Hospital Bag Checklist: 25+ Essential Items for Mom & Baby
When my water broke at two in the morning, I scrambled to pack the essentials: toothbrush, cleanser, lotion, cell phone charger, book (which I never read), water bottle, and snacks. Of course, there were many more things I ended up needing.
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All right, pregnant mamas—pack those hospital bags! I kept procrastinating about packing mine, thinking I had so much time. “I’ll do it later,” I told myself. “There’s no rush.”
Well, my baby girl decided to come five weeks early, and I was not prepared. When my water broke at two in the morning, I scrambled to pack the essentials: toothbrush, cleanser, lotion, cell phone charger, book (which I never read), water bottle, and snacks. Of course, there were many more things I ended up needing. Thankfully, my husband was able to bring them later.
Now that I've gone through this experience, I've compiled a list of the items I found essential for my hospital stay. I was in a Canadian hospital for five nights; one before my baby was born, and four with my baby. I had a vaginal birth with minimal tearing and no other complications.
If you end up like me without a bag ready, don’t panic—the hospital has all the basics. I just found that the items I brought (well, that my husband brought) made the experience feel a little more like home.
Essentials For Mom
- Bathrobe – Easy to walk around in, soft, comfy, and smelled like home.
- Pillow – Hospital pillows are so flat. Having my own helped me get some much needed sleep. Get it while you can!
- Blanket – I brought a fluffy throw from my bed at home to snuggle with my baby so she could get used to our smell. It also kept me warm in my chilly hospital room.
- Long cell phone charger – I can’t stress the long part enough. Having a long cell phone charger that could easily reach my hospital bed was a lifesaver. Getting up and twisting were a challenge.
- Shampoo, conditioner, body wash – My first shower after giving birth felt amazing. The hospital only provided an all-in-one product, so having my own made it a better experience.
- Big towel and face cloth – Hospital towels are small, thin, and scratchy. Bringing my own was such a treat.
- Face cleanser, lotion, nail file – Using my usual skincare helped me feel fresh and a little more like myself. Some of my nails started breaking after giving birth, being able to file them down helped with this. I was so worried I was going to scratch my baby.
- Toothbrush and toothpaste – Simple but necessary, oral hygiene is important.
- Water bottle – I felt constantly dehydrated. A large water bottle was much more convenient than the tiny cups the hospital provided. Might be a good idea to bring two water bottles then you won't run out of water during those middle of the nighttime feeds.
- Snacks – Hospital food isn’t great. I packed lots of snacks including nuts, dried fruit, granola bars, chips, and fresh fruit. They were lifesavers, especially at night while breast feeding.
- Sliders – Comfortable shoes that are easy to slip on and off are essential.
- Sweatpants and zip-up hoodie – Comfy, easy-to-wear clothes are a must. It does not have to be sweats, pajamas work great too.
Essentials For Baby
- File folder for documents – Essential for keeping track of all the paperwork from the hospital, I had no idea we would get so much.
- Baby wipes – My hospital didn’t provide wipes, only small hand towels. Wipes were much easier. The nurses used my wipes too. I use the Huggies Natural Care Baby Wipes, you can get a large box from Costco.
- Going-home onesie – All my newborn onesies were too big for my preemie sized girl. I recommend having one preemie, newborn, and 0–3 month sized onesies just in case as you don’t know the size of your baby. I was told ultrasound measurements are often not accurate.
- Car seat – Of course! But I didn’t know there were preemie inserts, and we had to rush to get one. A preemie car seat insert is a piece of foam that goes in the bottom of the car seat and around your baby's hips and bottom for a better fit. I have the Mesa Uppababy Infant Car seat and preemie insert. I love how easily it clips in and out of the base and into the stroller.
Essentials For Nursing
I’m breastfeeding my baby, and these are items I had to order right away, you will need them in the hospital:
- Haakaa breast pump – I was soaking my baby and myself until I got one to catch my letdown. Any brand works fine. I use the Nuliie brand, it is half the price of the Haaka breast pump and seems to do the trick. Remember to empty the milk before switching breasts as the suction doesn’t hold well the more milk it collects. I learned this the hard way when it fell off spilling 50ml of milk. Yes, I did cry over spilled milk.
- Nipple pads – Essential for tenderness, sensitivity, and leaks. I have used multiple brands and they all seem to work the same. The current brand I am using is the Lansinoh Stay Dry Nursing Pads.
- Nipple cream – Helped with pain, hydration, and preventing cracking. I have the Lansinoh Organic Nipple Balm and it works great.
- Bottles and nipples – Useful for feeding my baby my letdown milk after breastfeeding, I am using the Medela and Dr. Brown brands.
- Skims nursing tanks or bras – Pricey, but worth it. They’re soft, supportive, and held my belly in. I wore these tanks without a bra while in the hospital. I originally bought two tanks and one bra but am planning on buying more as soon as they have another 50% off sale. There are other less expensive nursing tank and bra brands out there that will also work great. I just bought a 3 pack of Hofish nursing bras off Amazon and have had no complaints so far.
Hospital Provided Essentials
Here is a list of all the items that my Canadian hospital provided. I recommend you connect with the hospital you will be giving birth in to confirm what they will be providing during your stay, or check with other moms that have recently given birth in that hospital.
- Diapers - The hospital provided Huggies Little Snugglers preemie and newborn diapers during my stay. I am still using this brand at home and haven’t had any issues yet. My only complaint is that the largest size pack you can get preemie diapers in is a 30 pack which does not last very long. I would recommend getting a subscription with Amazon or Walmart to save a bit of money.
- Formula and single use nipples - Since my baby was so small I was doing formula top-ups in the hospital to help her gain weight. The brand the hospital provided was Enfamil A+ NeuroPro Ready to Feed and the Enfamil single use nipples. I purchased a pack when I got home just in case.
- Swaddles - I did not have any clothes that fit my baby girl as she was only 5lb and all the newborn clothes I had were way too big. While we were in the hospital I used the swaddles the hospital provided, they worked great. Since my baby was so small the nurses recommended I use two to three swaddles to keep her warm.
- Towels for wiping - As I mentioned above, my hospital did not provide baby wipes. I used the towels they provided to begin with but found wipes were easier.
- Nipple Cream - The hospital provided Medela Purelan Lanolin cream, which worked great but I found it was sticky and stained my clothes.
- Hospital Gown - I never used the hospital gown.
- Disposable Underwear - These were great. Very comfy and easy to get on and off. My hospital gave me a few to take home too, which was so nice. I wore them for the first week then switched to my regular underwear.
- Pads - The hospital provided Maxi overnight pads which were perfect during my hospital stay. Most people will need to wear pads for the first six weeks after giving birth. I am on my third week of postpartum and am currently wearing regular pads.
- Hats - The hospital had these cute knit hats that had been donated by seniors. They gave me three to take home.
I hope this was helpful for all you expecting moms out there. Of course, your pregnancy journey will be different from mine, but use this list as a starting point. If I had a crystal ball and could go back in time, I would have packed my hospital bag at the start of my third trimester. I wish you a wonderful birth and hospital stay. You’ve got this!
