During my pregnancy, I read many books on preparedness. From preparing the nursery and planning out the baby’s sleep schedule to nesting and even super-cleaning our house to make it sparkling clean for our baby regardless of the fact that he does not care that my pantry is organized by color. (I am joking of course… my pantry is alphabetically organized.) LOL!
One of the main things that I planned for, that I am confident many other pregnant women out there plan for, was my hospital bag. I remember when I was a little girl, watching ‘I Love Lucy’, laughing hysterically at that episode where Lucy goes into labor; Ricky, Ethel and Fred scramble to rush her out the door and in the panic, forget the hospital bag! Yeah, it wasn’t the books I read that let me know I needed a hospital bag for labor, it was a re-run episode of ‘I Love Lucy’ that taught me how to prepare for one of the biggest moments of my life… and being the loyal ‘I Love Lucy ‘ fan that I am, I listened to Lucy!
I, as always, headed over to Pinterest and started searching for what to pack in my hospital bag. With great surprise, I found a spectrum of quantities when it came to this preparedness bag. From a huge duffle bag to a small purse, varying advice from Moms who stated that they packed “everything but the kitchen sink” to Moms who said, “the hospital provides everything so chuck the bag.” Being the planner that I am, I was most definitely bringing a bag to the hospital. I took all of my Pinterest findings, combed through them and decided to make my own list based on what I thought my necessities would be. That said, I MOST DEFINITELY did not need all the crap I brought! So, I wanted to save you all a little headache and show you what I brought, covering what I used and what I wished I would’ve chucked.
Hospital Bag List:
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- Brought: Toiletries – deodorant, mouthwash, face wipes, tooth brush, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, dry shampoo, pads, nipples pads and nipple cream.
- What I used: I used every single one of the items below except for the shampoo and conditioner. The hospital provided soap and really, I was WAY too tired to wash my hair, so dry shampoo was my saving grace. Leave the shampoo and conditioner at home.
- Brought: Beauty – lotion, oil, hairbrush, hair ties, chapstick, make up bag.
- What I used: I used my hairbrush, hair ties and chapstick. The rest of that I would chuck. I brought the oil because our Lamaze teacher told us that my husband would be able to rub my back with it during contractions but instead, we used the back massager for that and completely forgot about the oil. In regard to the make up, KUDOS to the women out there who have enough energy to put on make up. I honestly could not give a flying heck about putting on make up or what I looked like. Plus, I felt empowered not to where make up!
- Brought: Clothes – slippers, underwear, maternity gown, robe, maxi dress (going home outfit), nursing tank, flip flops, 2 nursing bras, socks, 2 large and loose shirts and loose pants.
- What I used: I used the slippers, underwear, loose pants, maternity top, gown and robe. Leave everything else at home. Most of the time you are in the hospital gown they give you and when you can switch to your clothes you just want to be in something loose and easy access to breastfeed. I went home in the maternity top and pants and did not want to use the maxi dress. Some Moms told me I would want a maxi dress, but I wanted something that made me feel comfortable. I would’ve gone home in my pajamas if I didn’t want to take decent photos of us leaving the hospital. I was bummed out about the socks since my husband bought them for me, but was able to snag this photo before my contractions really started.
- What I used: I used the slippers, underwear, loose pants, maternity top, gown and robe. Leave everything else at home. Most of the time you are in the hospital gown they give you and when you can switch to your clothes you just want to be in something loose and easy access to breastfeed. I went home in the maternity top and pants and did not want to use the maxi dress. Some Moms told me I would want a maxi dress, but I wanted something that made me feel comfortable. I would’ve gone home in my pajamas if I didn’t want to take decent photos of us leaving the hospital. I was bummed out about the socks since my husband bought them for me, but was able to snag this photo before my contractions really started.
- Brought: Toiletries – deodorant, mouthwash, face wipes, tooth brush, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, dry shampoo, pads, nipples pads and nipple cream.
- Brought: Other – Tums, eyeglass cleaner, journal, pen, phone charger, water bottle, hospital book, massager, eye mask, beanbag (focal point) and camera.
- What I used: I used the eyeglass cleaner, phone charger, massager, camera, eye mask and bean bag for my focal point during contractions. I did not need a water bottle; they give you everything you need in the hospital. I did not have time to journal at all as well as read; don’t bother bringing those. I chose to have my pink beanbag as my focal point, which really helped. It reminded me of Hawaii, which is where my husband and I got married, so it calmed me a bit during contractions. The eye mask was perfect when the baby was sleeping and daytime lit up the hospital room.
I hope this helps you a bit when deciding what to pack in your hospital bag. The main thing to remember is that, at the end of the day, all that matters is the health of you and your baby; also many women before you have run out the door without the bag and the world didn’t end. You can plan as much as you want, but “we plan and God laughs.” Don’t let the hospital bag stress you out because the moment you have that baby in your arms, everything else turns into background noise and all that is in your focus is you and your family!
