What did you take to the hospital?

[BoobyJuice]

This is my first hospital birth. I didn't pack for the birth center - left after 4 hours - and obviously didn't pack for my homebirth

What do I need to pack to take to the hospital? I know it should be an obvious list (like clothes to wear home) but I am completely blanking on what I really need. I've tried looking online but the mainstream sites are all about watches with second hands to time contractions and makeup so you look good for the pictures. What do I really need? I'm not sure what they give you at a standard hospital.

Thanks!

[saritabeth]

Hmmm the things I was most glad to have with me....
a boppy for nursing
baby sling
a rayon sarong that I used to cover myself when nursing infront of a cast of thousands
my favorite soap for my first shower after the birth
music and a cd player (I was in for 4 days with and unplanned c section...I was really happy to have tunes I like)
comfy jammies ...jonnies are the worst!
comming home outfit for baby
maybe a blanket from home to make the bed more cozy, and to smell like home for your own comfort and sanity.
I would say that anything that makes you cozy and makes your hospital room yours. To be honest, I felt so comfy in my hospital room that it almost felt like my own room at home after a day or two.

Have a wonderful birth!

[Jane]

Take some socks or slippers to walk around in.
A nightgown that makes you feel dressed (not see through)
Shampoo and conditioner
A pillow with your pillowcase

[ctdoula]

This is what I brought & what I also tell my Lamaze clients to bring:
- pillow in bright pillow case (so it doesn't get mixed in w/hospital laundry). Keep your pillow near your head & theirs between your knees, LOL
- music/cds
- camera, batteries, charger, film, etc
- clothes & pj's for dad/coach (it's no fun for coach to be wet from helping you in the shower or after being barfed on, ROFL & the nurses really prefer not to have little surprises when the come in to check on you at 3am, so he needs PJs, )
- clothes for you to go home in (baggy, comfy)
- phone list for dad, he might forget important numbers after hours of labor & all the excitment
- calling card - in our hospital, only local calls are free & you can't use a cell phone in the hospital
- car seat - MUST be installed, don't show up w/it in the box, the nurses can't help you
- clothes for baby to go home with
- toothbrush (for you & dad), hairbrush, shampoo, etc
- socks
- massage tools, birth ball if you want to bring your own, etc


Stuff I ususally tell people to leave at home:
- PJ's/nightgown - I'm doing a different way then the previous 2 posters, BUT, I feel like it's much better to wear the hospital gowns for a couple of reasons. One is you're bleeding SO much after birth, you may end up ruining your nice new PJs & who the heck needs more laundry w/a new baby. Also, They're SUPER easy for nursing, just unsnap at the shoulders. Honestly, those first couple days of nursing, you already feel like you need 7 hands, you don't want to worry about holding up your PJ shirt or nursing nightgown slit open. I usually tell people to save the PJs & that 1st Saturday that you're home w/the baby everyone will want to visit you. That's when you wear them!!!! If you're dressed, people expect you to serve them coffee, if you're in your PJs, they'll clean your house & don't blink when you tell them you're going to take a nap :LOL

- book, magazine, etc - when the heck are you gonna read it?


Just remember, less is more, you're only going for 2-4 days, & it's not club med. You always end up w/more stuff coming home.


good luck!!

[BoobyJuice]

Originally Posted by ctdoula

Just remember, less is more, you're only going for 2-4 days, & it's not club med. You always end up w/more stuff coming home.

2 to 4 days! Yikes!! Where do your clients give birth? I'm objecting to the 24 hours I'm supposed to stay. probably going to check myself out AMA after a few hours; I'll see how I feel first but I can't imagine staying that long . . . hospitals really give me the creeps.

Like I said I had one homebirth and one in a birth center. I was only in the birth center 4 hours. Naked the entire time. Threw my clothes back on that I'd worn in and went home. Now I'm thinking about 24 hours and they expect me to spend the night etc, etc. Hadn't though of things like jammies for daddy or toothbrushes. Of course, don't know where he'd sleep; it's just a hospital bed (missing that king sized bad at the birth center )

Thanks for the lists. I've seen some lists online say you should bring your own pads - the birth center had them, won't a hospital?

[pageta]

Yes they have pads for you.

The one thing I didn't bring and really wished I had was toilet paper. I swear, the stuff they had would have felt like sandpaper ever if I'd had a c-section. I made dh go home and get some for me, in fact. Next time, I'll be prepared.

[ctdoula]

Originally Posted by BoobyJuice

2 to 4 days! Yikes!! Where do your clients give birth? I'm objecting to the 24 hours I'm supposed to stay. probably going to check myself out AMA after a few hours; I'll see how I feel first but I can't imagine staying that long . . . hospitals really give me the creeps.

Most women who deliver in hosptials stay the 24-48 hrs after a vaginal birth & 3-4 days after a c-section. I said the same thing as you (about leaving as soon as possible) before the birth of my dd, but I was SO exhausted after 25 hrs of hard labor & sore from a HUGE amount of stitches, that I wanted to stay a week :LOL Prepared meals, bendy straws, the movable bed. It was all good, LOL

You don't need to bring pads. They'll give you these giant ones good enough to treat a head injury, ROFL They usually have a cot or fold-out chair for the dads.

[darsmama]

I would seriously pack some lip balm of your choice. My lips were really dry by the time it was all said & done.
I would DEFINETLY take your own birth ball (if you have one) because I was at a friends birth and she wanted to use the ball, and they told her that another mama was using it. I guess some hospitals only keep 1 on the floor. Ridiculous, but
**Wishing you a happy & safe birth!**

[AmandasMom]

I'm doing a hospital birth too, so I feel your pain. I"m packing:

Cloth pads for me, as well as prefolds for me when I run out of cloth pads. (I absolutely hate disposable pads and those tacky fishnet undies they give you).
Lots of old undies that I dont care if they get stained.
Lip balm
shampoo/conditioner
blow dryer
nursing nightgown
deoderant stone
toothbrush/paste
lotion
my own towel!!!!
digital camera with fresh batteries
socks
*setting the DVR to record any TV shows I don't want to miss while away*


For baby:
a few sleepers
diapers (not sure if I will use them in hospital or not yet, I probably will, but you never know)
Diaper wet bag (for my pads and his diapers)
lighweight fleece jacket and pants for the ride home since it's a tad chilly in november

For my daughter (age 4) who will be at birth:
Crayons
Coloring Book
various snacks
books that can be read to her
laptop with some dvd's she can watch

[mezzaluna]

just took the tour of my hospital birth center a couple days ago... they said they don't allow you to plug anything in - i.e. no hairdryer (they have one for you), no personal boom box (they have one for you) no battery rechargers...

this place said they have birth balls and i asked if there is always one available when someone wants one and they said yes.... we'll see, i guess!

also, my hospital has a post-partum doula program if you consent to leave before the 48 hours... so i'm looking forward to going home early on and having them send someone to me!!

[karendrema]

..Man, what didn't I take? I had so many bags! One mistake I did make was putting everything in small bags, backpacks and things - so my DH had to haul like a million things up to the room. This time I will just pack a suitcase and be done with it (even if it is a giant one!)

One thing I liked was I seperated things into bags for labor and bags for postpartum - so that we could find things easier and my DH wouldn't have to bring everything in at once.
What I really used in the hospital:
Boppy
Robe
PJs with button down front (I wish they made ones with button sleeves for all those stupid IVs)
Hairbrush, toothbrush, shampoo
Spare Underwear
Nursing Bra
Lansinoh
Camera!
Receiving Blankets (I hated how scratchy and icky theirs were)
Outfits for the baby (same reason)
My mother!

That's all I can think of that I really used, I packed so much more!

[KiwiZ]

Lets see if I can remember:

toothbrush/paste
nursing bra/Lansinoh/nursing bra pads
slippers
hairbrush/hair "scrunchy"
something comfy to wear home
camera/phone numbers
going home outfit for baby

[wasabi]

Man what didn't I pack?! :LOL I had long labors at the hospital with my first two (went way too early) and so I was anticipating laboring a long time there. It was a pleasant surprise to already be 8cm and only there for a bit more than 2 hours before she was born. I did not use a single thing during my labor that I had brought. In fact the bags never even entered the hosptial. The only things I used were my going home clothes and the baby's going home clothes. I had no problems with the hospital gowns, and fishnet panties. I'd rather stain their stuff than mine. DH somehow left my hairbrush and toothbrush but the hospital supplied one. A boppy probably would have been good but I did fine without one. DD was in the NICU though and I got to nurse her in a rocker with arms not a bed. Seriously that was it. This time I'll probably just bring going home clothes for both of us.

[Teensy]

I took our baby book and had the baby's footprints put in it.

[Benji'sMom]

My hospital had toothbrushes and toothpaste and stuff like that in the room, but I brought my own too. Hair brush, pony tail holders, camera, people's phone numbers, baby outfit. You can bring your own nightgown, but I just wore the hospital gowns. Nursing supplies. Birth plan. If you're doing a natural birth bring all those supplies like heating pad, tennis balls, birth ball, relaxing music, etc. Magazines for DH to read while you're sleeping.

[wasabi]

Oh I did bring my birth plan up for all the good it did me. I don't think anyone read it and unfortunately I gave birth with an oncall midwife and OB who I had never met before.

[HelloKitty]

I'm probably going to be redundant but here are some things I make sure I have:

Toiletry items (yes they have soap and shampo and stuff but I like my own)
Chap stick!!!!!!!!!
Snack stuff
Robe
Jammies (you don't really NEED these but I like to wear my own rather then the gowns they have)
Outfit to go home in for you and baby
Camera!
Cloth Dipes if you are going to use them (they will give you plenty of sposies)
Phone list for people to call after the birth

I also prefer to bring some of the baby's own things to sleep in and cuddle with - like sleep sacks and a blankie. The hospital will give you t-shirts and receiving blankets but I just prefer my own.

[TCMoulton]

After the birth of my 1st daughter in 2002 I swore that I wouldn't wear the nasty mesh panties and hospital gown any longer than I had to so when 2nd daughter was born in January of 2004 I brought along 5 pairs of cotton hanes her way undies bought specifically for hospital use (they give much better support than the hospital supplied disposables for that lovely post-baby tummy) and a warm fuzzy sweatshirt and pants one size larger than normal that I changed into less than 12 hours after my c-section. For some reason wearing "real clothes" instead of pj's during the day made me feel better sooner, and I was up walking only 5 hours after birth! Then when my guests came I didn't have to wory about exposing my "bits and pieces" to the world!
I also brought every kind of gum imaginable because even when they wouldn't let me eat during labor I could still make my mouth taste better with a piece of Juicy Fruit!

Colleen

[cyrusmama]

Well I took tons of stuff but what I wished I had thought of was smaller baby clothes for his pic. ( Just because they say he's +10lbs doesn't make it true...my ds was 7lbs 8oz.) Also I should have made a list of what I wanted pics of. There is one pic of me after his birth and pics of ds but none of the doc or nurses, none during, and none of me, dh and ds together.

[josie&baby]

Originally Posted by BoobyJuice

Thanks for the lists. I've seen some lists online say you should bring your own pads - the birth center had them, won't a hospital?

Yes! The hospital will have pads & disposable underwear for you while you're there and should send you home with some as well. My advice is RAID the hospital room and take as much home with you as possible. When I left I took extra pads, extra chux pads for the bed, and an extra peri bottle for my downstairs bathroom. Looking back I figure I paid for it anyway! Thousands of dollars for the CNM to make me wait to push until she showed up and then catch the baby- I felt just fine about taking some extra pads!

Also- I transferred to the hospital for a stalled labor from a birth center. I didn't think I would want to stay at the hospital any longer than the 24 hours they insist upon. But, when the time came for me to leave 24 hours later another night of other people taking care of us was looking good so we stayed another night. I had AWESOME nurses though! Keep an open mind about your stay. Every birth is different and especially with two other little ones at home 2 days of quiet with your new baby might be really nice.