Must-Haves For Your Hospital Bag

In fact, that brings me to my biggest tip. Something I did and thanked myself for later was getting almost everything brand new. New toothpaste, a new toothbrush, new deodorant, new slippers, new pajamas etc. Because birth is messy, and trust me - you’ll feel a million bucks when you have your first shower after birth (legit BEST feeling in the world IYKYK), and you’re using fresh toothpaste, a fresh toothbrush, wearing some fresh PJs. When you meet your baby, you straight away feel like every cell in your body has renewed and you feel like a new person. So embrace it with some beautiful new pieces to enjoy. This is a huge chapter of your life, and it’s going to be so beautiful - so lean into that. And even if things don’t go according to plan, trust me, those nice new things will be comforting.

Anyway, nuff said. I think I’ve brought my point across enough (but if I lost you - we’re just going for minimal, and fresh). So let’s get into it. In my head, I like to think of it as different sections so it’s not overwhelming. Because once you start putting the list together you’ll see, it can be.

So. You’ve essentially got 4 parts:

• Your toiletries

• Your clothing

• Baby’s clothing (baby won’t need toiletries at such a young age just being born fresh out of the womb - these days it’s all about keeping bub au naturale rather than fussing and caking them with baby powder)

• Other items for your stay to get you through like snacks, water, phone charger, camera, etc.

Alright and now for the list itself! Hospital bag must haves:

• Extra long usb cord to keep your phone charged - it needs to be extra long because who knows where the nearest charging port in the room is going to be located and you’ll probably want your phone right next to you in the hospital bed.

• High protein snacks. High protein to keep you fuller for longer and not going into labour feeling so “meh”. I loved eating these packets of nut cubes called MunchMe (omg they're so good - thank me later) because they were healthy and yummy and kept me full. Chances are you’ll be nervous and focused, and your appetite will be suppressed before you’re even in labour so these are the perfect snacks to have handy.

• Water bottle. Because water.

• Disposable nappies. Not for baby - for you! I’m not going to freak you out and say there’s going to be blood everywhere because if there is, that’s an issue. It’s usually pretty okay as time goes on after birth but it’s more of a comfort thing. You don’t want messy pads slipping around your undies and all that, it’s just easier to have a comfortable elastic all-in-one nappy you can throw out and quickly put another one on.

• Maternity pads. I know I just said to get nappies but look, you might prefer maternity pads. I felt differently every time. The first time round I just preferred maternity pads. You never know what you’ll like better at the time so just have all options on hand.

• Nursing pads. These are for the ladies with a high milk flow! I didn’t have that problem so never really needed them but I had them on hand.

• Slippers. Something comfy and cute during your hospital stay and for post partum (and the months after lol).

• Comfy socks. To go with your slippers and have you feelin cosy.

• Comfy button up PJs. Button up in case you breastfeed, and comfy to have you feelin like the queen that you are.

• Nursing bra. Again, in case you breastfeed.

• Soft pants. I actually loved wearing my soft maternity pants. I didn’t have a C section but apparently if you do they’re also a must!

• Soft undies. Again, I just wore my maternity undies.

• Wet bag for your dirty clothes. This is a good chance to invest in a cute wet bag for baby’s nappies when you’re out and about but for now you can use it for your dirty clothes at the hospital.

• TENS machine. You can hire these from so many places online! They send you everything you need with very clear instructions, and you can choose how far in advance before your due date you’d like them sent to you. This was an absolute GAME CHANGER for pain relief during labour and I only used it during my third birth! Please tell me why I didn’t do it the first two times 😅

• Items for birth. It’s worth looking around and getting a feel for any items you’d like to have with you for birth. I brought a birthing comb (to squeeze during contractions), a massage sponge (for Tom to dab on me, which felt amazing), and essential oils for all the relaxation I could get.

• EarPods - please invest in some Bluetooth EarPods if you haven’t already got some. I went between the EarPods and sometimes just played what I wanted on loud. You don’t know how you’ll feel at the time but chances are you won’t want to fuss around with cords!

• Disposable camera (my personal recommendation cos so fun) or a fancy camera like a Polaroid in addition to your phone if you want one.

Toiletries:

• Hair brush

• Hair ties

• Makeup - foundation, mascara, lip gloss or balm

• Makeup bag

• Shampoo and conditioner

• Body wash

• Face wash

• Makeup remover (see my fave make up remover balm which doubles as a face wash)

• Toothpaste

• Toothbrush

• Deodorant

• Pain relief medicine

• Perfume - or not? Everyone will have a different feel about this, but for me, I wanted baby to get to know my smell and I wanted to get to know theirs (aww) so I didn't pack any. 

If you found this helpful check out:

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Packing your hospital bag is really the thing for me that makes it feel so real! Baby is REALLY going to be here soon, and they even need little baby clothes to be packed for them to wear (I’m not crying you are!)

But here’s the thing… I don’t want to burst your bubble and be the party pooper here (sorry about all the alliterations lol) but it is super easy to get excited and overpack. And I’d highly recommend not doing that. Why do I say that?? Because when I had my first bubba, I packed two small/medium sized bags because I couldn’t fit everything in. And I have this vivid memory of this trying time while I was in labour, and I asked Tom (my partner) to grab something out for me, I think it was a change of clothes. I was trying to explain to him the exact location of what I was looking for, and he was pulling everything out and just couldn’t find it, then I had a go, and neither could I. Everything was a complete mess!

So after that when having my other two babies I realised it’s better to pack less because at the end of the day, as beautiful as it is, labour is also stressful. And you'll see the list is long enough with just the essentials! Even if you do all the hypnobirthing and you have a perfect birth exactly like you’d imagined and everything, it’s still a lot about communication with doctors and nurses and your partner and whoever else is there. You’re still going to be in your own space mentally. It’s not a time to be rummaging through bags trying to find things. And after birth is done, it’s usually a big clean up. Everything is very “in the moment” - so it’s better to just keep it minimal with a few token cute items.

For baby:

• Baby clothes - including going home outfit (not that I bothered with this in the end to be honest, but in saying that, it was covid so we weren’t seeing anyone)

• Jumpsuits

• Swaddles (Love to Dream and muslin)

• Baby blanket

• Burp cloth

• Dummy (I love these glow in the dark ones for the middle of the night feedings)

• Announcement sign

• Nappies

• Baby wipes

• Car seat

And of course - make sure you ACTUALLY put your hospital bag in you car once you’re about 30-32 weeks pregnant! You really don’t want to be fumbling around at 2am trying to get everything into the car when you’ve just got to get to the hospital asap (like I did LOL) 😂

SENDING LOTS OF LOVE XO.

Dad can also pack his own bag with a change of clothes and some toiletries, but honestly, dad was coming and going every time for us. He could duck home and grab things. He can easily get himself a coffee and some food. Honestly with a few snacks and maybe a toothbrush and his phone, he’ll be fine! Especially because you’ve already packed things he can use too like phone chargers and toothpaste.

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