The Postnatal Check-Up: What the 6-Week Appointment After Birth Is For

Baby is six weeks old, nights are still short, and that appointment noted down on leaving the maternity unit suddenly feels secondary. You feel fine, so why bother? The postnatal check-up is nonetheless the only moment designed for you, not for baby: it checks that your body has recovered, that your mood is keeping up, and it prepares what comes next.

In a Moroccan study published in 2023, several young mothers interviewed in Essaouira, Settat and Salé considered this appointment pointless as long as they felt well. It is a common idea, and a pity: some problems, such as blood pressure that stays high, urine leaks or a depression setting in, are not necessarily visible from the inside.

When does the postnatal check-up take place?

It takes place between 6 and 8 weeks after the birth. This is the benchmark in the French CNGOF guidelines (2015), the French public health information service and the UK's NHS. It applies to all women, after a vaginal birth as after a caesarean, and even if everything went well.

The World Health Organization goes further. Its 2022 recommendations provide for at least four contacts with a health professional during the first six weeks:

The WHO points out that more than three in ten women and babies worldwide receive no postnatal care in the first days, although this is when most maternal and newborn deaths occur. Between appointments, keep the emergency signs after childbirth in mind: they do not wait for week six.

Who to see in Morocco?

After an uncomplicated pregnancy and birth, the check-up can be done by a gynaecologist, a general practitioner or a midwife. After a complication (haemorrhage, pre-eclampsia, emergency caesarean, prematurity), the CNGOF recommends that it be carried out by an obstetrician-gynaecologist.

In practical terms, in Morocco:

• if you gave birth in a private clinic, the simplest is to see the gynaecologist who followed you again; ask for the date as you leave;
• if you gave birth in a public hospital, ask at discharge where and when to come back: the maternity unit, a midwife or your neighbourhood health centre;
• in all cases, bring your follow-up booklet, the birth report and your latest test results.

We found no official Moroccan text setting the content or schedule of this follow-up: arrangements vary from one facility to another (situation in October 2026, to check with your maternity unit or health centre).

What the doctor checks

The examination is guided by your symptoms and by how the pregnancy went. According to the CNGOF guidelines:

• Weight: the doctor weighs you and encourages you to get back to your pre-pregnancy weight within six months, without a crash diet (see our article on losing weight after baby).
• Blood pressure, especially if you had high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia.
• Healing of the perineum, an episiotomy or a caesarean.
• Breasts and breastfeeding: pain, cracked nipples, worries about milk supply.
• Pelvic floor and continence: leaks of urine, gas or stool, pain during sex.
• Mood and bonding with baby: screening for mood disorders is recommended for everyone, through a conversation rather than a questionnaire.
• Contraception and the gap before another pregnancy: the CNGOF asks that the risks of a pregnancy less than six months after the last be explained.
• Tobacco, alcohol or other substances, with help to stop.

What is not automatic: the speculum gynaecological examination (only if your symptoms justify it), the smear test (only if your cervical screening is not up to date or the last one was abnormal; in France, the HAS recommends a smear every 3 years from 25 to 29, after two first normal smears one year apart, then an HPV test every 5 years from 30 to 65), the toxoplasmosis blood test, and the blood count, reserved for women who bled a lot or have signs of anaemia.

Situations that call for specific follow-up

Some pregnancies leave "homework" to do after the birth:

• after pre-eclampsia or high blood pressure, blood pressure is monitored; if it stays high or if the urine still contains protein at 3 months, specialist advice is sought;
• after gestational diabetes, ask your doctor when to have the blood sugar check, and note the date;
• after cholestasis of pregnancy, the liver tests are checked to see that they return to normal 8 to 12 weeks after the birth;
• after a premature birth or complications, the doctor may offer an appointment before the next pregnancy.

Pelvic floor: is rehabilitation decided at 6 weeks?

Here practices differ. In France, the postnatal check-up is often the moment to prescribe pelvic floor and abdominal rehabilitation sessions. The CNGOF guidelines are more restrictive: they reserve rehabilitation for women who still have urine or anal leaks at 3 months.

Keep the essential: if you have leaks, a heavy feeling or pain, say so, even if it is embarrassing. The exercises and rehabilitation are explained in our article on pelvic floor rehabilitation.

Questions to prepare

At 3 a.m. the questions come by themselves; in the surgery they fly away. Note them on your phone as the weeks go by. Here are the ones most often forgotten:

1. Bleeding: "My bleeding started again at three weeks, is that normal?" Our article on the return of periods helps you tell the difference.
2. Contraception: "Which one is compatible with my breastfeeding, and from when?" The options are presented in our guide to contraception after baby.
3. Sex: "It hurts during sex, or I have no desire: will that pass?"
4. Leaks: "I lose a few drops when I cough or lift baby."
5. Mood: "I cry often, I sleep badly even when baby sleeps, I worry all the time." Our article on the baby blues and postpartum depression can help you find the words.
6. Body: "My belly stays soft in the middle", "I'm losing my hair", "when can I start exercising again?"
7. Medicines: "Is this treatment compatible with breastfeeding?"
8. Next pregnancy: "How long should I wait, especially after a caesarean?"

And baby's follow-up?

The postnatal check-up is about the mother. Baby has their own appointments with the paediatrician or the health centre, with weighing, examination and vaccines. For the vaccines of the first month and later, see our vaccination schedule in Morocco. Combining the two appointments on the same day can make life easier, as long as you do not sacrifice yours.