Almost giving birth and want to know what to do during your hospital stay after birth? You’re in the right place mama! The most exciting part of being pregnant is when you actually give birth! Okay maybe it’s a little nerve-racking, but it is what you look forward to the moment you find out that you are pregnant. Today I’m going to share with you the things that you should do in the hospital after giving birth!
With all the great expectation for that day there are things that happens during labor that nobody tells you about, so you might want to know that not everything is peaches and roses. Before you give birth you need to make sure you do all of these things first to ensure peace of mind and be prepared for the welcoming of your new baby.
After all of the commotion of giving birth has slowed down and you are finally in your postpartum room, you have to make sure to do a couple of important things. These 7 things to do in the hospital after you give birth will help you have peace of mind and will also help you not worry about things after you get home from the hospital.
How long will I be in the hospital after birth?
After an uncomplicated vaginal delivery, you’re likely to stay in the hospital for 24 to 48 hours. If you have an uncomplicated c-section, you’ll probably be in the hospital for two to four days (source)
What do you wear in the hospital?
You will typically wear a hospital gown during your stay. You can bring your own and wear it too. Since hospital gowns aren’t the most stylish.
8 things to do in the hospital after you give birth
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliated links. For more information read here.
1.Fill out the birth certificate
Make sure you fill out your baby’s birth certificate in the hospital. You can get assistance from the wonderful nurses that are always willing to help. Do not leave this for after you get home with your new born because it will stress you out! All you will want to do is just rest and spend time with your baby, you will not want to do paper work. Have your hubby fill it out if you want, but have it done! Plus, the hospital will take care of sending it to the right place, so you don’t have to do it.
Don’t forget to NOURISH your body, so you can heal quickly, produce a healthy milk supply and lose the baby weight! You can accomplish all of this with the The Postpartum Cure!
2.Ask doctors and nurses questions
This is the time to ask all of the questions that you may have and believe me we have a ton. Don’t feel embarrassed or shy about asking even the obvious of questions, your doctor and nurses are there to help and hopefully not judge. When I gave birth to my first baby, I called the nurse frantically because I didn’t know how to make my baby stop crying. I felt embarrassed but at the same time, I felt like I should ask for help so I can know what to do once I am home alone with my baby. So, ask all you want and rest assure you will feel better and informed.
Now’s the time to take a newborn class! It’s online and you’ll learn everything you need to know about taking care of a newborn baby. From diaper changing, taking baby a bath, umbilical care, sleeping tips, tummy time and more! It’s the perfect way to get newborn education from home! click here for more information!
3.Decide if you will circumcise your baby boy
This is the time to decide whether you want to circumcise your baby boy or not. I believe this is a personal preference, so every mom has the right to decide and not be judged for their decision. Consult with your hubby and agree on it, consult with your doctor and ask him/her questions about the cons and pros of circumcising your child. I circumcised my baby boy because it was something my hubby and I agreed on, the moment we found out we were having a boy and my doctor also recommended it.
Some of the reasons many moms decided to circumcise their baby is because there is a decreased risk of urinary tract infection, prevention of penile problems and easier hygiene. It’s better to do it while your baby boy is a newborn because they will not remember the pain and you have the nurses to help you with the healing. Here’s a helpful article on how to care for your circumcised baby!
Note: The decision on whether to circumcise your child may sometimes depend on your religion, the country you are living in, family tradition and many other factors.
4.It’s okay if you do not sleep with your baby
It’s okay if you do not sleep with your baby. I know you want to be with your newborn at all times, you are still in awe that you gave birth to this beautiful chubby baby but take my advice on this one. If one night you do not want to sleep with your baby then don’t. That doesn’t make you a bad mom, it makes you human. You need to get your rest, you need to savor your last days of sleeping full nights without any interruptions.
This decision may also depend in the hospital that you are staying in, some may give you the option like mine did and some may not. Do what is right for you!
Note: This is my personal opinion to not sleep with my baby during the night while still being in the hospital. If you do sleep with your baby while being in the hospital that’s great and if you don’t that’s great too!
5.Take advantage of the free baby items
This is my number one rule to do during your hospital stay after birth, even though we know our insurance is paying for these items might as well pack on the “free” diapers, baby formula, blankets, hats, vaseline, and any other baby products that your hospital provides. Pack on the freebie girl! Tell your hubby to “steal” (you are not really stealing here) them and take it home. Tell your siblings, mom, dad and grandma’s to help you stock up on all these baby items from the hospital.
Many nurses will give you these items for you to take. Just take advantage of the baby products that they give you in the hospital.
Read this next:
14 excellent ways to feel more like yourself after giving birth
10 postpartum items you need after birth for a smooth recovery
6.Take naps
Sometimes when we are in the hospital, all we want to do is take care of our babies and not take naps. I have learned from experience, that taking naps during the day is okay, you will still be a great mom to your newborn. You need to take care of yourself in order to take care of someone else, so get your rest if you are feeling tired and let your hubby take care of the baby.
7.Enjoy your visitors
Enjoy your family and friends that go visit you and your baby at the hospital. Talk with them, take pictures and just savor these moments. Enjoy the great company and let them spend time with your baby while you eat or simply while you relax.
8. Breastfeeding
If you’re planning on breastfeeding your newborn baby, now is the time to start! Ask your nurse to help you breastfeed your baby, by showing you how to hold your newborn and how to help him latch. If your hospital has a lactation consultant on sight, then she will most likely visit you and give you information.
Once you’re home, you can take the Milkology breastfeeding class (super cheap!) to learn the basics of breastfeeding. You can definitely reach your lactation goals in one day! Get more free information here!
Quick recap:
Every pregnant women will tell you that giving birth and actually meeting their baby for the first timer is what they look forward to the most. Giving birth is an amazing experience that you will treasure for ever.
After you give birth you must make sure you do a couple things. For example, make sure you fill out your baby’s birth certificate and ask your doctor and nurses any questions and concern that you may have.
It’s also important that you rest in order to recuperate and feel more energetic. Also stocking up on baby supplies that they will give you in the hospital is not a bad idea at all. Enjoy your visitors and take it easy!
New mom? How nice would it be if your baby slept through the night at 2 month old? If you had time for self care? Slept more and rocked your first year of motherhood? Good news!
These are great tips! Especially the free stuff! I know it’s weird but I think the free mesh panties they give you that are super stretchy are like the bomb right after birth. I always stock up on those!
Oohh I forgot about those! Lol. Thanks Chelsea. Free stuff is always good to stock up on..right? Specially baby products!
Experienced mom with 4 beautiful children. You should absolutely sleep with your newborn in the hospital. This baby is used to being so close to you. They have been inside you for nine months. The hospital nursery is full of light and sound 24 hours a day. Your baby needs the calm of hearing your voice, your smell and being close to you after birth. Birth is very hard on their little systems, too!
Two nights of sleep in the hospital for you is a small drop in the bucket. You just had this little one. The moment you give birth is the moment you sign in! Just get started. You will not regret these first precious hours.
Hi Linda! Thank you so much for commenting. I appreciate your opinion on this topic. I am also an experienced mom of three and I did not sleep with my beautiful babies while being in the hospital. Of course this is a personal choice for every mom to make. For me, I needed my rest, I needed my body to have a break too.Again, personal choice. Thank you Linda 🙂
Totally agree with Linda. The poor baby will be scared and lonely if separated from his or her mother! I actually slept pretty well with my newborns – granted, I left the hospital two hours after giving birth to my first and had my second at home, so I’m not sure how comfortable this would be in a hospital bed but at home it was great. Such a wonderful bonding and nursin opportunity.
Wasn’t a study recently released saying there are all kinds of benefits to rooming in with your child? Everything from milk production for mom to regulating the new baby’s sleep cycles to lower instances of post-partum depression. It is obviously a mother’s choice, but science backs up the benefits to having your child room in.
Hi Melina! Thank you for commenting. I didn’t sleep with my babies while being in the hospital because I needed to recuperate from my c-section and wanted to sleep. It was only for two days with my first child. For my twins I stayed in the hospital for two weeks for health reasons. It is a personal choice, but of course once I was home, I slept with with my precious newborns, no doubt about it 🙂
A lot of this advice is good but I also would have appreciated if the article acknowledged that it was a personal choice to sleep apart from your baby. Science does back that infant stress levels go way down when rooming in or sleeping with mama, and a lot of young/new moms will see this list as strong recommendations for what to do instead of opinions. You DO want to sleep, you DO want to recover, but so do they! You’re already a mom by that point!
My hospital requires the baby be in the nursery for a little while, while they do the required tests & such, there were signs in the rooms to not sleep with your baby. (I think they are worried about the moms who thrash in their sleep.) but my first night they came in to me and said, you’re baby is a little cold, would you like to hold her? It was the middle of the night… I’m sure they knew there’d be some sleeping going on! And after they brought her in in a little ‘cradle’ for lack of a better word, she was with me almost 24/7. She had to go under the billi lights, but when she wasn’t ‘sunning’ she was mine!
I feel like I was able to get the rest I needed whether I had her or the nurses or daddy had her, and I think that’s the point here. Don’t feel like you HAVE to keep them 24/7, let those around you help, because once you get home, it’s all over but the crying! (Literally for some of us!)
Hi Angela! I have not read that article but I am sure there are a lot of benefits of sleeping with baby. I chose not to sleep with all three of my babies while being in the hospital because I wanted my body to recuperate and I need much needed rest. I was with all three of my babies the whole day in the hospital, the only time they were not with me, was when I went to sleep very late at night. Again, once home my babies were with me 24/7 and of course I slept with them too. I loved it 🙂 Thank you again for your opinion 🙂
Thank you Audrey! I already added a side not stating that is my personal choice, thank you for pointing that out for me :). I agree with you that at that point I am already a mommy, but if I have the chance to rest and sleep through the night, I took it! Only for the days I stayed in the hospital, I stayed with my babies the whole day until I was ready to sleep late at night. Once home, my babies were with me 24/7 and slept with me too! I do recommend not sleeping with your baby because once home you will not get a good night sleep, so just take advantage while being in the hospital, that’s all. All the women from my family have done it and still continue do it, so I guess it’s normal for us. Thank you for your opinion 🙂
Thank you Elizabeth for your comment! That was my opinion here, take advantage of the good night sleep you will have in the hospital because like you said, once home it’s all over! Let family members help and get your rest. Whether you sleep with your baby or not, every one is a great mom and there’s no right or wrong way of doing things 🙂
24 hour rooming in is supported and encouraged by global healthcare organizations. The World Health Organization, UNICEF, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the American Academy of Pediatrics to name the heavy hitters. I appreciate that you clearly stated this was only a personal opinion, but presented as one of seven things TO DO lends itself to a heated conversation. A public platform as this would benefit from a quick internet search of best practices.
Additionally, the suggestion to stock up on freebies, even to ‘steal’ products, is dissapointing. The products are not free. They are bundled into the total cost of the delivery. The stocking up on ‘freebies’ increases patient costs and hospital budget expenses that will be offset by higher charges to other patients. If your household budget requires you to stock up on hospital freebies, perhaps rethink your baby shower registry.
I think it’s a every woman’s personal choice to sleep wit their baby in the room.. I personally recommend to all my new moms that if they have the chance to have the baby sleep in the nursery then do it take advantage u need to sleep and also if ur a first time mom and as nervous as I was you should .. My milk flow stopped and I wasn’t able to breastfeed because I would get no sleep and was so nervous doing everything for the first time alone that it really had an affect on my milk flow. When I had me second child he also stayed in the nursery and of course they bring him in every time if was time to breast feed and even the nurse told me she would take him for the night so I can rest.. I’m a mom of 2 that now sleep in my bed With me and they are super fine and healthy. So I think it’s up to each mom to do what they feel is right .. There is no handbook for this thing called Motherhood <33
Thank you for your information! “Stealing” was just a joke and I think you can stock up on baby products if you have the chance. There is nothing wrong with it, I do have the budget for my babies products but free things is always nice,don’t you think? Thank you again for your opinion and facts about the benefits of sleeping with baby.
Thank you so much miriam! I agree with you it’s every moms choice to make, whether or not you want to sleep with your baby during your hospital stay. I do think resting and letting your body recuperate for a couple of hours is great and beneficial. Again, every mom is different and that is fine too. Motherhood is hard and we should support one another’s decision. Thanks!
We do not have nurseries here in Canada.
But rather NICU’s therefore only babies that are sick would be in them. Rooming in with your baby is best for Mom Amd baby. Increases prolactin levels to produce milk. In the case of a cesarean birth, nurses offer assistance. And an uncomplicated vaginal delivery is a short stay here 24hrs. As a Mom of 3 I understand your opinion and perhaps re-phrase the title helpful hints etc..
This is such a fun list! I just wanted to let you know that most of those “freebies” aren’t free unless you have good insurance. The nurse is supposed to charge everything to your account except the small things (like shampoo). So you are either paying for them or your insurance is depending on your plan (and probably depending on how busy the nurse is if she charges the items- but most nurses are pretty good at charging the items since that sort of thing is monitored by the hospital). This is coming from a nurse. Thanks for putting out this list I enjoyed reading it!
Thank you Lisa! You are right, it all depends what hospital you are in or from what country you are from, some do not have nurseries and some do. My hubby’s cousin had to sleep with her baby because there was “no room” in the nurseries but in the hospital that I stayed in, we were allowed to decided whether we wanted to sleep at night with our babies or not.
Thank you Nicole! Whoops, I didn’t know that, thank you for sharing this great piece of information. I’m glad you enjoyed reading this post, and nurses rock! ( I loved my nurses, they treated me like family!)
Yes, please ROOM IN with your child, the benefits are endless. Evidence tells us that the newborn adjusts better, and so does mom. Your milk comes in faster, lower rates of postpartum hemorrhage, etc. But for the love of all that is holy, do not sleep with the baby in the bed with you. Most hospitals don’t even allow it. Let baby sleep on you, skin-to-skin, while you are awake. But once you are asleep, baby goes in the crib. There is a huge fall risk, and the SIDS & suffocation risks skyrocket. It’s not just my personal opinion, it is documented medical evidence. How long did you spend choosing the safest car seat or crib? Do the same for choosing where baby will sleep- keep him/her as safe as possible. I am a labor nurse, so completely committed to keeping moms & babies together, but that ends when mom doses off. Think of how devastated you would be if the unthinkable happens.
Thanks! Yes do not sleep with baby because we do not want any accidents! I was with my babies the whole day and had visitors and all. I love having skin to skin and learning how to breastfeed from the wonderful nurses that helped me. Once it was night and I was ready to go to bed, the nurses took my babies with my consent of course. I trusted them and it was great to have a couple of hours to sleep because God knows that once home, there is no such thing as sleep, lol. Thanks again!
Being a nurse I’m the hospital, the items aren’t free. If you have insurance, they are paying for it. If you have no insurance, you are paying high dollar for items you can get cheaper elsewhere.
Every time you ask for a med, pack of wipes, diapers, etc….Employees use your room number to check items out. Items are then added to your hospital bill!! No freebies, sorry!
Hi! Thanks for the imformation, another wonderful nurses already informed me of that. It sure feels like it’s free because like you said the insurance covers it, which is great! Also, some of the nurses at the hospital I stayed in help me with extra baby products and gave me a bag full of it, whether it was out of tje goodness of their heart or not, I think that was so nice and sweet! Either way thanks!
It can actually be REALLY detrimental to a breastfeeding mother to not room-in with her newborn. It is absolutely TERRIBLE advice to tell a new mother to ship her child off to some separate room so they can “rest” while in the hospital. You will still be woken up to check your condition, if you’re breastfeeding your baby will still need to eat overnight. It is not only extremely lazy, but selfish as well. Those babies don’t want to be laying in a bassinet in a room with strangers, they want to be as close to you and your body as possible. Change your baby’s diapers, feed your own baby, and sleep when they sleep. Get used to it, because you’re a mom now. You don’t become a mother after you leave the hospital.
Just an FYI….all thise things are NOT free. As a nurse who works this floor. We have to charge for everything that leaves the supply room. And if we know we are putting a new pack of diapers, wipes, or milk, with the baby each time it comes back to the nursery or what not, and the baby isn’t having that many wet or dirty diapers we know people are stashing them, which isn’t an issue because like I said We have to charge for everything. Even mesh panties and pads that come from the supply room.
As a breastfeeding counselor at a certified baby friendly hospital, it is proven that a mother sleepD better with the peace of mind of baby being right next to her.
Oh wow. It’s sad how many people are bashing on the opinions in this list! That’s what it is, opinions and “what worked for me” recommendations, not hard and fast rules. I’m about to be a mama in December, and this discussion here only reiterates my previous thoughts that moms are way too hard on each other. From what I’ve been able to observe, motherhood is an incredibly unique experience for each woman, and what works for one may not work for another. It makes me a bit unnerved that this is the community of women that I’ll be joining…ones who tell each other that their way is the best and that what the other person is doing is “wrong” or “not enough”. We need to build each other up and discuss things as a team, because that’s what we need to be….not competing adversaries. Give your opinions kindly, move on, and continue to support each other during what I expect to be an incredible yet difficult time in a woman’s life. Please stop giving this mama a hard time for what she decided was the best for her family.
Thank you for this list. It gave me some things to think about and some good ideas on how to plan for the hospital!
Thank you so much Jamie! Like you said those are my personal opinions and recommendations that I love to share with all my pregnant mamas. In hopes that they can find these helpful. I’m so happy that you liked this post and found a few good ideas to implement. I wish you a safe and quick delivery and good luck in this wonderful chapter of your life! Sometimes some moms can be very judgmental of others, but I do not let that get in the way of what I feel and believe in. I always stay positive! Thanks again Jamie 🙂
A mom has every right to choose what to do to her child’s body? And not be judged? Despicable.
I have to agree with you Irene. How despicable is this culture that believes that mutilating a baby’s body is a parent’s choice? It makes me very sad indeed.
Hi Anna! It’s not despicable at all and it has been done for years. It’s all about your choice and no one should be judged for it. No one is mutilating a baby’s body, it’s just removing an extra skin.Despicable is being judged for making a personal choice. If you don’t want to circumsize your baby boy, that’s fine and if I do that’s fine too. I did say everyone has a choice. God bless!
Hi Irene! Yes, that’s exactly what I said. Why judge? If you don’t want to circumsize your baby that’s great! If you do that’s great too! We are moms and we should not judge or bring each other down. We should all respect each other’s opinions. That’s despicable to me. When other moms judge other moms for their decisions. Have a blessed day!
I am a labor and delivery nurse and find it ridiculous for you to refer to the supplies offered as freebies. You are stealing if you take more than you need and that means the hospital is then able to offer less resources or even have to increase the price of delivery because dishonest people are being greedy. There are public resources to help people who need supplies to care for their newborn, if you need help, ask your nurse for information on those resources.
Hi Stephanie! Thank you for your comment, I was informed by other fellow nurses like yourself, that they charge for those supplies to your insurance . So technically I wasn’t stealing. I was so blessed to have wonderful and caring nurses who gave me everything that I needed and even encouraged me to take some of the supplies home.For me they were freebies because I was not informed that they even charge for it or anything of that nature. Thanks for reading!
I had the hardest time sleeping in the hospital. Even if baby was in the room. The only sleep I got was when my hubby or mom was holding baby. It was rough. But I think whatever is best for mom and baby is what should be considered. I think it’s a very personal choice if you sleep with baby in your room. Maybe just as personal as circumcision…
Many hospitals that are going ‘baby friendly’ do not have traditional nurseries. I had a csection and still roomed with lo and will do the same again. There is no other option.
Hi everyone, like Ros Emely says, it’s a personal opinion. I too am an experienced my mom of 4 with number 5 on the way. My first born did not stay with me due to being born premature. When I had my second son, I definitely wanted him with me. Huge mistake for ME!! I was in labor all night (on a Thursday) so I had already been awake 24 hours prior to giving birth (Friday morning). Friday night he stayed with me, my baby was a horrible sleeper for the first 8 months. I was discharged on a Saturday. Buy Monday I had full blown postpartum depression. I had not slept for 3 days, other than little cat naps here and there. Every women goes through hormone changes after birth, it’s normal. But the hormone changes on top of no sleep was a double whammy! Thank God my depression was not too severe, I would constantly cry and I was on medication for 2 weeks. After the 2 weeks were over I was fine. Lesson learned for me personally. I want to make sure I am well and can give my all to my child. I dont want to repeat that homecoming again. I want it to be filled with happiness, excitement and joy! Not depression.
Good day
Thank you for commenting! You went through a lot but I am so happy that you were fine after the two weeks. There are so many things that happens after giving birth that you have to do whatever works for you and your baby. Congrats on baby number 5 and many blessings to you and your family. Every mom can make their own choices and not have other people, specially moms judged them for it. Have a great day mama!
Posting something as ‘To do’s’ and then backtracking by slapping on ‘It’s just my opinion’ while keeping the written text in line with absolute recommendations… I’m sorry, I’m sure you mean well but please, oh please, do something about this.
Circumcision – “It’s been done for years”, yes, just like beheading, hanging, slavery, operations without anesthesia, mothers dying in childbirth because of unsanitary situations and doctors not washing their hands, and a whole slew of other things. Not a proper argument. Please oh please read up on the subject. Penises (even the tiny ones) can clean themselves just fine. Just like a vagina can. Or were your labia removed at birth too?
Sleeping with baby – I don’t need to go into this one, all the wonderful moms commenting before me have. Stay as close to baby as you possibly can in those first weeks. Read up on ‘fourth trimester’ and safe co-sleeping. It’s wonderful for bonding, keeping your hormones in check (as much as possible), milk supply and all other kinds of benefits. You’ll still get as much sleep as you can.
Look, I’m sure you are a wonderful mother and are doing the best you can. As are we all. A part of doing ‘the best you can’ is making sure you are educated on the subjects that affect you personally, and ESPECIALLY when you are throwing that information out for all the world to take benefit of, and for new mothers to see. You are part of the information treadmill. And commenting on a blog with scientifically backed info isn’t shaming a mother, it’s educating. Making mistakes is part of parenthood, loving yourself through them also is. One of the hardest lessons for me personally.
So keep on rocking, and next time if you make a post like this and don’t like the comments, then maybe change the title to “7 things I DID in the hospital”.
Hi Dani! Thank you for commenting. Like you said I am recommending and giving my opinion. I personally would recommend all of these tips to all my soon to be mama friends. I am not backing out whatsoever. I love when my readers comment on my hard working posts. However I do not like when people are being disrespectful and are insulting me. As you wouldn’t like that either. Like I wrote on my post circumcision is a very personal choice that the mother has to make. I did and will never regret it and why would I? I also gave a website where it goes more into details about this matter. If you don’t agree with it, that’s great. But don’t tell me to research it when I obviously did and also spoke to my doctor about it. Every mom can do what she wants. I didn’t sleep with my baby and all three of my children are just fine, healthy, active,intelligent, like I am sure your kids are. Again, I stand for what I write and recommend because it’s something that I did and it’s something that I would share with any of my close friends and family. Everyone has different opinions on how to do things as a mom. I am pretty sure you do things as a mom that I probably would not agree with and guess what I wouldn’t disrespect you or insult you. Why? Because I am sure you are doing what is right for you and your baby. Every mother is different. I will not change the title of this post because I stand 100% behind it otherwise I wouldn’t have excitedly shared it with my wonderful readers. Let’s respect and be open minded because no mother is the same but we all are raising our children the best way that we can.
My second baby swallowed a lot of amniotic fluid and would spit up and choke in his sleep and need to be turned over to spit it out. I was SO tired that I eventually decided it was safer to send him to the nursery where the nurses were awake, alert and able to tend to him when needed than to chance not waking up and him choking. It was only a few hours while I slept, We bonded just fine and breast fed for almost 2 years so I say get the rest while you can because there are no 24 hour nurses when you get home!
As for the freebies, although they may not be “free” definitely stock up on the mesh underwear and extra boogie suckers, you can’t buy them of the same quality!
Please conduct a wealth of thorough and accurate research prior to listing supposed facts regarding circumcision. A LOT has changed with this very critical and personal decision being made on behalf of someone who is not yet able to decide for himself. It is a fact that the baby boys do endure immense pain, can seize, and of course, some babies do die from this procedure.
Thank you Alexadra!I did conduct research and I encourage every mom to do so. There are many articles about it and all of the information that a mom needs is right there. Also, speaking about the subject to your doctor is extremely encouraged as I said before. I just want to make crystal clear that never in my article am I saying to have your baby boy circumcise. I am only stating that you will have to decide whether or not you are going to do it. The doctors in the hospital will ask you and you will have to make a choice. Again, thank you for your respectful comment, I appreciate it. Have a great day!
Some good tips but I disagree with stealing items from the hospital, especially if it’s a public hospital as they cant afford to loose things when people can afford to purchase it but are stingy.
I also think many breastfeeding mums can’t afford a full nights sleep away from their baby as it will effect their milk supply
That “free stuff” is not free. Check your bill when you get it from the hospital. You are charged for that stuff. It will be on your itemized bill as admission kit or something similar. The last hospital I was at charged $92. I forget how much it was for my first but it was pricey as well. I will this hospital that they can keep there stuff and bring my own. I know it’s all safe and things I will be using on my baby when I get home anyway. And many hospitals, like the one I went to last time, don’t even have a nursery. It isn’t an option to not keep the baby in the room with you.
I work as a labor, delivery, and post partum nurse. First of all… rooming in is currently the evidence based practice recommendation. Allowing the baby to stay with mom throughout her hospital stay (as long as baby is healthy) gives them the necessary time to bond and allows mom to learn baby’s cues in regards to feeding, diaper changes, pain, etc. It also gives the staff the opportunity to observe the parents ability to care for the infant independently. While this is most likely not in question for most well adjusted couples, unfortunately it is a concern more often than we’d like. Nurses are watching for response to the infant for feeds and diaper changes, safe sleep practices, and appropriate bonding.
Secondly, the “free stuff” is absolutely not free. Staff will let you know what is there for the taking and will even remind you prior to discarge, but your hospital is paying for everything that is unaccounted for. That turns around into increased hospital expenses, increased billing on everyone’s insurance, and then you’ll learn that when you come back for an admission and do get charged for items they are all of a sudden MORE expensive than the first time around because the hospital is chasing it’s tail in an attempt to cover expenses.
So please don’t ask not to “room in” with your infant and please don’t “steal” items unless they’re expressedly yours to take.
Ros Emily,
I just have to say: I give you soooo much credit for writing this post with only the best intentions of helping other mothers out. All the back lash and criticism you’ve been getting from some of these women is absolutely ridiculous. Despite each negative comment, you responded and handled each one with such GRACE and integrity. Thank you for using wisdom and discretion in your responses to everyone regardless of whether their comments were critical or not. You are a great example to all of us and I’m sure you’re a fabulous mommy too!!! God bless you <3
Thank you so so much Jessica! I needed your words. It means a lot. I always try my best to understand their side and will always answer back with respect. God Bless!
I have to add that it bothers me very much that sneaking “free items” from a hospital is being encouraged on this list. Someone eventually has to pay for that, whether it comes from taxes or increased hospital bills in the future. They are not free and it is stealing.
The “free” items are usually not free at all. If you get an itemized bill it all shoes up on your bill. Most people don’t realized this because they don’t get itemized bills. It just gets turned in to insurance, but it all gets charged regardless. We asked our nurses what we were allowed to take and they said only the disposable stuff. The blankets and shirts they put on baby while you are there get reused. I know a lot of people take them anyway but you should really all first because it actually does become stealing.
The “freebies” you mentioned are actually billed to your insurance, so be careful how much you take. It may come back to haunt you! Thanks for the link about circumcision. I am having my first boy soon so it is a little daunting after two girls!
Ros Emely,
Thank you for your post. I am due in a few days with my first baby and love reading tips on ways to have things go smoothly at the hospital. It is also nice to be reminded to take care of myself as well as my new sweet baby. I agree with Jessica Jackson when she wrote that the way you respond to negative comments has been handled with grace and integrity. I don’t understand how so many different people feel the need to write the same thing over and over again…we get it…the freebies are not free… Thanks again for the post!
Thanks Bobbi for commenting! I was never told this by my wonderful nurses, so that’s why I thought it was free, whoops! But Congratulations on your baby boy, so exciting! I have two girls and a boy, so I can tell you that it’s different but you are going to love having a baby boy around. Good luck!!
Thank you Kristina so much for your comment! I also, love reading articles about pregnancy and motherhood and I write my articles with love and with a mindset of helping my pregnant mamas. So, I am so happy that you found it helpful. Best of luck with your first born and I wish you the best in this new and wonderful and sometimes crazy journey that is motherhood. You are going to love it!
It’s great that those people that want to can room in with baby if they’d like, but some people don’t get a choice. At the hospitals in our area if you are asleep baby absolutely can not be in the room with you! No amount of arguing or reasoning will change the nurses minds. Believe me I tried with my first. But I did enjoy getting those last couple nights sleep and with my second I did willing send him back to the nursery. I am due with my third any day and I plan on getting my rest while I can. As for circumcision that is a very personal choice and no other mother should bash another for what she decides. I choose to circumcise my son and have no regrets. I will say that if you are considering not having it done you should find someone that was not circumcised as a baby and had to have it done as an adult. Most will tell you they wish it had been done when they were a baby. Again it’s a very personal choice and no one should be bashing another for that choice.
Hello Ros, everyone is exited for the new baby. However, we forget such necessary things in that moment which is very important for us. Thanks for sharing such an informative post.
For a lot of us sending your baby to the nursery is no longer an option, as they don’t exist any more. Your f
Giving women false hope that they can do this when in reality they can’t
I think we shoilud apply for insurance for the baby!
Good tips! However, I did want to mention that the American Academy of Pediatrics no longer recommends circumcision. There was even a little disclaimer on my consent form that stated their stance being it wasnt medically necessary.