Compiling a shopping list for the baby - what "healthcare" stuff do I need?

[VegemiteSandwich]

What "health care" type stuff do I need for the baby? We think it'd be good to buy the stuff that we are most likely to need/use for the first couple of months to avoid a late night dash to Boots.

I'm not due until December but I'm compiling a "to buy" list to get an idea of how much money to set aside as we are going to have to spend a fair bit of money on renovations this autumn and also I'm off work today and bored

On my list so far is:

thermometer
calpol (I know I can't use this on a newborn, but I see it mentioned a lot so thought it's better to have it ready for when it's needed!)
lotion (I don't actually know what I mean by this!)
nappy rash cream?

Without setting up a mini-boots in my house, what other stuff is sensible to get?

Yes yes to waitrons bottom butter! Health visitor suggests olive oil on new babies dry skin. That's fine but your baby ends up slippery and like a chicken fagita! Use this all over instead, it's totally natural and amazing!

It's easy to get into a "shopping days before Xmas" countdown to birth. The shops and Internet will be open after the birth and babies really don't need much.

I think you get samples of sudocream and baby wash in the Bounty Bags they give out at hospital (at least they did when I had mine). Then you can buy more if you like it.

You will need nappies and wipes/cotton wool and eventually thermometer and liquid paracetomol/calpol. Other than that not much is in the late night dash category.

There is no evidence that Infacol, gripe water and homeopathic remedies work at all.

Vegemite If you do go down the Sudocrem route.... please please keep it out of your dc's reach once they hit 6 months. They will be able to open it. They will eat it. And it is a bugger to get out of your carpet.....

Hands up those of you (with DC already) that have experienced this......

I have

Twice [never learns emotion]

Oh and Badger is also right about stuff to heal your own bits... Bicarb of soda by the handful in the bath, and a few drops of lavender oil. Just a few inches of water to sit in - eases things off no end!

I've seen a lot of people mention lavender oil in a shallow bath for healing your bits post-birth. But I have a (somewhat TMI) question..with all the warnings I have read about industrial quantities of lochia bleeding, does a shallow bath end up looking like you've been trying to dispose of a body after a particularly gruesome murder?

It can be a bit messy, yes, but a good gentle swilling around is definitely the best way to clean everything at a time when you don't really want to be getting down there with the wire brush and Dettol...

Would epsom salts work as well as bicarb of soda - or is that a massive no-no?

Also just want to say - this thread is awesome. Loving the natural approach to everything and the shallow bath recipes are golden!

I need to stop spamming this thread

Quick question - aloe vera for perineal bruising/tearing - I know aloe vera gel can be a bit of an astringent...does it work to actually apply it to your vajay-jay? Does it sting at all?

I don't know about the Epsom salts, but they are supposed to be good for skin-healing stuff as well as bicarb - might be best to ask the midwife if it's ok on open wounds (wince emoticon).

Aloe vera gel (get the Aubrey Organics one - its bloody expensive but it's GOOD) won't sting, but if like me, you mix it with Witch hazel gel (Witch Doctor stuff) it might a teensy bit - no biggie though.

Mix equal parts together and store in the fridge. Very cooling. Apply to fanjo or spread a bit on a maternity pad. VERY good on haemorrhoids too.

Epsom salts - definitely. I'm getting some. They are very good for healing, and for easing aches and pains.

If you want to go REALLY earth mother, you can buy dried comfrey leaves from a herbal shop (Neals Yard do it), and brew a strong comfrey tea to add to your sitz bath. Comfrey is also called "knit bone" and has super strong healing properties (like Aloe Vera, it's very high in Allantoin which promotes healing).

Thanks! Very good to know, all this stuff. I am reading this book: A Gentle First Year - tons of great stuff in it about making herbal baths and stuff. Love this book so much.

The aloe vera on a maternity pad is a great idea!

We buy epsom salts by the 3 kilo bag from a private chemist, who also do the pure aloe vera gel. Much love for the private chemist - there's always so much more interesting stuff in them than Boots or Superdrug. We used to us epsom salts for when we were doing martial arts about five times a week - good for muscles and cuts! So maybe it is alright on open wounds?

I have a 4 week old (DC4). The only thing mentioned that I have used is metanium. Even that is optional and you might get away with a bit of breastmilk instead.

I used cotton wool and water with DC1. Subsequent babies have had reusable nappy wipes, which are softer, cheaper in the long run and less faff. Mine were made by a friend v v cheaply, but you can buy them for a price, eg here and here. They're also great for makeup removal. An old fleece jumper from a charity shop cut up would work as well with newborn breastfed poo. My velour ones happily removed the meconium without any bother and it washes clean out.

I got given loads of baby bath/talc/baby lotion/baby shampoo as gifts when I had ds. I have never used the lotion talc or shampoo and only started using some of the baby bath at about 9 months ish (ds 22 months). I used metanium but only very occasionally, I'm lucky that ds hardly ever gets any nappy rash.

I still have piles of cotton wool left over from when He was a newborn as found it fairly useless for wiping up big messy bf poos, but I have friends who still use it so depends on you really.

A thermometer is a good idea, but tbh you really don't need too much stuff. I was like you, wanted to be really prepared but still have a cupboard full of infacol, dentinox, gripe water, saline drops, teething powders. I really didn't find any of it to be of any use so next time I will save my money.

I found dentinox shampoo to be good for cradle cap and olive oil (normal kitchen stuff) good for dry skin/massages. I have sudocreme but again have never really used it as ds skin doesn't seem sensitive, though I have friends who still use it at every nappy change.

I guess the moral of the story is it really will depend on your dc and how you want to do things. I wish is remembered that shops are still open after I gave birth and not stocked up quite so much.

Lansinoh is another thing I didn't use all that much of, tho it gets rave reviews on mn. Worth considering if you are planning to bf, but it is expensive! Plenty of breast pads too, I underestimated these.

I found the most useful stuff to be.... Biscuits, cake and plenty of meals in the freezer!

Sorry for the mammoth post, got a bit carried away and off topic there.

Oh no wait, I tell a lie . I used one bit of cotton wool and some cooled boiled water to clean the cord stump once.

Def agree re cotton wool except dd kept getting sticky eyes and it's needed to dip in sterile water and wipe the gunk away. Not for bums though.

You'll need nice moisturiser for you. Not expensive - e45 will do. Your hands get really dry because you wash them all the time.

Dentinox good too. Olive oil, which midwife will suggest, will make your child's head smell like cheese.

And for mental health rather than physical, get an iPhone or something else you can operate one handed while feeding in the middle of the night.

Wow, THANK YOU EVERYONE for all your brilliant tips. I now have some really good ideas of a couple of basics I might get. Several things (like cotton wool) aren't that expensive and will get used up anyway so it doesn't hurt to get them just in case. I might see if I can acquire some samples for things like creams for nappy rash!

I think, though, that generally I seem to be overthinking it and will cut back on the list. Being sensible, there is a pharmacy less than 5 minutes away (next door to the corner shop) so trekking down there will be no great hardship.

I hadn't thought about getting stuff for ME to help with recovery. That, I think, perhaps is well worth stocking up on.

newtonuponthehealth I'll remember that about the sudocrem! We're having our bathroom moved upstairs and part of my plan is to have an out-of-reach spot for medicine-y stuff in a high up cupboard. Just need to train the husband to learn to put things away, though!!

Vege And when it does happen, because it happens to everybody!take a photo..... Good for 18th birthdays and embarrassment in front of first girlfriends!!

I don't know why they find it so tasty!!

newtonuponthehealth

When I was about... 9 months old, my parents put me down to nap in the upstairs nursery whilst they were at a friend's house for a barbecue. When they came up to check on me, they found me and a tub of Sudocreme. I had spread it all over myself, my face and my hair - I'd taken my clothes off and spread it over my tummy AND I'd gleefully all over a teddy that belonged to the child of their friend I was having a lovely time apparently.

You don't need half of the stuff people have mentioned.

You need:

Nappies
Water
Cotton wool ( but I hated using cotton wool and preferred to use soft baby flannels that I could wash!)

All babies are different but mine never got nappy rash for example, so I never used Sudocrem/Metanium etc. You can put a thin film of vaseline on the bum immediately after birth so that when they do their first meconium poo it wipes off more easily.

Thermometers - in ear (tympanic) ones are the most reliable and accurate but are very difficult to use on newborns. Also you can tell when a baby has a fever as it's body feels hot to touch.

You really don't need nasal aspirators/saline drops/stuff like that. You don't really need to start faffing around with baby's mucus and even when they have a cold they tend to sound worse than they are due to their tiny airways. If they need anything doing about it the GP or HC can advise you. It can be dangerous so start poking around in their nostrils.

Liquid paracetamol can't be given until AT LEAST 8 weeks so you don't necessarily need to get it before birth. Liquid ibuprofen is unlicensed under 3 months.

Infacol/gripe water etc are not necessarily needed either so I'd wait and see how your baby is first. Ditto nipple cream for you.

I'd save your money and spend it on stuff for you instead

Sidge that's a good tip about the vaseline on the bum for meconium wiping purposes. OP it really is the stickiest substance imaginable, it's like tar. Bears no resemblance to normal poo.

a post-natal nurse i know said that wiping the meconium off first with dry cotton wool then cleaning the area with wet works wonders - she was right - it's the best method.

sidge - the first aid kit my friend gave me at birth was a life-saver - when you've got a 12-week old baby screaming at night in pain etc, having that calpol ready is sooo important.
the stuff she gave me was stuff we never even though of - like the thermometer, the gripe water, and other stuff i can't even remember now!

asking in the asda pharmacy was useless - she didn't know of anything that was suitable for under a year, even though we'd already got stuff for 3 month olds!

I always find cotton wool useless for sticky things - you just end up with half of it adhering to the probably-screaming-blue-murder newborn's bottom.

honestly, dry, it worked perfectly.

you have to get a wodge about 2" by 1" and wipe.

for the early days, mine would be:

• cotton wool balls (lots)
• thermometer
• Calpol (though prob not on first list)
• sudocrem (for nappy rash only, you don't need a barrier cream as standard)
• er, that's it

no need for soap/other kinds of "wash" - more likely to irritate your baby, who needs only water for washing