What snacks did you take to hospital?

[user1487755366]

Everyone has told me to pack snacks in my hospital bag for me and DH. I'll also have to pack food for him as he'll be able to stay in as long as I'm admitted as long as he doesn't leave the room under the hospital's covid guidelines.

Already packing prunes (c-section!) noodle pots, coffee sachets etc. but what snacks did you enjoy after birth?

I wouldn’t pack anything you need hot water for. When I had DD we couldn’t use kettles or have any hot drinks or hot water as it’s a health and safety issue.

Anything but chocolate! My hospital is always roasting so they melt quickly apparently.

I packed all sorts of snacks but everything went uneaten!

They made me toast and coffee afterwards. It was marvellous. I also had a king size mars bar!

Food timings in hospital are completely arbitrary. DC1 arrived at 2.30pm. I had toast before going down to the ward, but missed dinner (5pm) because stitches, getting cleaned up, DC checked and fed and as it was Sunday night they only had tuna and egg sandwiches left (I hate both with an irrational passion, especially the smell). DH acquired me McDonald's, zero other options at that time on a Sunday, no sandwiches in any accessible garages...

Breakfast arrived at 7.30. DC fed all night, was very hungry most of the night and sick to death of sweet stuff, so next time I packed jerky (salt craving alert), mini brioche and cereal bars.

Ambient protein sources like jerky, pepperami, mix of salty and sweet.

Sweets and squash. I took a bottle ready dilutes with me but should have taken a neat bottle with me as well as hospital squash isn’t great. I was very well fed in hospital during lockdown.

The food was decent enough when I got some, but the gap between dinner and breakfast was huge. Especially if feeding all night!

I didn’t take anything, but for an 8 night inpatient stay with DC2 I had DH bring me food as they didn’t feed me, but wouldn’t let me off the ward Covid rulez apparently.

Porridge pots
Pain au chocolate / croissants
Cereal bars
Chocolate bars
Granola bars
Crisps & rice cake type snacks
Ritz cracker packs, cheese bars and pepperami
Fruit, apples, oranges & bananas
Thins (bread roll type)
Cup a soups
Uncle bens rice and chilli/ sweet and sour packs
Asda cooked pasta pouches & sauce
Asda cooked rice pouches & tinned curry
Beans and sausages
Eggs cracked into a screw top bottle
Mini jam portions, mini butter portions, mini Nutella portions and mini marmite portions (sources from the pound shop)
Fruit and nut shots
Fruit tea bags, sweetener and mini squash bottles.

Tea and coffee was available in the parent room.

I brought some stuff home and occasionally got a ready meal brought in. You need to look on the ambient aisle at stuff that can be made with a kettle and microwave.

When I gave birth I didn’t take anything at all. But my mum did rock up with a 48 bar pack of my favourite chocolate!

Oh and a knife, fork and spoon in toddler size and my camping silicone collapsible bowls x2.

@Oneandabean

I wouldn’t pack anything you need hot water for. When I had DD we couldn’t use kettles or have any hot drinks or hot water as it’s a health and safety issue.

That’s not in every hospital though, every one I’ve been in is ok with hot drinks, they just needed to be in lidded containers.

I brought my two Klean kanteen insulated bottles, one for keeping hot hot, the other cold cold.

A multipack of bottled water. I was so dehydrated, I drank about 5 of the bottles and I wasn’t even in for 24 hours.

Food wise, barely ate anything. I just wasn’t hungry and all our food was in rustly bags. Didn’t want to wake DD or the lady in the bed opposite me.

I took loads of food with ds2 and ds3 because I really struggled after ds1 because the midwives forgot to bring me some toast and I was too shy to keep asking (I hadn't eaten since the night before). All 3 were c-sections and I was famished afterwards! Because you can not get up initially it is useful to have loads of bits and bobs that are easy to eat close by.

I also took a straw and some nice squash as the water is not necessarily that nice to drink and it is not always that easy to sit up to drink. It is so important to drink lots after a c-section as they want to check your bladder etc is working properly.

I just took snacks that I enjoy - cereal bars, cheddars, grapes, etc

It is so important to drink lots after a c-section as they want to check your bladder etc is working properly.

Also true of a vaginal delivery. Not being able to produce the specified amount of wee (I was severely dehydrated as we were having a mini heatwave and my room was right by the helipad so we couldn’t open the windows) was the reason I wasn’t discharged until the next day.

Can’t remember but I do remember having no desire what so ever to eat them while in labour. DH did force me to take some sports glucose gel sachets.

It sounds like DH will need more food than you will. Pack up a picnic bag with ice packs and take pasta, cheese sandwiches.. no meat as more risk it will go off. I wouldn't suggest you eat much of it after the first 24 hours, but it'll be fine for DH!!

Then for you, if you're in for 4 days you'll want more than biscuits, the hospital will feed you, and take fruit, teacakes, rolls, as well as the snacks.