Hospital bag?

[Gabbslou]

Hi everyone! This is my first pregnancy and I'm starting to think about my hospital bag and getting it ready. I have a rough idea of what I need such as a few baby outfits, a couple of comfy pjs for me and an outfit for going home, nappies and wipes, car seat, breast pads and nipple cream. Have I missed anything major or have I covered the basics? Any tips or things you wish you knew or had while in hospital? Thank you!

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Hello, this thread is a little old; for up-to-date recommendations, take a look at our hospital bag checklist.

Don't bother with paper pants. As others said get belly warmers. Nice outfit/babygro for baby photos. iPod, charger.

You leave baby in its cot asleep (and hope S/he stays that way!) you could tell midwife or support assistant where you're going.

I had two bags.
One labour bag with everything I needed for that, notes, snacks etc. I used a hand luggage type bag.
One after labour bag with all the stuff for cleaning up, baby things, going home stuff etc. I used a carry on sized case. I put all of the baby's things in the net, zippy part of the case so that her little bits were easy to find.

I found it easier because I could tell DH exactly where things were during labour.

After seeing a recommendation somewhere round here I bought always incontinence pants for the first 24-48 hrs of lochia.

After bleeding copiously over everything, after surgery to repair a tear (complete with catheter) I was a mess with DC1.

DC2 and the incontinence pants and everything was nicely contained!

In my experience, though maternity pads are thick, they're quite narrow. I needed a wider gusset!

Phone, charger, camera. Any meds/inhalers/glasses/contacts etc that you need.

Water bottle with sports cap for filling with warm water and squirting on your bits when you do those first post birth wees.

Your notes.

Handcream and lipbalm as air con is very drying.

Be careful about anything valuable, avoid bringing it if you can

I got induced with DC3, and almost the first thing the midwife did when I got onto the labour ward, was to ask me to sign a disclaimer agreeing that the hospital weren't responsible if any of my valuables or other personal possessions went missing.

Only after I'd signed this did she go on to talk about the actual medical details relevant to the induction.

Not sure how much of a problem they have with theft at my local hospital, but the fact they feel they need a disclaimer suggests that they've had problems before with valuables going missing.

One thing that doesn't seem to have been mentioned is an empty plastic bag for putting wet/dirty clothes in to keep them separated from all your clean stuff!

Ah yes Terri, poor DP was given a bundle of bloody clothes in a plastic bag and told to take them home and boil-wash them tae fuck.

He couldn't find that setting on the machine, so he just speed-washed them twice and brought them back from me. Grim.

My tip would be to get everything you need together and get your DH to put it in the bag so he knows where it is! Otherwise it's hugely frustrating to be trying to explain what you want and where it is when you're unable to move for one reason or another!

I also left baby's going home outfit and blanket etc in the car seat in the car. Assuming you're using a Maxi Cosi Pebble or similar just get DH to bring it all in to the hospital when you're ready to leave. You could do the same with your own going home outfit.

When I read these threads I realise how lucky I am living on the continent - the hospitals usually supply everything needed for mum and baby after the birth - nappies, wipes, baby clothes, pads, blankets, formula, milk pumps etc etc. In the U.K. you must end up lugging a huge bag around!

i brought two bags, one bag for labour/just after labour with everything we needed & second bag had everything we needed to stay on the ward. third bag left in car with extra pjs/pants/pads/nappies/0-3month clothes incase baby was a whopper.
bag on wheels - i pulled my bag whilst DH put other on his shoulder & carried baby in the car seat.
foldup shopper bags for DH to take home dirty clothes etc & gifts in.
flipflops for the showers.
snacks/flat energy drinks for both you/partner.

I had two bags, one for labour and one for afterwards, worked quite well.

My tips are:

Put a nappy, vest, Vaseline, baby gro and hat in a carrier bag and show DH where it is so he can grab it once baby is born, no way my DH would be able to locate all the items if they were spread out! I had one in newborn size and one in 0-3 in case baby was massive!

Vaseline is good to stop the meconium sticking to baby so apply asap

Large dark coloured towel for showers, the ones they provide aren't great

iPad/iPhone and headphones, I listened to podcasts when I couldn't sleep at night

Water bottle with sports cap so you can drink lying down if needs be

Snacks and drinks for DH, don't want them having to go to canteen or fainting from hunger

Also, suggest DH packs spare pants/t-shirt and tooth brush in case you're in a while. Also a good plan to have shorts and t-shirt for DH as the wards are usually boiling

Several big comfy nighties that you can feed in, I bought some nice ones from mothercare and am still wearing them as ds is still feeding!

Yes yes to the big pants! I ended up with a section and my mum bought me some special c-section pants. They were pricy but super comfy! Again, still wearing them!

Good luck! X

I separated my stuff and the baby's stuff as it was just easier to find. Definitely take drinks in case you get left without water (I did!) Also, a massive yes to huge hideous pants. I had an EMCS a week ago today and the higher up the better as they don't mess with your cut. Take your own maternity pads as the hospitals are awful - I recommend Natracare ones - I got them from Amazon. iPad and headphones saved me in the night when my DD was sleeping but the other babies were keeping me awake. Also, tissues, for many reasons

Massive yes to shorts - it is boiling in there! I nicked DH's

Janubub - I didn't want to leave her and only did when DH got there. Showering was enough of a struggle without worrying about DD!

And make sure you know where your call button is when they leave you. I was lying on mine and had to ask one of the other patients to press theirs for me!

I have no more suggestions for what to include but we move just packed mine.

Note. WE!

Best advice we were given (and came from my midwife!) Lay everything out. Give your birth partner the bag and get them to pack it. That way, when you ask your partner for something when you're in labour they will know where it is in the bag and you won't spend precious energy trying to explain how to find it!

Baby clothes in up to 1 month in case newborn is too small

Squash to go to mix with hospital water

At home have spares of everything in carrier bags marked on the outside with what's in each one

• baby clothes
• mum pants, nightie,
• more maternity pads/breast pads

-more nappies/wipes My very normal pregnancy turned into a weeks stay post delivery due to sepsis. Extra supplies were required and it helped sleep deprived husband/other people find what I needed.

Socks - my feet were freezing.

Good quality sanitary pads. I ended up with them in my underwear and also along my c section wound. Worked v well. I took some bottles of ready made formula too and topped my bf baby up. Take nappy disposal bags too.

In addition to ALL the above, make sure your dp / birthing partner has a change of clothes and extra jumper. My dh was freezing even though I gave birth in July, because the air con was up so high!

I rang round all the local taxi companies and checked they would take a woman in labour, and how much they would charge for the trip to hospital. I put the money in a an envelope, wrote the numbers on the outside and taped it to the bag. You can't call an ambulance in early labour and my husband works some way away. I wanted to be able to get to hospital under my own steam if necessary without worrying about how.

I had: vests and babygrows in newborn size (they ended up being too big as my lo was a smaller baby), cardigan or jacket, bibs, hat, mittens if the babygrows don't have attached ones. And a nice going home outfit for the baby, and a pramsuit as its winter (I didn't need one as it was only September). Also maybe a blanket so baby can be wrapped in their own blanket once they're all cleaned up, and maybe a small teddy to put in the cot in hospital I think looks sweet. And of course the car seat.
Wipes, nappies, cream. And any feeding supplies you need (I knew I would be formula feeding exclusively so I took a starter pack of formula).
For me I had all dark coloured clothes, which were a couple of long nighties for during labour and birth, a maternity tankini for the birth pool, pyjamas to sleep in, comfy clothes to wear to go home (I had tracksuit bottoms and a t shirt and hooded jacket). Also plenty of large, comfy knickers and bras (I just got cheap ones from primark as I didn't want disposable ones, and I wasn't breastfeeding so didn't need to worry about that). Also maternity pads and breast pads. I also had my tens machine as I used it as my main source of pain relief.
Also plenty of drinks to keep hydrated, and I had some light snacks in case I felt like anything. Phone chargers, change for machines or canteen/ cafe. Also a change of clothes for your birth partner if you will be having one. Oh and your maternity notes as well.
That's all I can think of really. Good luck.

Just in case you have to stay overnight, ear plugs (you will still ear your baby if he / she is crying) and a sleep mask!

just packed mine this morning, having dc3 tomorrow by planned section.... Here's my list:
Nighty x 1 and pjs x 1
nursing bra
msssive pants x million
charger for phone
sleepsuits x 5
vests x5
hat for baby
nappies
wipes
baby lotion to help eeek of the meconium
sudocreme
muslin squares
harvested colostrum
nipple shields (got flat nipples)
maternity pads
breast pump?
breast pads
peppermint oil for adding to hot water for wind/after pains
hair brush and bobble
toothbrush
toothpaste
dry shampoo, moisturiser, mascara and lipgloss (my how frivolous!!!)
deodorant
baby blanket
snacks