Changing your first nappy can be daunting but practice makes perfect, and you’ll be getting a lot of practice!
At home, set aside an area in the house for nappy changes, though you may prefer to change him or her on the bed in the first days. Use a towel or muslin square over a wipe down changing mat as this will be warmer on your baby’s naked skin. Babies don’t like cold or hard surfaces and will respond by crying.
Which nappy you choose to use is up to you. Many families have returned to washable terry nappies as a low-cost, environmentally-friendly option but you may find that disposables make your life a little easier as you find your feet.
Babies are usually undisturbed by wet modern nappies, as the absorption of disposables means they do not have a sensation of being wet. However, this can also mean that it can be difficult to tell if the baby is urinating. If you cannot tell by the weight of the nappy that he/she is passing water, then place a piece of cotton wool in the nappy. It will be stained yellow when he/she urinates.
Most breastfed babies can have 6-8 wet and dirty nappies in the early days although others only poo once every 24-48 hours. Bottle-fed babies should have at least one bowel motion a day.
A baby’s first few dirty nappies will be meconium - in other words, it will look like a black tar. As the baby has food intake, the poo changes to brown and then to a yellow mustard seed colour.
It’s often recommended that you change your baby before each feed but in practice, look in and see if it is dirty. If not, wait. Most babies like to perform during or just after a feed.
To change a nappy:
- Open the nappy and wipe any faeces with a clean part of the nappy. Discard the nappy (or fold it under the baby while you clean the bottom, as they are very likely to wee as you change them).
- Clean the bottom using large pieces of cotton wool dampened with warm water. (If you are going to use wipes, use unperfumed or water wipes.)
- When a baby’s bum is really dirty it can be just as easy to pop them into a bowl of warm water for a bottom bath.
- Always wipe girl babies from their front to the back. This prevents the spread of bacteria. Be gentle around a boy’s penis. Do not pull the foreskin back.
- Dry well.
- Using a little petroleum jelly on the bottom can make cleaning the meconium a little easier. You only need to use nappy cream, medicated powders or creams if they develop a rash or a sore bottom.
- Lay the new nappy flat under your baby - tabs to the back - with the top of the nappy-back in line with your baby’s waist. Bring up the nappy between their legs, peel back the tabs and fasten. Make sure you clean the petroleum jelly from your hands if the tabs are sticky-back – otherwise they won’t stick.
- Leave boys with their penis down before you close the nappy. This is to prevent urine leaking up and over the top of the nappy, and to stop it going on the umbilical cord area.
- Nappies will often leak on newborn babies. This is not due to any inefficiency on your part, but because even the smallest nappies may be too big for your baby.
- If poo leaks out of the nappy (and it will), avoid taking the dirty vest or body suit over his head. Envelope necks will allow you to pull the soiled clothes down the body and over the feet.
This is an extract from “After Birth” the new ebook co-authored by Louise Ní Chríodáin with Margaret Hanahoe, Assistant Director of Midwifery at the National Maternity Hospital. Their two eguides From Bump to Birth and After Birth are available on Amazon.co.uk, and contain essential tips and advice from midwives and mothers for pregnancy and labour, and in the weeks after baby is born. You can find more of their tips and advice on bumptobirthtobaby.com 
