Maybe Useful

I don't have a lot of useful things to share, but there are some things I've learned about having a baby in the hospital... so I thought I would share, hoping that no one who reads this will ever need these tips.

(these are in no particular order, just as I remember them)

-Hospitals, even Children's hospitals, have horrible washcloths. They are rough and big and totally useless for sponge baths, so bring your own (the small, thin Gerber ones are the best IMO).

-This is an awesome product for in between sponge baths: http://www.mustelausa.com/phisiobebe.html

-Bring a notebook and a pen... this is useful for writing down random things. Specifically, I recommend writing down questions for the doctors, because you will think of questions all day and night long, until the doctor walks in the door and you can't think of a single one. Also, I would recommend writing down which medications your child is scheduled for and when she actually gets them; especially around shift change, or when you get a bad nurse, you may need this information (to remind them that it's time for a dose, or inform them that your child already got the medicine). It's also good to take notes about things, like drugs your child has a bad reaction to, or other things you may want to know in the future (this whole experience will be much fuzzier in your memory than you would think).



-Make the hospital room your own. We women are nesters. I brought blankets and stuffed animals and a little cross sign for Sophia's crib. I spent hours rearranging the flowers and things in the room, and cleaning and organizing (when Amelia was in the hospital and I was pumping, I became completely neurotic about lining up her bottles). One night I mopped the entire floor in Sophia's (large) room on my hands and knees with hand sanitizer, because I noticed that the floor was kinda dirty. It's crazy, but make yourself at home and allow yourself to "nest" in your own way.

-Anytime you go to the hospital with your child, bring some overnight things for yourself... with Sophia's first hospitalization we thought we'd only stay for one night and ended up there for two weeks, and we were in a different state from our home. I refused to leave the hospital, so I ended up showering in her room and wishing I had brought my own shampoo and conditioner and more clothes. When I took Amelia to the ER, it never occurred to me that we would stay or that I should bring anything for myself, I just grabbed the diaper bag. I ended up using newborn diapers as maxi pads to hold all my four day postpartum blood, until the morning when Davis brought me supplies. A toothbrush would have made me feel a hundred times more human too. So assume you'll be staying longer, and bring things for yourself.

-Sleep when you can, try to catch naps during the day. You never know when you'll be up all night - because you just can't sleep, or because people keep coming in the room, or because something goes wrong with your child and you need to be there for her. Your ability to cope will be directly linked to how much sleep you've gotten.

-Speaking of sleep, make a sign that says "Baby/Child Sleeping, please do not disturb unless necessary" and tape it on the outside of the hospital room door when your child (and you!) is napping and at night. This keeps people from randomly coming in to change a light bulb or empty trash, and makes nurses and techs a little more aware of how often they are coming in.

-Be nice to everyone as much as possible. But remember you are your child's advocate, speak up when you need to. Ask questions and make sure you really understand the answer, ask again if you don't.

-If you have a sippy-cup aged child, bring your own sippy cups.

-If your child is scheduled for surgery, bring tabloid magazines...the reading material in the waiting rooms usually isn't that good, and you need something to look at that requires zero concentration and is moderately entertaining without making you think. I brought a bag with US, Star, etc. along with a bible ha! No, I don't usually read those magazines, but they were perfect for flipping through in the waiting room.

-Bring your child's favorite toys and books and music and movies. Bring a toy doctor's bag with stethoscope, etc.



-If possible don't let people do painful things to your child in bed. We ended up with a lot of sleep problems after Sophia's first hospitalization, because of the trauma of being woken up in bed by needles and other scary things. If possible, move your child to a chair or couch before hurting them.

-Don't ever lie to your child about what is going to happen. If it's going to hurt tell them "it's going to hurt, but only for a moment and I will be right here with you" or whatever. That way your child will trust you, and will believe you when you tell them something really isn't going to hurt. Explain what is going on, even to a very young child or baby. Before Sophia's first surgery, she was only 15 months old, but pretty verbal. I got photographs of the rooms from the children's hospital, as well as pictures of some equipment like masks on a child's face and IV poles, etc. I laminated them and for a couple of weeks before surgery just showed them to her and told her what the words for things were. At least things weren't completely foreign when she went into the hospital.

-Take pictures. It may be the furthest thing from your mind, but you'll be happy that you recorded the fact that your baby looked incredibly cute even under bili lights



-This probably is too random to be useful for most people, but if you child is going to have drainage tubes from surgery, use a fanny pack to hold the bulbs.

-These little ice packs, available in the first aid aisle of your grocery store, are way better than anything the hospital has http://www.schoolkidshealthcare.com/product/270.html In fact, a friend of mine just had a lump removed from her breast (thank God it was benign) and I gave her one to put in her bra, and she said it was perfect. Way better than the huge hard thing they gave her.

I think this is getting too long... maybe I will continue with a Part II another day. It's time for bed here!