The postpartum period occurs after your baby has exited your womb. Each baby will grow at their own pace but there are key milestones that exist during each week of your child’s development. Your child will develop important motor skills, communication abilities, and learn to navigate the new environment around them.
0–3 Months — Postpartum Infant Development
As you feed, diaper, and soothe your child in the first 12 weeks of their life, they will develop critical motor abilities, enhance their hearing and visual senses, and use communication skills to explore the world.
Week 1
In the first week, your child will demonstrate many innate reflexes such as the rooting reflex, where they turn in the direction of stimulation around the mouth and cheek area. Children may lose between 6 and 10 pounds after leaving the hospital. Your baby may have thin hair on their body that will shed in a few weeks. If your baby has a yellowish tint to their skin after two weeks, you may want to contact your primary healthcare physician to check if they have jaundice. Your newborn will begin to develop a sense of trust with you. They are able to recognize your voice as they become more familiar with sounds in their immediate environment. As a new mother, you may experience constipation, puffy eyes, and enlarged breasts after giving birth. It is important to rest, and eat a nutritious diet to keep your energy high.
Week 2
Your baby will regain some weight and their feeding schedule should be fairly consistent at this point. Mothers that choose to breastfeed may feel low on supply at times and this may be due to inconsistent feeding. As a new mother, you may still experience discomfort in your abdomen which should subside in the coming weeks. It is important to monitor whether your baby is tracking objects with their eyes or if their eyes are following you. You can help them strengthen their eye muscles and tracking skills by moving your head side to side during periods of feeding.
Week 3
Three-week-old babies tend to have patchy skin, diaper rashes, and uneven complexions which clear in subsequent weeks. Your child will become more comfortable being held, and they will start to snuggle and adjust their body position towards you during this week. By the third and fourth week, you can watch your child for critical behaviours such as bringing their fists into their mouths, reacting to loud noises, closing their eyes when it is too bright, concentrating on things, and turning towards the voices of family members. Since your baby has not developed a strong immune system yet, it is important to avoid crowded areas.
Week 4
Through mimicking, speaking to your child and playing sounds, you can help facilitate a healthy sensory environment. During this week, you may notice that your child is making different sounds and repeating sounds back to you rather than just crying. Your baby will often make random, jerky, and uncoordinated movements; these erratic movements are common in many children. By the fourth week, your baby prefers to look at bold patterns rather than blended colours. Your newborn may still be adjusting to a regular sleep cycle and breathing pattern. While nursing, you may feel soreness in the breast area. To alleviate some of this pain you can place cold and wet tea bags on your breasts.
Week 5
By the fifth week, you will be able to see your baby move their arms and legs in a more coordinated and intentional fashion. To help your baby move, you can do gentle workouts such as placing them on their stomach while supporting their head, or pulling them up to an upright position. If you notice that your child has blemishes on their skin, remember that infant acne is very common and fades away on its own. Some babies have allergies to proteins found in cow’s milk or formula which result in more severe rashes, diarrhea, or trouble breathing among other symptoms.
Week 6
By the sixth week, your baby will start to smile towards you with wide eyes and an upturned mouth. Changes in poop colour and texture are expected when changing diapers. A gassy baby may cry more often, and you can relieve their gas by rubbing their back to add more pressure on their stomach. Many infants also experience congestion in the early weeks of development which can be a result of respiratory viruses, environmental smoke, or air quality. Some women may use a breast pump to store milk and maximize time management for feedings.
Week 7
Another milestone to look out for, are your baby’s heightened senses. As they engage with you and their surrounding environment, their vision and hearing will gradually improve. Your child will begin to prefer brighter colours and more complex images (such as three-dimensional objects) over simple, black and white visual cues. You will notice that your child will look towards your face and focus on you especially during feeding. By playing games and reading books, you can improve their new focusing skills and heightened senses.
Week 8
Around the two-month mark, a doctor will provide vaccinations for a number of viruses including rotavirus and polio. Your baby will have stronger neck muscles in the early stages of development. Soon enough, they will be able lift their head about 45 degrees. To help them apply their new strength, you can place your child on their stomach for a few minutes throughout the day. As your child begins to notice the world around them, they will be able to follow moving things with their eyes, focus on objects that are 18–45 cm away and their eyesight will become better adjusted.
Week 9
Your baby’s interest in your voice, high tones and fluctuating pitches can be seen by their change in expression, and whether they smile or not. By this point, your baby may try to communicate with you through baby sounds, cooing, and gurgling. To help foster these communication skills, you can make random sounds and have your baby try to repeat them.
Week 10
Socializing is an important aspect of development and includes daily interactions you have with your child. During this week, your infant will indicate that they recognize you among other faces in a crowd. Through gummy smiles and wide eyes, your baby exhibits familiarity towards you during playtime or feeding sessions. Many mothers may feel comfortable bringing their child to gatherings and family activities to further aid their social skills.
Week 11
You may find need to adjust your baby’s sleep schedule as they stay up for longer periods of time. Your child will have higher energy and activity levels by the first three months of life. Keeping your child’s interest in games and activities may be difficult especially as their interests change from one thing to another. It is important to notice what activities they are focused on, and when their head turns away, it is time to move on to another game. Towards the end of week 11 your baby may try to place weight on their legs and become more aware of their feet and hands.
Week 12
In the first months of life, your baby will keep their fingers in a fist. As they grow and change, they will become more aware of their individual fingers. They will move their hands apart, together and towards their mouth. To help them feel new textures, you can place different objects into their palms and allow them to explore them with their hands. If they have not already, your baby may be able to hold their head and chest upwards, as they kick their legs when lying on their stomach. Other milestones to look for include putting their hands into their mouths with better aim, producing more sounds, copying your facial expressions, and grasping for toys and other household items.
3–6 Months — Postpartum Infant Development
In the upcoming months, infant development can change dramatically each week. You will continue seeing improvements in their mobility and communication. This stage of infant development can be simultaneously rewarding and challenging for you and your child!
Week 13
Week 13 marks the third month and a major transition in motor development as your baby has officially moved to the infant stage. At Week 13, your baby will start to coo and laugh. Your baby will also start engaging with other adults through playful interactions and smiling. This engagement may help create a positive emotional state for them. You will notice that they are more vocal and are attempting to make their first vowel sounds. During this time, you should expect to feed your baby every 3 to 4 hours. Your baby will also have better depth perception and inspect their hands by opening and closing them.
Week 14
By Week 14, your baby has developed hand and eye coordination skills. They will try grasping objects around them and put them in their mouths. They will prefer primary colours as they can differentiate them more. They will also enjoy looking at themselves in the mirror. Your baby will start recognizing their mother’s and father’s face and show excitement. Turn some tunes on, and watch them move their body to music.
Week 15
This week, babies start rolling over from their bellies to their back or their back to bellies. They will start understanding your emotional state by the tone of your voice. Your baby’s colour vision is fully developed by this stage and they can differentiate between different colours. Try making some funny faces — your baby will most likely be able to imitate facial expressions.
Week 16
There will be a greater increase in your child’s ability to move and control their limbs. Make sure to move their toys around so they can practise moving their bodies to reach for them. Your baby wants to put everything in their mouth, which is a sign that they are starting to teeth! Your baby sleeps longer throughout the night (about 7 to 9 hours), which may allow you to have more time to sleep. Your baby will also start anticipating feedings and will show excitement if they spot a breast or bottle.
Week 17
Babies increase their appetite which can be attributed to their growing stomach. By this time, your baby’s cognitive development is improving and their memory is beginning to form. Your baby will sound out more vowel sounds. You should hear them making a lot of “aahs” and “ohs” in different pitches and tones. Make sure to engage in conversations with your baby to improve their speech skills. Your baby may react to their nicknames and will turn their head towards your direction.
Week 18
Your baby will start avoiding strangers, also known as “stranger anxiety”. They will look at multiple objects and follow them with their eyes as their depth perception improves. Your baby should be given the 2nd dose of the pertussis, DTaP, Hib, IPV, PCV13 and RV vaccines by their pediatrician or family doctor.
Week 19
By this stage, your baby can sit with support for a short period of time. They continue exploring themselves and are more flexible as they will put their toes in their mouth. You can help your baby connect sounds to meanings by pointing to pictures in their books and making them repeat the words.
Week 20
In general, you will notice that your baby is much more expressive from previous months of development as they may cry in different ways to show different needs such as hunger, diaper change, or pain. At this stage, your baby will also start learning object permanence — a psychological term referring to the understanding that things still exist even if you cannot see them. For example, if you hide a toy and then reveal it, this will show object permanence.
Week 21
By week 21, your baby’s taste buds have developed, and they will have the urge to put anything into their mouths, so make sure to baby proof your home. Your baby has better vision and depth perception and can focus their vision on moving and small objects. You will notice your baby drooling a lot more as they will begin teething. Your baby will also become more expressive and will add new sounds to their babble, such as a gurgle or squeak. Your baby will start imitating your words and can possibly sound out “mama” or “dada”.
Week 22
At week 22, you will observe a significant growth spurt in your baby. They may begin to crawl, so make sure to give plenty of tummy time on a mat to give them opportunities to improve their motor skills. Your baby will start holding their feeding bottle as you feed them. Babies in this stage can also differentiate between animate and inanimate objects. Your baby likes the sounds of different things and will most likely explore with different items by tapping or dropping them to see the different sounds they make.
Week 23
Your baby will start sleeping about 11 hours during the night. They can start consuming solid foods as their chewing ability improves. They will start recognizing and responding to their name and can more effectively express emotions. The eyesight of your baby at 6 months is reaching that of an adult’s
Week 24
During Week 24, your baby can sit independently without support from others or objects. Your baby’s memory is stronger, and they can point to objects as you name them. Your baby’s weight will double since birth and their skin is clearer.
6–8 Months — Postpartum Infant Development
Between 6 to 8months of age, infants start to become more independent and curious and as they interact with their environment. Caregivers may find themselves overwhelmed at times with the changes in their infants’ behaviors.
Week 25
Infants at this stage typically weigh between 16 to 17 pounds. As your baby starts to become more mobile, they may attempt to sit up with support. They may also start to roll front to back.
Week 26
Your baby will start to recognize your face when you interact with them. As their memory and ability to recognize familiar objects and people around them develops, they may be apprehensive about interacting with strangers and have stranger anxiety, and will prefer to be next to familiar caregivers.
Week 27
At this stage, babies enjoy observing and interacting with their reflections in mirrors. They will also start to babble and smile at their caregivers, sometimes gesturing to be lifted up by them. If you do not notice your little one laughing or babbling at this stage, this may be a cause of concern and might be a reason to seek help from a healthcare professional.
Week 28
Your baby may start to reach for things, grasp the bottle when being bottle fed, and even start to feed themselves. At this stage, they can be introduced to soft finger foods that they can swallow easily. You may also observe them sucking their hands or toes.
Week 29
With the onset of teething, you will observe your baby biting their hands or toys. Teething causes discomfort due to soreness and swelling of gums. This can make babies fussy and experience issues with sleeping.
Week 30
Infants generally weigh about 14 pounds to 17 pounds. Your baby may begin crawling and sitting without support. They may start to rock back and forth while sitting.
Week 31
As babies develop their fine motor skills, they will start to grasp, feel, and play with things like toys and solid foods. You may see them grabbing, feeling, and observing their toys. This is a good time to introduce them to interactive touch and feel toys and books to improve their learning and physical development.
Week 32
As your baby’s memory improves, they begin to grasp the concept of object permanence discussed in the previous article.
Week 33
As they learn and remember more about their environment, babies will begin to indicate their feelings and opinions about things around them. They will readily seek out caregivers they are comfortable with, and even gesture a ‘no’ by shaking their head when introduced to something they do not prefer.
Week 34
Infants will weigh between 17 to 19 pounds. You will notice the improvement in their motor movement and physical strength over these few months; you can encourage them to move more by placing their favorite toys a little out of their reach.
Week 35
Your baby may start to string syllables together, and understand simple words and gestures. They might start to respond to ‘bye-bye’ gestures, and point towards their favorite toy. You can enhance their learning process by playing with them and reading to them. As their eyesight also improves to the level of an adult, they can spot familiar people or toys across the room and may look to you for help as they learn to navigate their surroundings.
Week 36
Babies can now start to grasp the concept of cause and effect. For instance, they begin to understand that crying may cause their caregivers to respond to their distress and attend to them.
9–12 Months — Postpartum Infant Development
9–12 months postpartum marks the time leading up to your baby’s first year. At this stage, your baby’s favourite thing to do is explore their environment.
Week 37
At this time, your baby is beginning to learn the difference between object sizes and has started associating certain objects with words and sounds. When giving your baby toys, be sure to talk to them and name the objects to enforce object and word association. If your baby tries to imitate you or respond, don’t worry if their babbles are not quite words.
Week 38
You are probably noticing that your baby loves pointing at different objects or people with their fingers. To guide your baby through this stage of development, take advantage of their frequent pointing to communicate with them. Help them identify household objects they point to and have them point to different images in a book. Your baby will be able to show you what they like!
Week 39
Around the nine-month period, your baby will begin to adjust their posture and may be able to get into a sitting position without help. This is also an exciting time as your baby attempts to stand up and move around using the help of nearby furniture. Now that your baby is more comfortable moving around, create a safe space for them to explore. Cover electrical outlets, sharp edges, and use stair gates to prevent your baby from falling up or down stairs. Beware of your baby pulling on objects such as electrical cords or tablecloths when trying to stand up as these objects are not sturdy enough to support your baby.
Week 40
Around nine months, your baby will be ready to start eating finely chopped family foods that don’t have added sugar, fat, or salt. Avoid finger foods which can cause choking; some examples include candies, gum, and nuts. To keep your baby safe, avoid giving them snacks using sharp utensils such as toothpicks or skewers. Instead, have your baby hold food with their hands.
Week 41
During this period, you may notice that your baby has trouble going to sleep at night. Your baby is able to pick up on noises or activities that can keep them awake at night, so it’s important to reinforce a consistent bedtime routine. Try playing soothing music and limiting distractions to help them relax.
Week 42
The 10th month is key in your baby’s language development and cognitive growth. For example, you may notice your baby trying to imitate speech sounds. To help your baby with this portion of their development, try making sounds for them to imitate, such as “baba” or “mama”. Games like “Peekaboo” are also popular during this stage. Hide your baby’s toys behind furniture as part of “Peekaboo” and have them practice moving towards where they think the toy is hiding.
Week 43
You may notice changes in physical development such as your baby making stepping movements when held up. Help them develop their mobility by holding them in a standing position for short periods of time to encourage walking. Importantly, don’t stress if your baby is not at this stage as every baby learns at their own pace!
Week 44
As your baby’s cognitive and social development continues to progress, don’t be alarmed if they appear to be scared of things that did not scare them before. This is perfectly normal. When babies are not understood by their parents, they tend to get upset which can result in crying or episodes of frustration. This is also completely normal as your baby is undergoing changes. It is important to have frequent conversations with your baby, even if they do not reciprocate with words. Make sure you are also frequently playing with your baby, as this is how they learn.
Week 45
By now, your baby is likely using their hands and fingers to use spoons and can grasp their sippy cup when drinking. Your baby is now able to retain more nutrients from solids and will drink less breast milk or formula. Set an eating schedule for your baby and fill their diet with a variety of vegetables, dairy products, grains, fruit and protein. Take note of the things your baby likes and does not like to eat; they are developing their preferences. This is also a good time to socialize your baby and have them sit at a table with you to eat. Ensure they are strapped securely into their highchair and that they are far enough from the table so they cannot push themselves over.
Week 46
Your baby has been developing strength in their legs in preparation for their first steps. It’s important to remember that the specific period of when a baby learns to walk is unique to their own development and readiness. Make sure you have your camera on hand as well so you can capture their first steps!
Week 47
If your baby is growing up in a bilingual family, this is a perfect opportunity to start exposing them to a second language. Though this may sound difficult, your baby is incredibly smart. Do not feel discouraged if your baby feels confused or is unresponsive; consistency and exposure are key to helping them learn multiple languages.
Week 48
Around 11 months, your baby needs around 9 to 12 hours of sleep each night along with naps during the day. You may notice your baby’s cries in the night, which is likely a result of separation anxiety. If you find your baby wakes up at night, you can try allowing them to cry for a few minutes until going in to check on them, or you can wait until they stop crying. If crying continues, you can try checking their diaper to see if they need changing.
Week 49
As your baby enters their 12th month, you will find that they love to explore the world by crawling. It is more difficult for your baby to differentiate between what is safe and what is not; make sure that you have covered all sharp and hard surfaces that could potentially cause injury to your baby. They may also be able to walk with support and may be able to momentarily stand by themselves. You may also notice that they can use a pincer grip — using the index finger and thumb — to pick up and hold small objects.
Week 50
Your baby should also be responsive to their name and be able to say a few words such as “mama” or “dada”. Imitation is also a large component of your baby’s sensory and cognitive development at 12 months. You may also notice an ease in communication with your baby as they start to understand short instructions and can more easily tell you what they want.
Week 51
Ensure you are taking your baby to their scheduled checkups. This is a good time to get your baby vaccinated against measles, mumps, rubella, Hepatitis A, Hib, and polio. Check in with your doctor and ensure all of your child’s vaccinations are recorded for future reference.
Week 52
Happy birthday to your little bundle of joy! Your baby has come so far from 9 to 12 months. They are capable of standing with some assistance, as well as recognizing objects and faces. You may notice changes in your baby’s dietary habits, sleep, and personality. It is important to remember that every baby learns and grows at their own pace. Don’t stress if your baby has not reached these milestones in the exact weeks as outlined. Continue to talk to them, play with them, and enjoy the coming years of your baby’s growth!
Authors
Radha Sharma, Ashwini Varatharaj, Netri Pajankar, Arianna Yu, Mateusz Faltyn
lleTTonna
lleTTonna is a Canadian organization whose mission is to help mothers and their families thrive throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period via the development of innovative and personalized mental healthcare technologies.
Designed in consultation with physicians, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and women who have recovered from postpartum depression and anxiety, MomsOverMatter is a free web application that delivers information regarding personalized treatment options for postpartum depression and related disorders based on user-generated responses to validated questionnaires.
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*Disclaimer: The content in this article is for informational purposes only and does not represent any form of formal diagnosis or medical recommendation. Only a trained healthcare professional can make diagnoses or recommendations. If you are concerned, please consult your healthcare professional
