Ideas for a labour/ birth hamper.

jazzypinkpuppet

Hello, not sure if this is the right place to put this, my lovley friend is due to have her baby in two weeks, I wanted to make her a little hamper of goodies for whilst she is in labour. Nothing extravagant just a few little bits. Can anyone suggest things that helped them during labour. Many thanks Jules

daska

can you fit yourself in it? a good friend to mop the brow, press hot flannels at the base of your spine and make tea and toast afterwards would be the best present ever...

thorsoak

Adapted from my choices (a long time ago!!) and my daughter's/daughter inlaw's and friends favourites:-

For her during 1st stage of labour - little packs of raisins/nuts/seeds/dried fruit - energy snacks. Maybe a fun pack of mars bars type of thing if she likes chocolate(!) For OH/birth partner - some energy drinks/packets of crisps

Some music of her choice for ipod/mp3 player - maybe pack of cards/puzzle book/soduko book

A couple of tiny make-up sponges (real sponge) and some bottled water - nice to moisten lips/suck during 2nd stage when you can't manage food/drink

A pair of bed socks! I experienced really cold feet - as did some friends and DD!

brians_daughter

I second the bedsocks!

Urm, apart from what everyone else has said why dont you nip to primark and get her a pair of comfy stretchy PJ's? Obviously you will still need to buy bigger than normal but my friend bought me a new pair into hospital just after i had had baby..she has washed them and they were all snuggly....the best feeling ever getting into those (after baby of course!lol)

Music, energy foods ie nuts, bit of chocolate, energy drinks, fresh fruit, a little cool box if poss - the water when i was in labour was sooo lukewarm and a cold drink would have been divine

Pad and paper too, so she can write her thoughts and feelings down - I did this after last lo and when i read it back i cry like a baby i have popped it into his baby box for when he is older.

smithyjules

I'm due for my second in 8 weeks and have been thinking back to my first labour and birth. I think apart from the 3 litres of water i managed to drink (that room was so flippin hot!!) and the food i nibbled all the way through, my only essential item was Lavender Oil. It is a natural antiseptic and it was added to my post-birth bath and was so soothing. In fact, when even water stings afterwards the Lavender Oil is a godsend.

Hope you don't mind but I've added a bit here from a website about it as it is fab stuff!!

If you have sustained tears or cuts from the labour, lavender is a wonderful oil to help the healing process. Maggie Tisserand in her book "Aromatherapy for Women" recommends a sitz bath, also known as a hip bath where you sit yourself in a few inches of water in a bath or a special bowl used for this purpose. You can use 3-5 drops of lavender blended in milk or oil and added to warm water or a blend of cypress (2 drops) and lavender (3 drops). Cypress oil (cupressus sempervirens) is astringent and stimulates the blood vessels in the area to close over while lavender heals and encourages growth of new skin as well as providing an antiseptic action. This could be ideal to do regularly if you have suffered perineal trauma.
Another method is to use a compress. Use 8 drops of lavender oil to 50ml of cold water. Agitate gently, then lay several layers of gauze into the water, wring out and lay over the wound held in place with a sanitary pad. Repeat after 10-20 minutes. Gauze is better than a flannel as the water and essential oils soak in better. Layers are required to give thickness.

skiTTish

Music ,Bio oil ,chocolate ,deo body wipes ,soft flannel ,orange flower water (if you can still get it )
Mind you lol ,all of this would have been useless for me ,it was all over in minutes

jazzypinkpuppet

Thanks for all your ideas, I will pop down to holland and barratt they do all those oils and things and I get get some energy food in there too. Oh and I will pop to Primark too I hadn't thought of jammies and socks, that's a great idea. :T

pinkclouds

The one thing I meant to do for both my labours/births was burn a few cds to listen to. It was always a last minute rush and a regret of many hours of boredom. The first time, I played the same 2 cds over and over till I got sick of them. The second time, I didn't have any cds prepared.

In fact, labour is really boring (unless you're one of those "lucky" folk who are in and out in a couple of hours). The other thing that helped was a stack of magazines and puzzle books - but I bought those on the way to the hospital and I expect anyone else would do the same.

far2812

Ginger tea or biscuits and a stress ball!!!!!

msb5262

Great ideas above. These are my random thoughts:
A book of sudokus or crosswords or something in case labour lasts for hours and your friend needs something to pass the time.
Talc is great, especially now it's getting a bit warmer...when you need your back or belly massaged during labour, oil can feel rather sweaty and horrid. Talc is soft and cool and doesn't feel icky.
Also I'd recommend hand cream and lip salve, both for labour and afterwards. It sounds hilariously unlikely, but hand massage can really help you cope with pain so hand cream is useful.
How about including a good handful of loose change to pay for parking/coffee from machines/phone calls if mobiles aren't allowed?
HTH
MsB

loubylou1982_2

I agree with all the great ideas on here but wanted to add one thing..
I found a mini battery operated fan so useful as its sohot and humid on the wards!
I got them from the pound shop!! Bargain :money: