Missed 6 to 8 week check

[Mumtobe202310]

Hi All,

I hope you all and your LOs are all doing well.

I have been someone who has been struggling with my mental health before baby was born so was with perinatal care and also after baby was born struggled emotionally too due to birth trauma (fast labour) and also health issues. I spoke to birth trauma about this and also the perinatal care team where they assessed me and gave me some links to low cost services near me etc and self help booklets and courses to do.

Due to all of this I was a bit late in booking vaccinations for my bubba. He is all up to date now.

However, I was late in booking 6 to 8 week check too with health visitor as I thought they were going to call me but they didn't and only after my mum speaking to me did I realise no one had called so I requested it myself.

Also alongside all of this, I have had a lot of health problems. I had to have 2 mris the past few months and it was a very scary thing for me. I'm very worried for my health and thoughts such as am I going to be alive etc has gone through my mind, I want to live and be healthy and love my child, and here I am fearing about my health, it's so horrible. The pain has been really bad.

However, I completely kept forgetting that I need to book a 6 to 8 postnatal check for baby and me because of all these things.

My baby is nearly 7 months now!

I however feel a bit better so I am very wanting to book this appointment but I scared that I am too late and very worried about what the GP will say about it being so late and if they will question that I'm a bad mum or anything.

Please advice me as to what I should do? I'm extremely scared of GP taking my baby away from me because of not having booked the 6 to 8 week check.

Which check is it for you or baby? Health visitor should have contacted you. If it’s for baby they will be due their 9 month development check with health visitor soon so I wouldn’t worry about catching up with appointments you have missed. As long as vaccinations are up to date that’s the main thing

It is the 6 to 8 week check that they say is for mum and baby I think to check mum's stitches and to do checks on baby like hip, testes, head, and heart.

During the time he was 2 moths old he had bronchiolitis so I was so worried during that time and also took him hospital 2 days in a row during that time aswell, so I was on a survival mode trying to make sure he was okay. I feel so so bad

Have the doctors not chased you up and when you went for vaccinations did they not mention it?
They only check stitches if there are problems , at mine it was more about how dealing with things mentally so if you were under the perinatal team maybe they didn’t chase you as you were being looked after by them but baby checks should have been done

I never had an 8 week check. Slot of places don't do them now it's just a quick are you okay when checking the baby over

Hi Op,

The check for me was rubbish- just literally a ‘are you okay’ and then a lecturer about contraception.

the only thing I would be a bit concerned about is that they did an all over body check so to speak on baby so checked his hips etc. I’m a first time Mum so I’m unsure how important this is. However there is absolutely no way your baby will be taken from you for missing this appointment, I highly doubt it will even raise any concern considering you’ve been to other appointments. If I were you I would call and just ask you could book an appointment for a GP to give baby the once over. :)

Totally understandable how you got to this point.

I'd call the doctors and ask if you can still go. It'll put your mind at ease that you haven't missed anything and at worse they will day 'no, it's too late'. It's really not much of a check up, so you won't miss much if they do say No.

Thank you so much everyone for replying. And not for judging me and just giving me reassurance. New mums deffo just need kindness and grace, who thank you for being compassionate xxx I am waiting for Monday to book an appointment xxx