Hospital bag for elective c section

[hibaby20]

Hey! Just checking over my
Hospital bag for Tuesday when I go in for my elective c section - anyone think of anything I need?! I've got all the essentials for baby just thinking of stuff for me really, in my bag I have packed:

Pjs
Flip flops
Underwear
Hair ties/brush
Clothes for leaving
Snacks
Phone charger
Nipple cream
Moisturiser
Lip balm
Maternity pads
Nipple pads
Tooth brush / toothpaste

Anything I've missed or you think would be nice for me to have 😌

Lightweight dressing gown?
I'd pack a nighty for birthing in, nighty or pj's for after.

Earphones?
Straws, or waterbottle.
Flannel for your head.
Mini fan.

Also your own paracetamol as I found midwifes useless as getting me pain relief when I asked last time.
I was induced so was on the ward a few days before they broke my waters, self medicated, was easier.

Suggest you take a nightie/nightshirt for the first hours after surgery when you have a catheter in . PJs are awkward with a catheter! It is good to get out of your surgery gown as soon as you can, to feel more normal.
Also a drink bottle for water that you can easily reach or even keep lying beside you on the bed while you are finding it hard to stretch and reach for things.
A pack of wet wipes.
Good luck - hope it goes well x

Feeding pillow. It can be hard to position baby either for breast or bottle after a c section

Squash. You're encouraged to drink loads of water afterwards and the hospital water isn't the nicest, it can be quite warm. The nurses got me some squash to help me stay hydrated and it really helped.

Do your knickers go up to your belly button and accommodate a still pretty big belly? If not, whip the ones you have packed out, and buy some whopping granny pants in several sizes larger than your normal size. Also deodorant, shampoo, shower gel and your own towels. Hope all goes well!

Giant knickers or better yet a round of Tena lady pants that you can just chuck out as required.
I also brought a shawl which was great for covering my shoulders while my boobs were out pretty much constantly feeding DD.

Shampoo, conditioner, shower gel and a big towel. I bought myself some little travel minis to take. Having a shower after the catheter came out made me feel almost human again!

Earphones and a brush. Good suggestions! Had forgotten those. Juice is a good one too.

I read on here to take peppermint tea/capsules to help with trapped wind which apparently can be v painful afterwards.

Peppermint seconded! The pain from trapped wind after my first section was unbearable- I was armed with peppermint oil capsules the 2nd time & it made all the difference.

Cake and a knife. I took a ginger cake and forgot the knife. Probably could have asked for one but I spent my two days in after my elcs pulling lumps off it with my hands...it was bloody brilliant.
Seriously though, snacks are the main thing I filled the time with afterwards apart from looking at the baby. Didn't touch my books or even phone that much.

Ear plugs and an eye mask. Although with current situation you might not have the opportunity to use if partner isn't allowed on ward. They were a god send for both of my stays, a little bit of proper sleep made all the difference

Shampoo and body wash. Also if you have any of that “sticky stuff remover” the plaster they put on my belly was manky for about a month! And I couldn’t bring myself to scrub the sticky from it 🙈

One bit of advice I need to give out always is.....you need to get some of those stomach holding in pants, like Bridget Jones ones...they made me feel so secure after having the op.x

Oh amazing thank you all!!

I deffo will be adding these to my bag tommrow, I've got my empty bottle ready so I'll fill in up with squash before we leave for hospital

I've got one nightie and then 2 sets of pjs , I'm hoping I'm only going to be in for one night (touch wood everything goes well)

Haha yes my pants are big ones ! I think they'd go up to under my boobs 😂😂

I was just thinking about my own paracetamol for after so I'll deffo dig some out of the cupboard and put them in!!

Ahhh I need to get some of the sticky stuff remover!!! Makes me squeamish thinking about rubbing my belly trying to get it off now 🤣

OP, if you are in a lot of pain, don’t be afraid to ask for some oramorf! It’s the only thing that eased my pain. I doubt paracetamol will kill the pain very much. When I had both my c-sections, I had to ask for decent pain killers both times!

Parcetamol was fine for me, but yes take your own.
My best advice - if you like them, take a bag of dried fruit (figs, apricots etc) and snack on them afterwards. They have a slight laxative effect that compensates for the dreaded constipation issue, and helps out with the trapped wind as well. I had no problems with either but did eat figs like they were going out of fashion.

Definitely take your own paracetamol. And simeticone for the wind (peppermint tea didn't cut it for me). Easy to eat snacks, because the hospital food will probably be infrequent as well as grim.

Most of all, I recommend sugary drinks. Oasis! I would never drink this sort of thing normally but was throwing up for an hour or two after my first c-section and it was a lifesaver. I should say that sections went relatively badly because (even with the elective one I had a hemorrhage) so you will probably be in better shape than me. But for me it was all about dealing with the pain, trying to breastfeed, and getting some food inside me so I could go home. I was to out of it to feel the need it anything more. You won't easily be able to get up and moving round so I wouldn't aim for PJs, just long cotton nighties. I sweated a lot after birth and even with the winter one was very hot.

Oh, flip flops so you can walk to the shower and back without having to try to bend down to put slippers on.

Big c-section knickers are great. I got mine at Mothercare but you can order on Amazon. Maybe get some in different sizes. They really helped my stomach to go down and I started with a 14 and was in a 10 (and my old jeans) after two weeks.

Wind-ease tablets!! I never had wind with my first (emergency) section, so didn’t bother for my second (elective) and regretted it massively.

Good luck 🍀

Thought I'd introduce my little princess Gracie- Louisa or as well calling her at the moment 'patch' for obvious reasons ❤️

She's the most special thing. Been told her birthmark should fade in time but I can't get over how beautiful my little baby patch is!

We are all *

Congratulations! Gorgeous girlie 💖 enjoy all the snuggles and wishing you a good recovery post c section 💐

She's beautiful, congratulations!

Take your painkillers when they are due, not when you think you need them.

And avoid tomato soup

Oh she is just gorgeous, you lucky lucky things!

@ManualFlusherSnot hi where can I get them type of pants from I have a csection next week