30 guides for partners
For partners
Written for the other parent — being useful in pregnancy and labour, bonding, your own mental health, and what changes between you.
PartnersAnger and Irritability as a New DadShort temper after a baby is common, often the first visible sign of depression or anxiety in…PartnersBirth Partner at an InductionInductions can run for days and partners are often sent home overnight. What happens at each stage,…PartnersBirth Partner Hospital BagThe bag birth partners forget to pack. What the NHS tells partners to bring, why coins and a…PartnersBonding With Your Baby as a PartnerNot feeling an instant bond with your newborn is common and says nothing about you as a parent.…PartnersDads and Breastfeeding SupportPartner support measurably affects whether breastfeeding starts and continues. What helps at night,…PartnersDads and Partners in the Neonatal UnitWhat partners can do on a neonatal unit, from comfort holding to nappy changes through incubator…PartnersFeeling Left Out After the Baby ArrivesWhy partners feel like a spare part in the first months, what is actually happening, and the…PartnersGoing Back to Work After Paternity LeaveDreading the return to work after paternity leave is common. How to plan the handover, protect the…PartnersHelping With Pregnancy SymptomsSickness, back pain, heartburn and exhaustion: what a partner can actually do that helps, what…PartnersHelping Your Partner Recover From a CaesareanWhat your partner cannot do after a caesarean, for how long, and the jobs that fall to you.…PartnersIf You Are Worried About Your Partner's CareHow to escalate when you think something is being missed: what to say, who to ask for, how Martha's…PartnersManaging Visitors After the BirthThe partner's job of gatekeeping visitors: setting limits before the birth, the words that work,…PartnersNew Dad AnxietyAnxiety after a baby is not only a maternal condition. The signs in new fathers and partners, why…PartnersNew Dad ExhaustionBroken sleep is expected. Exhaustion that does not lift is not. What sustained sleep loss does,…PartnersNon-Birthing Mums and Co-ParentsFor female partners and co-parents: being recognised by maternity staff, getting both names on the…PartnersPartners in Theatre for a CaesareanUsually yes, with a spinal or epidural. What you wear, where you sit, what the screen hides, and…PartnersPaternal Mental HealthDads and partners get perinatal depression and anxiety too. What it looks like, why it often shows…PartnersPreparing to Become a DadWhat to actually sort out before the baby arrives, what you need to learn, and what to stop…PartnersRelationship Changes After a BabyConflict rises and relationship satisfaction dips for most couples after a birth. What drives it,…PartnersSharing the Mental Load After a BabyThe invisible work of remembering, planning and noticing, why it lands on one parent by default,…PartnersSharing the Night Shift With a NewbornHow couples split newborn nights, what a partner can take when the baby is breastfed, and why a…PartnersStaying Overnight on the Postnatal WardThere is no national rule, so it depends on your hospital. How to find out before the day, what to…PartnersSuicidal Thoughts as a New DadIf you are having thoughts of ending your life as a new father, help is available now. The numbers…PartnersSupporting a Partner With Postnatal DepressionWhat to say, what not to say, and what to actually do when your partner has postnatal depression,…PartnersSupporting Your Pregnant PartnerWhat actually helps when your partner is pregnant: the appointments worth attending, the jobs worth…PartnersThe First Two Weeks at Home as a PartnerWhat to actually do in the fortnight after you bring a baby home: the jobs to take outright, the…PartnersWhat You'll See at a BirthWhat a birth partner actually sees in the room, what the sounds and the blood are, whether people…PartnersWhen the Birth Was Traumatic for You TooBirth partners can develop PTSD from what they witnessed in the room. The symptoms, why nobody asks…PartnersWhen Your Partner Has a MiscarriageWhat to do and say when your partner miscarries, what you might be feeling yourself, and the…PartnersWhen Your Partner Is Admitted Before the BirthWhat happens when a pregnancy needs an antenatal admission, what a partner can and cannot do, and…