Getting ready for a hospital stay can be nerve-wracking. Whether you’re there for an overnight stay or for a few days, you want to make sure you’re fully prepared. There are few things worse in the hospital than being stuck without your necessities. And you might not realize what your necessities are until you’re there — stuck. So, make a list ahead of time, and be sure to include even these unconventional items you might not have thought of.
1. Feminine Hygiene Products
Even if you don’t think your period is coming any time soon, you’ll want to bring all the things. Starting your period and having to rely on hospital supplies can be brutal. You may end up with extra thick pads you don’t want anywhere near your body. They can dry out your skin, cause rashes, and just leave you generally uncomfortable. Especially if you’re away from home and on your period, you want to have all your creature comforts.
In your bag, be sure to include anything you would normally have on hand for your period. Include pads, tampons, or period underwear. If you’re unsure if you’re about to start, period underwear can be particularly helpful because you’ll have them on just in case. Also, pack any pain relief you normally use to help with cramping. Just remember to talk to the doctor or nurses about anything you plan to take to avoid any negative consequences of medicine interactions.
2. An Extra Long Phone Charger
You might have thought of a phone charger, but you might not realize how long your cord has to be. With as much as humans rely on technology today, you’ll want to have your phone fully charged and at your bedside. If the only outlet is across the room, and you’re stuck in bed, you’ll have to ask the nurse or a visiting loved one to plug in your phone, unplug it, deliver it, etc. You may find yourself in your hospital bed, desperately wishing for your phone across the room.
Fortunately, you can now find phone chargers that are as long as 20 feet. Make sure you also have the cube to plug the charger into, and even consider bringing a second charger. You’ve likely been in a situation where your charger burns out or stops working, and you’re left with nothing. Having an extra-long charger, and a backup extra-long charger will keep you fully charged and ready to connect whenever you want to.
3. An Eye Mask and Earplugs
Hospitals are noisy, even at night. It makes sense, of course. Doctors and nurses need to run machines that keep people alive and monitor their vital signs. Nurses need light to be able to check on patients’ health. And that’s at night. During the day, it’s even worse. You likely won’t have blackout blinds or curtains to block out the sun. You might even have a roommate who hikes up the volume on their television.
What can you do? Bring earplugs and an eye mask. You can block out light and sound at any time of day. So, if you have trouble sleeping at night because your bed is not the most comfortable, you can still catch a few Z’s during the day. By then, you might be so tired that you don’t care about the lumpy mattress anymore. Earplugs will keep you from hearing every beep, blip, and TV commercial at all hours of the day. The more you rest, the better you’ll recover.
4. A Blanket
If you’re going to bring an eye mask and earplugs for comfort, you might as well add a blanket to the list. Hospitals get cold! Of course, a colder, well-ventilated environment keeps bacteria at bay, so that’s good. But it also keeps you chilly and incapable of resting because you’re too busy shivering. And the blankets on hospital beds are so thin, they might as well be sheets. It’s certainly not conducive to getting snuggled up and sleeping.
And you do need to sleep while you’re in the hospital. It’s good for your recovery. So, bring a blanket. Bring your nice, warm, comfortable comforter or quilt from home so you can get cozy. Just because the hospital is made stark, cold, and uncomfortable, doesn’t mean you have to let it stay that way. When you check in, bring your blanket with you and make sure it gets to your room. That way, the nurse or your loved one can spread it over you when you get settled.
5. Lip Balm and Lotion
One thing many people don’t think of when they check into the hospital is how dry the air is. Because a hospital needs to be clean, cold, and well-ventilated, a lot of dry air is circulating. After just a day in that environment, your skin can feel cracked and your lips can feel chapped. No amount of hydration can compete with that external attack. You have to be able to defend your skin and lips from the outside.
Bring your favorite lip balm, hand cream, and lotion to keep yourself moisturized. Yes, you should still drink plenty of fluids; that’s always a good idea. But you also want to create an external barrier that protects you from that dry air. If you don’t have a favorite, consider all-natural lip balms like Burt’s Bees and unscented lotions like Lubriderm. Their sole purpose is to protect your skin. Let them.
6. Nursing Items
Finally, if you’re a woman going into the hospital to deliver a baby, bring nursing items. Nursing your newborn in the hospital bed can be unwieldy and uncomfortable. And most hospitals won’t provide you with the items that help facilitate a welcoming, nurturing nursing environment. Especially if you’re a first-time mother who’s never nursed before, you’ll want all the support you can get.
A nursing gown or two is helpful because you can open up the top and nurse without having to remove your shirt. Also, consider a nursing pillow to rest your arm on while you’re supporting your nursing baby. It’s way more comfortable than a hospital pillow shoved under your arm. Last, you might want to invest in nipple shields if you’re struggling to get your baby to latch. They can help guide your baby through the nursing process and save your nipples some pain.
In the end, you’re much better off overpacking than underpacking for a hospital stay. In almost every case, you’re going in for help with a health issue, and you want to maximize your ability to rest while there. The more comfortable you can make yourself, the better experience you’ll have. Going to the hospital doesn’t have to be a nightmare. It can be a step in the right direction toward a happy, healthy life. All you have to do is pack for it.
Angela Spearman is a journalist at EzineMark who enjoys writing about the latest trending technology and business news.
