The 12 things you REALLY need in your hospital bag for birth & Baby

This isn't my first rodeo, but sometimes feels like it... Let's be honest, whether you're a first time mom or coming back for more like me, pregnancy and birth wrecks your body like you've been riding that raging bull for two days straight (and at one point you were bucked off and trampled and then got right back on and kept bucking). There are several great blogs out there with moms giving you tips on the things you should really know about birth, but remember that every birth story is different. Every woman's body reacts and recovers differently and every baby is different too. So don't get too freaked out, just be prepared to be flexible in your birth plan and make sure to take it easy those first couple days at the hospital and then at home. Have someone (I love having both my husband and my mom) there to help you for at least a week after birth, and take all the help you can get Mama.

But I think there is one thing that seems pretty consistent for moms preparing for birth: there are a few things from home that you'll want to make sure you have packed in your bag for the hospital/birthing center. Check with your hospital first, because mine gives a big bag for the mom and a big bag for the baby! So there really wasn't much I needed, just a few comfort things from home I wanted.

Here are the 12 things you REALLY need with you for those first couple hours/days before and after giving birth:


1. Phone charger.
There will likely be some long boring hours and you're going to want to take lots and lots of pictures once baby arrives. Make sure you have a phone charger for yourself and your partner too. If you're taking along a tablet or camera, make sure you have chargers for those too.

2. Hair tie.
With my first, I wanted to look cute for pictures, but each time during hard labor the only thing I cared about was all having my hair out of my face. Make sure you have a sturdy hair tie (and a spare) and a headband and/or some bobby pins or clips to keep your hair off your sweaty face.

3. Chapstick.
Hospitals are very dry and labor breathing isn't very fun, so make sure you have your favorite Chapstick or lip balm within reach (my husband kept it in his pocket for me).

4. Nursing bra, pajamas & robe.
I was really done with being naked and I was done with being tangled in a rough cotton hospital gown before our babies were even born, so it was great to be able to change into my own comfy clothes as soon as I got to my recovery room. There are several options for maternity pajama sets online, but remember that if you have a C-Section (whether scheduled or in an emergency) then you won't want pants pulled up near your incision, so have a nightgown option packed. If you have a vaginal birth you are going to be wearing large pads and those huge mesh panties (so sexy), so opt for a pair of baggy pajama pants instead of your favorite form-fitting yoga pants. Also remember that even though the baby is out, you will still look and feel like you are six months pregnant, so nursing tanks that have some wiggle room are ideal for those first few weeks while your uterus returns to normal and the bloating goes down. When picking out a nursing bra remember that your boobs will get even bigger (I know that's hard to imagine right now) when your milk comes in, so I like to have cotton ones in the beginning and then I buy one or two nice underwire bras a couple weeks after we've established nursing and I know what my size range will be. And of course the robe... my favorite of all! It's so nice to be able to throw that on when you go to the bathroom, or if you're leaving your room at all, or if the custodian walks in, whatever. I like the kimono style robe that you can wrap tight or leave looser and still have full coverage. You can easily use a flap to throw over your breasts if you are nursing and a guest walks in.

5. Warm socks and slippers.
Hospitals are cold. Birth is a form of trauma on the body (and in the case of a C-Section you just had major surgery), so your body is all out of whack and for some reason that turns your feet into popsicles. My hospital brought me a pair of socks when I asked but they were thin and scratchy, so do yourself a favor and bring a warm pair you like. If you've got a nice pair of slippers then bring those along too so you're not bare-footing it back and forth across the cold tile constantly going to the bathroom.

6. Toiletries.
That first shower after birth is better than that first shower after a week of camping, I swear. Again, my hospital gave me almost all the toiletries I would have needed, but like staying in a hotel, you don't really feel refreshed using their generic shampoo and flimsy single-use toothbrush. I like to bring my own toiletry bag with all my favorite travel-size essentials. You'll likely only be in the hospital for a day or two, so just bring the basics like shampoo, conditioner, face wash, soap, a razor if you think you'll go crazy not shaving, deodorant, a toothbrush & toothpaste. Throw in a comb and some makeup if you want to look nice for photos, but don't beat yourself up if you just don't have the time or energy to get all dolled up. Girl, you just had a baby! You will be glowing and absolutely gorgeous, even if you're still puffy, bright red and dripping in sweat, I promise. My favorite photos of myself are right after I've had the baby. I look like hell, but I've never looked so good. That glow, that pride, that joy... it's the most beautiful I have ever looked (or felt!).

7. Snacks & cash.
Once you're admitted they likely won't let you eat in case you need an emergency C-Section, but your partner will be starving while you labor and we all know hospital food is not the best. I was too exhausted to care if my husband ate a meal while I was laboring, but he thought it would be rude since I couldn't eat (so cute). So he just discretely grabbed snacks out of my bag to keep himself going. We had lots of options packed like protein bars, nuts, dried fruit, etc. He had a big bottle of water but the staff gave him plenty of drinks and bad coffee too. After the baby was born the hospital then fed me three square meals a day, but I quickly learned to turn down their bland food and have my mom bring us home-cooked or healthy take-out meals instead. Likewise, have some coins and cash for your partner to head over to the vending machine or go buy the good coffee as needed.

8. Your coming home outfit.
Again, remember you will still look and feel six months pregnant, so throw in a maternity dress if you want to put on real clothes for your departure (remember you won't want a waistband if you end up having a C-section). It felt good to get showered and dressed like I was going out for the day, but honestly we just went straight home and I changed right back into a clean pair of maternity pajamas, so the second time around that's all I packed. Some women plan a coordinating outfit with their baby for photos and that's so sweet. I was never that organized, but I just love the photos. Just pack what you think will feel best as you venture back out into the world. Remember a coat and boots if you're giving birth in the winter! (I write this reminder because if you start labor before getting in the car I'm sure the last thing you are thinking about is the weather).

9. Little's special coming home outfit.
Now even though I didn't want to get dressed up myself, I couldn't wait to start dressing up my Little! This isn't a requirement but there are so many pictures to be taken that it's nice to have something sweet and photogenic to dress up your sweet bundle of joy, especially the day you're heading home. Both my girls just wore a diaper for the first day or two and they were swaddled in a blanket. Nurses and doctors come to check on them often so they would just unswaddle and then reswaddle like a pro and baby was happy as a newborn can be. With that said, I still like to pack a spare bodysuit, pants, socks and a beanie just in case I need to get Baby dressed (old habits of an over-prepared mom who has been caught under-prepared one too many times)... but the hospital may give you all those things in a baby gift bag, so just bring a sweet coming home outfit for those great pictures. Our first Little had an embroidered bodysuit that said "Here I am!" and a matching tutu. Our second daughter wore that same outfit home (sigh, so sweet!), and our third will wear the same thing. I can't wait to put all their pics side by side.

10. Baby book.
They're going to take an ink stamp of your baby's foot for their records, so I loved having our baby book with me and we stamped her feet in our book right then as well. I was so out of it once we got home that I never got back around to stamping her hands myself, so I'm glad I at least have her little feet recorded in there! I slowly filled out the rest of the book over her first year, but those tiny stamps were best done that first day.

11. Car seat.
It's almost hard to believe, but you walk in as a woman and you leave as a mom with a tiny baby in your arms. Whether you chose to do the convertible car seat that stays strapped in your car 24/7 or you are doing the infant bucket seat with the base attached to your car, you'll want it installed (and inspected if possible) a few weeks before your due date, just in case you deliver early. I left our bucket seat in the car the last month of my pregnancy, so on homecoming day my husband went down and got it when he moved the car to the front as I was being discharged. A staff member will most likely insist you have to leave the hospital in a wheelchair, so I carried the baby in my arms while they rolled me out and then we strapped our Little into the seat together with the staffer double checking that she was secured properly before we headed home.

12. Headphones/ear plugs and sleep mask.
Hospitals are so bright and so loud. You may be sharing a room and maybe that mama needs the lights on while you are trying to sleep. While in labor each time, my computer tower next to my bed beeped in distress loudly at least twice an hour. The nurses explained to me that all the computers are connected, so if another mother or baby is in distress (lowering heartbeat, rising blood pressure, etc) then all the computers go off so nurses in other rooms know to come running to her. That's great until you realize most of the beeps that go off are false alarms and it takes a while for a nurse to clear it. As a result my labors were all set to the harmony of 5-15 minute long chorus of panicked beeping. UGH. So have your headphones and access to music to try and drown out some of the noise. Likewise you may want a playlist for labor so the headphones are great for that concentration too. Bring ear plugs too for times when you want a little more peace and quiet. I used a blanket over my face to block out the light a lot of the time but a sleep mask would have been easier so I've got that packed this time!



Other considerations:


Ask your hospital what they will provide.
I love looking for lists on Pinterest, hence why I started this blog so I could publish all the lists I make after consulting 10+ blogs on a topic! But many of those posts with the "hospital bag must-haves" include stuff that is provided by the hospital, so why pack and use up your own stash? Now don't expect to be walking out with name brand stuff you had listed on your registry like that $30 muslin baby blanket you wanted, but your insurance is paying for the things you use in the hospital and therefore you get to take home any open packages and barely-used items that would otherwise have to go in the trash (because it would be unsanitary to give them to another patient). So when you register with your hospital ask what they will give you and what they will have on hand for you to use without charge. I was given several samples of Medela nipple cream that lasted more than two weeks at home, my nurse brought me some extra mesh panties to take home for recovery, and I got to take all the remaining pads in the opened package. My gift bag from them also had a peri bottle for feminine washing at home, some extra nursing pads, and Tucks medicated pads. I even left with two big reusable straw cups and some spare parts for my breast pump (I used the hospital's pump but they can't reuse the phalanges, valves and cords so you get to take those parts home for your personal pump! Since I had a Medela at home I asked to use a Medela at the hospital knowing I would get to take that stuff with me).  For Baby the hospital gave us access to plenty of newborn diapers and wipes and got to take home the leftovers from any open packs. We also left with an infant nasal aspirator, a thermometer, a pacifier, two of those pink and blue baby blankets, two newborn beanies, and the gift bag from them that had the cute bodysuit and a few other baby essentials.

Do you want your own pillow?
This is always included in the lists I see, but I really didn't need it. By the end of both my stays in the hospital my room ended up having like five blankets and six pillows. They weren't the quality of what I have at home, but it was all I needed and it was nice not to have to carry around my own stuff. But I see the comfort in wanting your own perfect pillow or that super soft comforting blanket from home.

Do you want to bring your breast pump and nursing pillow?
Many of my friends say they liked doing this because the staff showed them how to use their pump and get comfortable with it. Likewise they liked practicing different breastfeeding positions with their nursing pillow. I just didn't feel like carrying all that around so I used the hospital's pump and spare pillows off my hospital bed. Now that I'm a second time mom I don't need the practice so I'll likely leave that stuff at home again, but if you want the comfort of using your own things then by all means bring it along Mama! Breastfeeding can be such a challenge and practice makes perfect, so take advantage of those nurses and lactation specialists and use all the tools you have.

Do you want to bring a nursing cover?
Like I mentioned before, I was really done being naked all the time... but I also quickly got used to being very exposed to multiple nurses, doctors, lactation consultants and staff while struggling trying to breastfeed our first daughter who wouldn't latch. I used my kimono robe to cover up as needed, but I think this time I'll bring along my nursing cover because I like the full coverage it offers if a guest like my father-in-law is there visiting and it's time to feed again.

Do you have other kids/pets at home who will need arrangements?
We had several different plans for what to do with our toddler whether I went into labor at work, or at home alone when my husband was at work, or even late at night. So our daughter had her own bag packed with spare outfits and shoes, extra pajamas, diapers and wipes, toiletries, snacks, some activities, etc. Think of it like he/she is going away for the weekend and have a bag packed and stashed in the car, just in case. Likewise, make plans with someone to come and feed and check on your pets who will be staying home without you. If you are dropping them off somewhere make sure you have leashes, food, medications and essentials packed and ready to go.


What else would you add to this list? Find me on social media and let me know!
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