When packing your hospital bag, it is important to remember that some things are a MUST HAVE while other things are a NICE TO HAVE! There are dozens of different lists out there that make it seem like your entire hospital experience will be ruined if you forget something. Do not worry!! Even if you forget your entire hospital bag at home, the hospital provides a version of pretty much everything that you will need. I used a Weekender bag from Target for my hospital bag, my exact bag is not still available 2 years later, but this bag from Amazon is pretty similar.
I have had a lot of friends that are pregnant with their first ask me what I recommend they actually pack in their bags. Most of the items that I am bringing this time around are centered around my comfort and around convenience. Here is a list of what I am packing:
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For Mom
1. My own pillow in a colorful pillowcase
While the hospital does have plenty of pillows on hand, I would prefer to have my own pillow. My own pillow is much more comfortable (not that you really get the chance to sleep). Also a colorful pillowcase will look less sterile in photos. Technically, my pillow will probably not go inside of my hospital bag. If you forget your own pillow, you will be okay!
2. A Nursing Pillow
With my first baby, I didn’t bring a nursing pillow and instead used a few pillows to prop him up. For the most part, this worked fine. I will be bringing the My Breastfriend nursing pillow with me. It clips into place and I won’t have to deal with the pillows sliding out-of-place. Again, if you do not bring a nursing pillow, you will be fine.
3. A large drinking cup with a straw
Congratulations, you just had a baby. For the most part, you will spend your time at the hospital laying in bed with others waiting on you. In an effort to stay hydrated and allow my milk supply to come in, I was constantly drinking water. The hospital I delivered at provides small Styrofoam drinking cups which required my husband to refill it constantly. To save him the annoyance and to myself having to go a single second with an empty cup, I am bringing a large cup. This cup is my favorite! Again, we survived the first time without this and you will too if you forget to pack your own. I will probably save space in my hospital bag by stuffing random items inside of the empty cup.
4. Toiletries
The hospital does provide some of the basics, just like a hotel does. I prefer to have my products. I have a pre-packed a bag of my toiletries that includes duplicates of my everyday items. This eliminates the chance I will have to raid my bathroom to grab anything when I am in labor. I have also added products that come with added convenience face cleansing wipes that don’t require that you get to a sink, dry shampoo in case you are not up for a shower and mouthwash to name a few.
5. Make Up
I wish I was one of those women that gives birth and then looks like a glowing goddesses after. However, I am not. I do not plan on putting on a full face of make up while I am laying in a hospital bed. But, I do want to be able to freshen up my appearance before photos are taken and visitors arive. My hospital bag will contain just a few staple items: mascara, concealer, bronzer and blush.
6. A phone charger with an extra long cord
Chances are that you are going to need to charge your phone a few times during your hospital stay. Between taking photos of your new baby, making contact with friends and family or googling everything that you are embarrassed to ask the nurse or doctor, you are going to drain your cell phone battery quickly. We didn’t bring a long phone charger the first time around and my husband had to constantly bring my phone to me while it was charging. I found a 10 foot charger on Amazon and plan to use it this time around. If you may be alone at the hospital during your stay at any point, I would bump this item up from nice to have to must have for your hospital bag.
7. A pretty hospital gown (with matching swaddle for baby)
Without a doubt, this is not a necessary item that you MUST have. I love how lively and happy all of the floral robes look in comparison to the basic hospital robes that are provided (see photo above). I was freezing in the provided hospital robe and ended up wearing a fluffy plush robe that my husband went home to get for me. For this delivery, I found an awesome robe on Etsy that
has built-in opening for more incognito nursing. I struggled A LOT with my first baby and balancing having so many visitors with attempting to nurse him. This robe will make it easier to nurse without having to kick out my visitors and without having to feel overexposed while feeding her. You can read about that struggle, here.
8. Clothes to go home in
There are a few things to take into consideration when picking out clothes to pack for you to wear home. 1. You will still have a belly that is around the size of your 6 month pregnant belly. 2. You should be wearing the hospital mesh underwear + a huge pad or your own granny panties + a huge pad. 3. If you have a c-section, you will not want the waist of pants anywhere near your incision site. I am packing two outfits: Postpartum leggings and a long tunic top (comes way below my butt) assuming that I give birth vaginally and a long flowy maxi dress in case I end up having a c-section. I have heard of lots of mamas just wearing home the same clothes they came to the hospital in, so if you forget a change of clothes, you can always do that!
For Baby
1. Personalized hat
The hospital provides everything that your baby will need during your stay. Diapers, a shirt, a swaddle blanket and a plain white hat. I think the plain white hats are very generic and boring. Colorful/personalized hats make for much cuter photos! Etsy has a great selection of personalized hats! Chances are you will still know your baby’s name even if he/she isn’t wearing a special personalized hat.
2. Clothes to go home in
The hospital does provide a shirt, but not pants. You baby’s legs will need to be covered when going home. I will be bringing two sleep and play outfits. One sized Newborn and one sized 0-3 months. I will be prepared regardless of how big she is (fingers crossed she isn’t TOO big!!). Also, remember that a car seat strap will have to go between your baby’s legs. An outfit with actual pants vs. a gown will be much more comfortable for your baby. I will be delivering in March, which has very unpredictable weather here in Charlotte. So I will also have a fluffy blanket on hand to put on her, in the event that it is really cold out.
For Dad
1. Whatever he packs for himself.
Maybe I am a jerk here, but I am already responsible for myself and our new baby. My husband is a fully functioning adult and he can darn well pack for himself. Sure, I will help to remind him to get his bag packed, but I am not packing it for him.
2. Breath Mints
This item will be ALL the bags that come to the hospital. Pregnancy gives me a super strong sense of smell and zero tolerance for anyone with bad (if I can smell anything, it is bad) breath. While technically this item will be for anyone that may be come contact with me, it is listed as an item for dad since he will be with me the entire time. I want to focus on bringing a baby into the world instead of ducking someone’s exhales when they are talking to me. Breath mints are pretty cheap, so I have already added them to my purse so that I limit the chances that we will not have them if somehow I make it to the hospital without my hospital bag.
3. Snacks
This is also for your comfort, but the hospital will only provide food for you, the patient and not for him. Having snacks on hand will avoid anyone becoming hangry at any point in time. We had so many visitors that brought food, that we really didn’t end up eating the snacks. With that in mind, I still think it is always smart to have your own food available.
Commonly Recommended Items that I am not bringing in my hospital bag (and why):
A Nursing Bra–
My robe will provide all the cover that I need and I want to be able to reap all the benefits of skin to skin without having the fabric of a nursing bra in the way.
Socks-
The hospital I deliver at provides socks with non-slip bottoms that are thick and warm. I see this as one less thing to pack, plus I don’t own non-slip socks as an adult so it is also one less thing to buy.
PJs-
Giving birth is a messy, messy process and I have no desire for any of the wonderful P.J. pants to be anywhere near that mess for the first few days. During my two-day stay, I constantly had nurses coming in to check the pee-pad I was laying on (think of those pads you use to train puppies) for bleeding. Wearing P.J. pants would have made that process way more inconvenient and likely more awkward.
Towels-
The hospital provides towels for you to use and I have zero desire to risk getting blood on my own personal towels. Yes, their towels are not as large or as fluffy, but the two minutes I will be using them is not worth bringing my own.
Hair Dryer-
The hospital will provide a hair dryer. Again, it is not as nice as my own personal hair dryer is, but hair dryers are large and bulky. I don’t want to make room in my bag for my own and I survived just fine without my own the first time around.
A Diaper Bag-
Given that the hospital provides everything that your baby needs during your stay, the few items that I am bringing for baby will fit just fine in my own bag. I brought a diaper bag the first time. Aside from my husband carrying it in and then back out of the hospital, we did not use it.
Check out my 8 Must-Haves to Make Pregnancy Suck Less!