Hospital Survival Guide

The parent resource center at Primary's is amazing and definitely a survival tool for an extended hospital stay

Up until about a year ago, the longest I had ever spent in a hospital was about 8 hours when I was 12 to have an outpatient surgery done to remove a pre-cancerous growth on my head. (it sounds worse than it was, basically I had a bald spot on my scalp that they removed in case it would turn into cancer at some point. I still have a small scar where hair won't grow.)
Now, I have spent much more time in the hospital between giving birth and Aly's time at PCMC. I wouldn't call myself an expert by any means, but I do feel like I have some good advice on what one should bring if they ever have to spend time in the ER, maternity ward, picu, infant unit etc.

The number one most important thing...

1. SOCKS!! Hospitals are cold. I don't know about you, by my feet are always colder than the rest of my body. Trying to sleep with cold feet is always impossible. Plus if you have to get out of bed to pee walking across the cold hospital floor is a rude awakening. Even if you are just there for monitoring, those hospital blankets can never seem to warm up the feet. Buy those slipper socks that have the traction on the soles and your feet will be toasty warm, and you won't slip on the floor.

2. Lip Balm- I got the worst chapped lips in the PICU. They recirculate the air so it is really really dry. Even on the general floor, you are not getting fresh air so you will dry out faster. I liked Soft Lips this visit. But there are a ton of different lip products out there, pick your favorite. Make sure it's within arms reach for when you wake up in the middle of the night.

3. Your Own Pillow or at least a pillow from home- Hospital pillows are as bad as airplane pillows. Flat as a board, no support whatsoever. You can try mashing 3 of them together to almost get the softness of one regular pillow, or you can just bring one from home. I would also bring a pretty pillow case to differentiate form the hospital ones so it doesn't get thrown in with the laundry.

4. A iPad/tablet device- Unless you have a super light ultra book, a regular sized laptop and accessories can be a lot to lug around plus there is usually limited counter top space in a hospital room. The iPad is great because it charges fast (and you can use the same cord to charge your iPod, which is another important thing for the hospital) and its self contained. No mouse, no extras. You can use it to read, play games, check e-mail, take notes, do research. I suppose you could also use a smartphone, but sometimes the larger screen and apps lend themselves more easily to certain functions. Like LiveJournal.

5. A sleeping bag- If you are going to break the rules and have a second person spend the night, it will be nice to have at least some cushion between you and the hospital floor. Plus the floor is about 20 degrees colder than the already frigid air. This is something I would only pull out for an extended stay, and if you are going to be sleeping on the floor or waiting room couch.

6. A notebook- After so many days with no sleep and crazy amounts of stress, days and nights start to run together in one muddled heap. I found it helpful to make a calendar with what happened each day, which doctors we saw, what tests were run, who visited, etc. I also used it to track things like meds, feedings, songs I heard that meant something to me, and I also used it to just journal until I could get to a computer.

7. Food for the nurses- We gave our nurses Mickey Mouse shaped Rice Krispy treats from the radio station. Our friends also brought treats for the staff to the PICU one night. One morning I dropped donuts off at the nurses station. It's just a en extra way to show your appreciation. After spending 12 hours with a nurse, it can feel nice to do something nice for her after she took such good care of your child.

8. A change of clothes- Even if you are not going to stay the night, there are many reasons why a person in the hospital could need an extra pair of pants or a shirt. For me, the most common was baby vomit. Aly puked on me in the ER and I had nothing to change into. Luckily the hospital gave me a pair of scrub pants, but there were other times when I was not so lucky.

9. A toothbrush- If you are unable to shower, sometimes brushing your teeth is the best way to feel like you have cleaned yourself up. Bad breath can abound from lack of sleep, eating at odd hours and drinking coffee round the clock. When I had Aly, I forgot my toothbrush and went three days without brushing my teeth. Yuck. A clean mouth just makes you feel better.

10. A friend- Sometimes in the hospital, you get stuck in a altered state of reality. You forget that there is a world outside of what you are going through. The best thing is to occasionally leave the hospital, and talk about anything but what is going on in there. If you can just talk to someone about their life, or TV, or movies etc., you will remember that the world is still turning and you will be able to rejoin it eventually. So find a friend who is slightly removed from the situation, who will do that for you. :)


GO ALY!