Packing Hospital Bag

I have an ultrasound on Dec 8, then I have to go to L&D to be monitored. I then have an appt with my OB on Dec 13, he has said that if I am starting to dilate, he is going to break my water. That means that if I am starting to dilate, I have 19 days left.

My bag is pretty much packed, except for a few "last minute" things that I can't pack yet because I am still using them. I have the car seat and diaper bag ready to go, although that will stay home until we are discharged and then dh will bring it to the hospital.

In my hospital bag I have:
warm socks
slippers
2 nightgowns
house coat
clothes to go home in
underwear
breast pads
crossword books & pens
cd player
bathroom stuff (toothbrush, paste, shower gel, etc)
pacifiers
scratch mittens
playing cards

I am going to be adding:
cd's
batteries
cameras (video, regular & digital)
nursing bra(s)
snacks (for dh)
book(s)
1-2 more nightgowns

Is there anything I am missing??

[amy524]

You are forgetting the same thing that I did...a nice PILLOW!  I wish I would have brought mine from home.  :)  Good luck and I hope you have a wonderful delivery!

Amy

[foxy1220]

also you are missing sanitary pads, the hospital ones are gross...they don't have a sticky strip or anything.

Also makeup, comb/brush...you think you don't care about it now, but if you are a makeup wearer then when it comes time to take pictures etc with the baby you will want to look your best.

And definately some kind of lip balm, because your lips will be dry and chapped.

[mum2beagain]

I am taking some orange flavoured glucose tablets (they were a lifesaver last time) and something like chrystal light to put in my water, last time I was really thirsty and got fed up of water and just wanted something that tasted nice. Snacks for yourself and dh (granola bars and such) if you don't want him wandering off in search of a vending machine if you are both starving at midnight are a good idea too!!

[jd1419]

If you do bring your own pillow make sure it is not in a white pillow case--can get messed up with the hospital pillows.  In your bag you may want the little ones outfit.  I changed my little guys into their own clothes a few hours after birth.  Especially my first was a Christmas baby and I had him in a Santa outfit to greet everyone and for his pictures.

[gml24]

Make sure to bring your own pads! The hospital provides them but it's so much  more comfortable to bring some of the more advanced ones (the ones they give you look like they were invented sometime in the 80's).  I learned this lesson when I had my son, and will make sure to bring a few packs when I go into labor this time around.

[NataliesMommy]

My personal opinion is you are overpacking as I did.  The hospital has socks they give you and they have the no slip strips on the bottom.  They are great.  I stayed in the hospital gowns the whole time I was there.  They made for easier breast feeding, going to the bathroom and the biggest thing.....there is quite a bit of bleeding afterward.  You dont want to ruin your nightgowns.  Music.....I brought the player and cd's and never used them.  Labor and delivery was hmmm....I was not thinking about music.  In our room afterward, there were visitors, nurses, breastfeeding, and SLEEPING!!!!  Get it in the hospital cause you are not going to get a lot of it when you get home.  You are going to get flowers delivered to you in the hospital and will have to fit all of this into your car for the trip home.  My advice is to pack as little as possible.  Best wishes to you and your family.

[AndiJ78]

I agree, way too much stuff you may not use. I didn't bother with the gowns or robes, why get my stuff yucky, dirty theirs. I brought my own pads, I actually prefered the ones I got this time over the ones I had with my first two. These ones had a built in elastic type belt, not the reuseable ones and are made for incontinence. But I tell you, the covered me front to back and I didn't leak once (amazing because I am a heavy bleeder and had some major issues with clotting)

I did bring a book to read, but didn't do much of that as I spent most of my time chatting with my dh, my mom when she got in from the airport, and a friend on the phone. If you are planning on nursing, I wouldn't bother with the binky. Current AAP recommendations say to hold off for 4 weeks before giving one to avoid nursing issues as they use a shallower latch on a binky which could lead to major nipple irritation.

As far as the socks/slippers go, I would bag the slippers unless you plan on going outdoors : ) Scratch mittens may not be necessary as they spend 99.9% of the time swaddled. Our hospital provided nursing pads, I am not sure what your's does. We had our video camera, digital camera, etc along with their chargers and extra batteries just in case. John had the laptop so he could play a few games during the induction, once my mom got there I kind of forgot about him so those helped keep him entertained. I also brought my body pillow, I would have been lost without it!

I would suggest some change or cash for dh to use the snack machine or cafeteria when he gets hungry, a blanket to cover the baby in the carseat, carseat of course (install it now, not later), and that is about all i can remember ; ) I do know that which each baby I have packed less and less only after realizing i was bringing a bunch of stuff I didn't need!

Andi

[Mertek]

I brought a couple pairs of my maternity yoga pants and some shirts. I couldn't stand the thought of wearing the hospital gowns longer then I had to. We also had a fair amt of vistors and I didn't want to worry about falling out of the hospital gowns, despite wearing one as a robe etc. The hospital issue socks are great, I agree!

We used the CDs that we brought for just labor. I liked having the distraction of music.

[Adevotee]

Thank you everyone.

The entertainment items are for AFTER. I won't have many people visiting me. All of our family live out of town so they won't see me or the baby until after I get home. I am delivering in a different hospital than I delivered my son in, but the hospital I delivered him in provided underwear and pads (and they weren't awful either :). They did NOT provide breast pads, they also want you to wear your own nightgown afterwards. During labor and delivery I will wear theirs but afterwards I will be wearing my own. I was thinking about scrapping the slippers and just getting a pair from them but haven't completely decided yet. I did forget about the pillow (thank you). I still have to pack snacks for dh but need him to tell me what he would like.

I am starting to get nervous (I am attempting a VBAC), and excited!!

Again, Thank you everyone!!

[lib and jrs mom]

i just want to add that you should buy a roll of quarters and stash it in your bag for dh.  the hospital has food, which is tolerable, and you can pack a ton of snacks, but if dh gets a hankering for a certain candy bar in the vending machine it's nice to have it ready.
also, i hope you have your contact list ready of who you want to call once the baby's born.  dh and i took for granted that i was having a csection and didn't really get a list ready.  2 wks before the scheduled date my dr did the csection d/t a whole list of complications.  we so were not ready that day and everything became so chaotic.
good luck to you and your little one.

[AndiJ78]

Call the hospital or go ona  tour to find out for sure what they provide. I would hate to see you ruin good nightgowns and robes. Besides, who has ever heard of a hospital refusing to let you wear their gowns? I would have flipped my lid!

Seriously, call and find out what they provide.

[Adevotee]

I have a hospital tour scheduled for Dec 1. I went on one when I was pregnant with my son but didn't ask any of those things. I just brought a pair of my own pj's, that I didn't end up wearing because they were too small.

I will make sure to ask those things but if it the same as the other hospital then I will probably be wearing my own nightgowns.

[Me2mommy2b]

I agree with nataliesmom...I did the same thing and didn't use half of the things I brought with me...I didn't listen to the music or read any books b/c after the delivery, they give you so much material, that if you have the time with all the visitors, nurses and other ppl dropping by, you'll have something to read.  I found that mints were very useful after I had the baby and my mouth felt like ....umm, let's just say it didn't smell nice so the mints were very useful.  Make up for the pictures and toothbrush/toothpaste, hair brush, etc a must.  If you have any old panties (I took the ones that I wouldn't feel sorry to throw out if they get dirty) take those.  Oh, and don't forget a charger for your cell phone (if your hospital lets you use it).  My hospital let me use my cell phone so I didn't have to hook up the one in the room.  And with all the phone calls, you need to recharge the battery.  All the best to you.

[freakonaleash]

sounds like a good bag to me. you don't want to leave something out and then go "i sure wish i'd had that"

better to overpack than underpack. :)

oh- and you did have a cute take home outfit for the baby in there, didn't you? some hospitals even let you change their outfit for their pics, so you don't just have to have the hospital t-shirt.

oh yeah- and take your own shampoo, cause the hospital ones suck!

[boo boo tum]

Chewing gum in case you cant get up to brush and those Tucks pads for your bum bum and hoo hoo!!!