Newborn Baby Care Basics: What to Know When You Leave the Hospital

Life with a newborn can be magical — and also overwhelming, exhausting and terrifying. I still remember the day I brought my son home from the hospital and thought: How do I care for this tiny, needy creature? Where is his owner’s manual? But hard as being a new parent can be, you’re probably going to do fine. “Babies are a lot stronger than parents may give them credit for,” said Dr. Jennifer Shu, M.D., an Atlanta-based pediatrician and co-author of “Heading Home With Your Newborn: From Birth to Reality.” (I remember our week-old son rolling off a couch once and thinking we had broken him. He was fine.).