three in the morning.

To understand what the body goes through during these weeks, our guide the post-partum week by week gives you the key points.

The six-weeks-before-your-due-date timeline

Week	What we prepare
W-6	List the people you can rely on, contact a sage-femme libérale (community midwife) for follow-up after you leave
W-5	Share out household tasks, talk about it frankly with the second parent or those around you
W-4	Cook and freeze a first batch of meals
W-3	Set up the resting corner, gather the care products to have at home
W-2	Second batch of meals, stock-up shopping (store-cupboard staples, household products)
W-1	Draft the messages to send, write down useful numbers next to the phone
Due date	Leave the list with someone else, and rest

This timeline is a guide. If your pregnancy calls for rest earlier, or if you are reading this three weeks before your due date, keep the three priorities in mind: meals, nights, appointments.

Batch-cooked meals

This is the simplest and most useful thing you can do. In the first few weeks, you often eat standing up, one-handed, at unlikely hours. Ready-made meals change everything.

Favour dishes that freeze well and reheat in a single step: soups, stews, pulses, gratins, stewed fruit. Count on enough for at least two weeks. Add easy-to-grab snacks: dried fruit, nuts, oatcakes, cheese.

If family and friends ask how they can help, this is the answer. A dish left on the doorstep is worth more than a two-hour visit.

Organising who takes over: nights and tasks

Nights

Nights in the first few weeks are broken, whatever the feeding method. If you are breastfeeding, the second parent can bring you the baby, change the nappy, settle them back down. If you are bottle-feeding, feeds can be shared. Decide this beforehand. Exhaustion makes negotiations difficult.

Household tasks

Make a list of everything that keeps the house running: shopping, laundry, cleaning, older children to take to school, appointments, pets. Then assign each task to someone other than you. The second parent's leave is there for this too.

For a second or third child, think of the older children first. A trusted person identified for the school run makes the first days much lighter.

People to notify

Prepare a short list, with the numbers within reach:

• your midwife or your GP;
• the maternity unit where you are giving birth, and the direct number for its postnatal ward;
• one or two people close to you who are available on weekdays;
• your local PMI (the French maternal and child health centre), which can also support you after the birth.

Also prepare a message to send to the wider circle. It announces the birth and sets the tone: visits will come later. Written in advance, it is easier to send.

Appointments to plan ahead

Midwife follow-up after you leave the maternity unit

In France, after you leave the maternity unit, a midwife can come to your home to follow up on mother and baby. The maternity unit or the Assurance maladie (French health insurance) may offer this, but you can also contact a sage-femme libérale (community midwife) during pregnancy. It is easier when you already know her.

The early postnatal interview and the postnatal check-up

Two appointments mark the weeks after the birth. The early postnatal interview, carried out by a midwife or a doctor, is a chance to talk about how you are living through these weeks. The postnatal check-up usually takes place six to eight weeks after the birth; it reviews healing, the pelvic floor and contraception, and opens the way to rehabilitation if needed. Put them in the diary as soon as you get home.

The resting corner

Choose a spot, in the bedroom or the living room, where you will spend a lot of time sitting or lying down. A comfortable armchair or bed, soft lighting for the night, a side table within reach.

On that table: a large bottle of water, snacks, a charger, cushions to support your back or arm, something to write with. If you are breastfeeding, this corner will become your main base. Make it beautiful. You will spend hours there.

Care products to have at home

After the birth, the perineum or the scar, the breasts and the skin need looking after, with a few simple gestures. It is best to have everything gathered before you leave for the maternity unit, in one place in the bathroom.

Sanitary pads, maternity knickers, something to rinse with without rubbing, a gentle intimate wash, something to apply cold to the perineum, a nipple balm if you are breastfeeding. For the details, item by item, see our hospital bag checklist.

Frequently asked questions

When should I start preparing for the post-partum?

Around six weeks before your due date is a good time: you still have the energy, and there is time left to cook, get organised and get in touch with a midwife. If you are closer to your due date, focus on meals, nights and appointments.

How many meals should I prepare in advance for the post-partum?

Ideally, you want to get through at least two weeks without cooking. Single-portion dishes and a few snacks are often enough. Family and friends can take over after that.

How do I find a midwife for home visits after the birth?

The maternity unit or the Assurance maladie (French health insurance) can point you in the right direction when you leave. You can also look for a sage-femme libérale (community midwife) near you during pregnancy and contact her directly. Knowing her before the birth makes follow-up easier.

Should visits be limited after the birth?

Nothing obliges you to receive visitors in the first few days. Many parents prefer to wait a few weeks, or to accept only short, useful visits. A message prepared in advance helps set that boundary without having to justify yourself.

What should I prepare at home before the birth?

Batch-cooked meals, a resting corner, care products for the perineum, breasts and skin, and a list of useful numbers. The most important thing is still organising who takes over: who does what, and who gets up at night.

Coming home

We often imagine coming home as an arrival. It is more of a beginning: slow, imperfect, full of small adjustments. A prepared house does not make it easy. It makes it gentler.

What you organise today is time for later. Time to sleep, to watch, to do nothing at all.

To picture these weeks differently, read our article on the golden month and the 40 days after birth.