It’s Ok If Your “Golden Hour” Isn’t Golden

A lot of people hear about “THE Golden Hour”. It is something that has not and is not always been part of birth stories, but research and experience is showing that there is a lot of value in having it. And people want it. But what is “The Golden Hour” exactly, and what happens when it doesn’t happen like it’s supposed to?

What is “The Golden Hour”?

Most of the time, people are referring to the hour immediately following birth. It’s “golden” when certain things happen. This is the most basic of definitions.

1. Your baby is immediately put directly onto your body skin-to-skin.
2. You spend about an hour of uninterrupted time holding your baby, bonding, and probably breastfeeding.

What We Think

First of all, we do love The Golden Hour. However, we also know that it might not happen at all for some people, and that it might be more or less than an hour. One of the purposes of the golden hour is to bond with your baby, but it’s also key to healthy breastfeeding. During this time, a baby will go through some very prescribed and instinctual processes. They may come out crying and frantic, and then they might close their eyes for a little nap on your chest or belly. This doesn’t usually last very long. The baby will likely then wake up and be very alert and strong. They may pick up their heads and start looking around. They might start bobbing their head around, sort of pecking at your chest. They might smack their lips and stick out their tongue. Sometimes they try to get a fist in their mouth or even start using elbows, knees and feet to scoot toward a nipple.

This is a golden opportunity to breastfeed and it might not happen or it might be hard to recognize if your baby is not on your body or if there are too many distractions. Your baby might be ready to breastfeed for the first time after just a few minutes, or it could take an hour or even more. Once the baby is able to latch on, they may want to feed for just a few minutes or stay latched on for an hour. There’s a lot of variation. We hope that people are given the time they need to allow all of this to happen without interruption, however long it takes.

What We Recommend

We like to recommend that you get immediate skin-to-skin contact with your baby and that that continues for as long as you need until your baby is able to breastfeed for the first time-at least. We also recommend that there not be any interruptions while you are having this time together. Any assessments and interventions that your baby might be getting can happen after. The eye ointment, shots, tests, and measurements can wait. Anything that might cause your baby stress or separation from you would be considered an interruption and can interfere with this very natural physiologic process that contributes to your bonding and breastfeeding relationship.

If You Have to Be Interrupted

Sometimes unexpected things happen, and you might have to be separated from your baby. This can happen commonly in the case of cesarean births, or if there is a complication after any kind of birth. If you need extensive stitching or there is excessive blood loss or if your baby needs some special attention, you may not get your golden hour. It might be a short delay, or a very long one. This can be really hard for both of you.

As a new parent, you might have very strong instincts to hold and protect your baby. Your baby tends to feel better when they are with you too. It’s not ideal when separation happens, but sometimes it’s necessary. The best thing to do is stay present and get through the rough patch as quickly and easily as possible so you can come back together. When you do, you can start over as if it’s the beginning. It won’t be exactly the same, but it will still benefit you both. It might be a little more difficult to initiate breastfeeding, but with some persistence, you can still be very successful. Here are some tips that might help:

• Use hand expression and/or pumping to help collect some milk for your baby and to help you create a healthy milk supply until you and your baby can be back together.
• Spend as much skin-to-skin time with your baby as you can, however you can.
• Let your baby smell, nuzzle, and lick the breast even if they aren’t able to latch yet.
• Encourage your baby to latch onto the nipple when you can as long as you can.
• Enjoy as much closeness as you can, and do your best to make peace with that level of connection with your baby. When you can stay present and enjoy those moments, it will help you feel better and help you achieve your breastfeeding goals.
• When you and your baby are together and can start breastfeeding directly, start over as if your baby was just born. Get skin-to-skin and see if you can re-create a Golden Hour experience.

Our lactation consultants see a lot of patients who miss The Golden Hour and go on to breastfeed very successfully. We also know that there are people who do get the benefit of a long Golden Hour and still have trouble with breastfeeding. If you miss this time, you might benefit from help from a lactation consultant. They can show you ways to get back on track so you can feed your baby the way you most want to.