Hospital bag for mum: Labour and post-delivery must-haves for mum when she goes into hospital to have her baby

GETTING your hospital bag for mum ready may not be quite as much fun as buying baby clothes or picking out wallpaper for a nursery, but it’s just as important. Since labour could start at any time, you’ll want an overnight hospital bag for mum ready to grab at a moment’s notice. Labour and delivery […]

GETTING your hospital bag for mum ready may not be quite as much fun as buying baby clothes or picking out wallpaper for a nursery, but it’s just as important.
Since labour could start at any time, you’ll want an overnight hospital bag for mum ready to grab at a moment’s notice.

Labour and delivery are unpredictable; so is everything after. To be safe, pack more than you think you’ll need in your hospital bag for mum.

First things first: you’ll need your maternity notes and birth plan, as well as chargers for any device you’ll want to have. We’d suggest bringing your phone, iPad, Kindle, books and magazines – you may want to text friends one minute, watch something on Netflix the next or read a chapter of your new favourite book (or that book you’re reading about how to get through labour in the most pain-free way possible). And don’t forget glasses and contact lenses.

You also want to pack all of the essentials you’ll need for an overnight or multi-night stay, and then some: nightgowns or PJs, toiletries and cosmetics, nursing bras and underwear.

Don’t worry about packing a breast pump in your hospital bag – the hospital will have those on hand. Some hospitals provide baby bottles and formula, while others don’t, so do check beforehand if you’re planning to bottle feed your baby.

Another essential for your hospital bag for mum? Anything that relaxes you. This could be a TENS machine or a bubble bath or a certain type of tea bag. Pack ‘em all.

1. Comfy PJs

• hush Bright Leopard Print Cotton Pyjama Set – £55 at John Lewis – buy here

Pyjamas (with a button-front for easy breastfeeding access) are just the sort of comfy clothes you want to live in post-delivery.

We like a fun printed pair that makes us feel like us… Just us as new mums.

2. TENS machine

John Lewis

• Body Clock Health Care Ltd Elle Tens 2 Maternity Machine, £74.95 at John Lewis – buy here

Some mums swear by the TENS (or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) machine: it’s a method of pain relief in labour in which you connect electrodes to the skin which produce electrical, tingling sensations.

A TENS machine can reduce pain and provide a welcome distraction from contractions. This version from Body Clock helpfully times contractions as well – which means you can delay going into hospital until you really need to.

Devotees say it helped them persevere through natural labour.

3. Flip-flops

Havaianas

• Havaianas Slim Brasil logo, £12 at Havaianas – buy here

Slippers or flip-flops can make all the difference when you’re pacing the hospital hallways or trekking up and down hospital stairs in an effort to progress labour.

While mums are divided on which are better, flip-flops work in the shower, too.

4. New mum toiletries

Mio Skincare

• Mama Mio Push Pack, £40 at Mio Skincare – buy here

Yes, it’s a good idea to pack your toothbrush and toothpaste, some shower gel, shampoo and conditioner – although we don’t recall caring much about basic hygiene during labour or just after.

What we did need from our toiletries? Distraction – and calm. Mama Mio’s Push Pack hits the nail on the head with an aloe leaf facial spritz, avocado and relaxing citrus massage oil (perfect for when your partner gives you a foot massage) and Superstar in a Jar cream, with soothing baobab oil.

This kit also comes with a flannel to mop up sweat – or throw at your partner should you curse them for getting you into this mess.

5. Your comfiest clothes

Vertbaudet

• Vertbaudet Maternity & Nursing Loungewear 3-Piece Kit, £47.50 at Vertbaudet – buy here

You’ll want your most comfortable clothing for labour and post-delivery. And even though your baby won’t be inside you anymore, your tummy size those first few days isn’t too dissimilar from what you looked like in advanced pregnancy.

So we’d recommend wearing your favourite maternity pieces, oversized sweats and nursing tops.

This three-piece set with a vest, smocked trousers and open cardigan ticks every box.

6. High-energy snacks

ASDA

• Graze Protein Bites Banana Oat Squares, £2.49 at ASDA – buy here

Labour is intense, exhausting work which requires lots of calories and energy – particularly if you’ve been up with contractions for 24 hours.

Regular snacks like oat bites, cereal bars, crackers, fruit and veg and sandwiches can all help to power you through. Lots of water is also essential.

7. Nursing bras and pants

H&M

• MAMA 2-pack soft nursing bras, £19.99 at H&M – buy here

Multiple nursing bras and comfy pants are post-baby essentials.

We’d recommend some non-wire nursing bras initially (comfort is key) and a multi-pack of cotton pants.

Pack maternity pads to help with the post-delivery bleeding, too.

8. Some key cosmetics

Look Fantastic

• Lipstick Queen Nothing But the Nudes Lipstick, £22 at Look Fantastic – buy here

All women are different – some want a full-face of makeup while in labour, others are all about doing it au naturel.

We think a few of your essential cosmetics items will come in useful – nothing makes you feel more normal or like yourself than a swipe of mascara or your particular shade of favourite lipstick.

Lip balm will help with dry lips, too.

9. Whatever makes you relax

Look Fantastic

• Bloom and Blossom Indulgence Bath Oil, £18 at Look Fantastic – buy here

What one person finds calming, another might find irritating, which is why there has to be a bespoke element to packing your hospital bag for mum.

What is it that you find relaxing? A gorgeously scented bath oil? Many maternity wards do have bathtubs on site, and water can help alleviate contraction pains, so having a bath can be a great way to chill out mid-labour.

If you’re obsessed with a particular tea, or a certain essential oil – bring it. You never know what you’ll need in the moment.

10. Reading material (and entertainment)

The Book People

• Normal People by Sally Rooney, £5.99 at The Book People – buy here

Labour looks nothing like the movies. Even when things are progressing quickly – and they send you home six hours after baby’s birth – you’re still hanging around for a lot of hours.

Books, magazines, music and movies can all serve as distractions during labour and can help you get through that first sleepless night (does anyone manage to sleep right after their baby is born?)

They’ll also serve you faithfully during your time on the post-natal ward, which is noisy and not exactly the idyllic vision of baby bonding you initially dreamt of. Escaping into a great book while cuddling your newborn? That’s more like it.

11. Something to help you sleep

Space NK

• SLIP Lovely Lashes Embroidered Silk Sleep Mask, £50 at Space NK – buy here

An eye mask, earplugs, pillow spray, even a cosy pillow… these are all items we’d suggest throwing into the hospital bag for mum.

Labour doesn’t give you many opportunities to sleep, and the post-birth excitement and frenzy also make finding time to nap tricky, but it’s so important to sleep when you can in the hospital.

Baby will thank you for it (and you’ll thank yourself that you slept when you had the chance if sleep deprivation hits when baby gets older).

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Keen to ensure you don’t forget anything? Here’s our hospital bag checklist, full of essentials you’ll want to take with you.

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