Let me start by saying… think about your basic needs as if you were taking a weekend vacation somewhere. They won’t be too far off from what you’ll need to stay overnight in a hospital (think chargers, toiletries, clothes, etc.). There are a couple of items I recommend bringing that you will only ever need in this circumstance (some you may not even use, but would be smart to bring, just in case). And then there are a couple of things you may want to bring based purely on desire for comfort over what is (or maybe not) provided from the hospital already.
I’ll break it down into needs for you, for your partner, and then for your baby. I’ll also link the exact items I brought, where it makes sense to link something. And at the end, I’m also including items we brought for our caregivers to enjoy – just as a little thank you 🙂
FOR MAMA
Labor + Delivery
- Soft birthing gown (the ones the hospital provides are usually ugly and IMO, pretty scratchy and uncomfortable. As someone who had a natural labor, I’m so glad I had my own gown that was incredibly soft and light on my skin.)
- Slippers and/or soft socks
- Pony tail holder
- Large insulated cup with straw
- Gum / Mints (for you and your partner)
- Hard Candy to suck on (I went with Werther’s… they just looked good in the moment at the store haha)
- Long phone charger
- Bluetooth speaker
- Snacks (I know they say not to eat anything, but I think that’s a dumb rule and you should eat anyway. It’s not like nurses are in there staring at you the entire time you’re in labor.) If you’re hungry – eat something! I had the following on hand:
- Chex Mix
- Goldfish
- KIND Bars (dark chocolate cherry)
- Coconut Water
- Ice Water
Recovery Room
- Soft Robe (it’s pretty much all I wore for the first 24 hours after birth… they come and check you all the time, it just made it so much easier for them to access you)
- Comfortable pajamas / loungewear (soft, stretchy waistband!!!) I love these (wore them through pregnancy, too).
- Towel
- Toiletries
- Toothbrush + paste
- Dry shampoo
- Makeup
- Lotion
- Frida Mom peri bottle
- Stool Softener (your OB will most likely prescribe you some, but you may want to go ahead and take some right after birth, just in case)
- Always Discreet Underwear
- Wipes (for bathroom)
- Shower Sandals
- Comfortable Nursing Bra
- Nipple Cream (just in case)
- Opt: Corset band (helps start to put things back in the right place)
- Going home outfit
- Extra bag (for recovery items from nurses – take everything!!! And don’t open any of your own recovery items until you absolutely need them. I ended up returning almost all of the recovery supplies I purchased myself because the hospital sent me home with so much.)
- Folder for all the baby paperwork
- Opt: your own pillow, sheets and blanket
FOR YOUR PARTNER
- Comfortable clothes + jacket/hoodie (they keep the rooms cold! You will most likely be in bed, under the covers most of the day… but they won’t be.)
- Pajamas
- Toiletries
- Towel
- Sheets, Pillow and Blanket (the ones they provide are not comfortable! If they provided a more comfortable couch/bed for your partner to sleep on, then you could get away with using their sheets and pillows… but because they will most likely be sleeping on a crappy couch or pull-out… might as well try to make the best of it with your own high-quality sheets, blankets, and pillows.)
- Long Phone Charger
- Slippers (for walking around the room in… in case they don’t want to be wearing actual shoes 24/7)
- Shower Sandals
FOR BABY
- Diaper bag
- Baby Journal (for foot prints)
- Sound machine (I am so glad we brought one! It helped Ellis so much as people were in and out of our room constantly all day and night.)
- 1-2 outfits – think about the belly button! You won’t want to bring anything that will be constricting their tummy because their cord will be so fresh (and likely still oozing and gummy).
- Pajamas
- Baby socks
- Burp cloth
- Baby blanket
- Swaddle
- Pacifier(s)
- Electric nail file
- Dirty clothes bag
- Gathre changing mat
- Going home outfit
- Car seat
FOR YOUR CAREGIVERS
Totally not necessary… but I really wanted to have something for our nurses. We had at least 6 that took care of us at different times throughout our time in the hospital… as well as many other caregivers that were coming in and out during our stay (for tests, checkups, food, cleaning, etc.). I made a big snack basket and had a case of waters and caffeinated beverages for anyone that came into our room. I also made 6 little goodie bags for our personal nurses that spent the most time with us. Here’s what I put in each:
Snack Basket
- Granola Bars (I chose two different KIND Bars: here and here)
- Trail Mix (I went with small bags of a raw nut mix)
- Goldfish
- Skinny Pop
- Dark Chocolate
- Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate
- Water
- Coke Zero
- Diet Dr. Pepper
Goodie Bags for Nurses
- Thank You Note
- Starbucks Giftcard – I only bought 4 of these for the 4 nurses that helped us the most (L+D nurse, first night nurse, day nurse (she made sure she was with us during our second day as well), second night nurse). There were 1-2 other nurses that helped us as well, and I had a couple extra goodie bags for them, but I just wrote them thank you notes and had the other little items in there, but no gift card.
- Chapstick
- Pens
- Gum
Yes – this can be a lot. Nate had to make multiple trips to and from the car to haul everything in once we were checked into our labor + delivery room. But once you’re in, you can use a cart to move everything from room to room. In fact – he probably could have requested one to take out to the car once we were checked in, but just didn’t think about it at the time, so maybe ask once you get there, if you can remember!
I will also add that there are other items I brought that I definitely didn’t need…
- The hospital has ALL the recovery stuff you could ever need, as far as Tucks, Dermoplast, etc. goes (but theirs are better, higher-quality hospital grade stuff). Don’t bother taking up space with extras of that kind of thing. I would only bring a few Adult Diapers, in case you’re not loving the feeling of the big hospital mesh underwear and pads. I don’t think I pulled on the diapers until our last day… otherwise I just used the hospital underwear and pads, and saved the diapers and pads I purchased for when I got home.
- I purchased the Frida Mom donut cushion thing and hated it. I thought it was super uncomfortable. Regret having it take up space in my bag AND wasted money on it.
- I also brought way too many baby outfits, swaddles, etc. We were so flustered and tired the first 36 hours, we honestly just kept him in the onesie the hospital put him in right after birth. Or he was naked doing skin-to-skin with us. I didn’t change him into anything “cute” until we were going home. I also highly underestimated how little time you’ll have where it’s just you and your baby while in the hospital. I feel like we had someone in our room like every 30 minutes to check on us, do tests, drop off food, clean, and on and on. We weren’t alone until night time. I imagined having all this free time during the day to get good, cute, photos of the baby all swaddled and sleeping… but really, we never had a quiet moment to do that, haha! Maybe (hopefully!) your experience will be different. Or maybe just take note that you’ll have to make time to snap some of those pretty pictures, if you’re really wanting them.
Hopefully this helps! I always loved reading through what others suggested packing… some prefer over-packing, just in case. Others go with the bare bones essentials. I’m hoping this is a happy medium between the two 🙂 Or at least gives some commentary on what to expect from the hospital vs what you may want to consider bringing yourself. Choose comfort over anything else. Those first 48 hours are rough. You’re exhausted, kind of traumatized, and hopefully just in a completely alternate universe with your new little babe. Soak it up, enjoy the time, take all the help from the nurses, and don’t be afraid to ask all the seemingly stupid questions that may come into your brain. Each nurse may have a different response for you, but I actually loved hearing each of their perspectives and then taking what felt right to me to heart. In the end, you’ll be shocked at how quickly your motherly instincts kick in. You’ll know exactly what your baby needs, even when it seems like you have no idea what you’re doing. Trust your gut. This baby was give to you for a reason.
