Tips for Packing for an Extended Hospital Stay

After spending 7 days in the hospital, and packing too much stuff that I didn't use, I thought I would write a post giving some advise for people who may not know the weird things they should bring to the hospital.

 

What Not To Bring

Nice Pajamas - The hospital provides you with ample nightgowns. They are ugly. They show off your butt. You can wear as many of them at one time as you would like (butt problem solved).  I brought brand new, lovely, warm and soft pajamas. I wore my favorite pair once while I was in the hospital. I had it on for a little over an hour before I puked on it. Guess what? The hospital doesn't do your laundry for you.  Unless you have someone there to take that puked covered nightgown home for you and wash it,  you will be smelling puke for the rest of your stay.

Stuffed Animals - This is a great idea. Soft, supportive, cute, and a bright spot in your hospital room, stuffed animals are a fantastic addition to your bed... unless you puke on them. If this happens, refer to my info about nice pajamas.  What's better is that when you puke on yourself, puking on your clothes is a given. You may overlook that stuffed animal shoved into the blankets on the bed. But 2 hours later when your room still smells like puke, you will figure it out.  At this point, a washing machine may not help your furry friend, or your hospital room.

A side note about puking... You don't have to be in the hospital for a stomach related illness to puke on yourself. Many things can cause such an event.... painkillers, hospital food, viruses caught while in the hospital, drinking too much water too fast while coming out of anesthesia, or orange juice followed by Emergent-C ... just saying. Prepare for it even if you don't expect it. 



Blow dryers, Hairspray, Gel - Just because you are in the hospital is no reason to ignore your hair style right? Forget it. Not going to happen.  Depending on your reason for being in the hospital, you will be lucky if you can wash your face and armpits let alone washing, drying, and styling your hair. If you can do all these things, you likely won't be in the hospital long.

 Your Favorite Blanket - I have a blanket I simply cannot live without. My husband got it for me for
Christmas and each of my children are eternally jealous. It is dark brown, king sized, and so incredibly soft you almost don't feel it touching you. If I am home, the blanket is with me. In the living room, in the family room, in bed, and when I work from home in the office the brown blanket is with me. I thought it would help me be more comfortable if I brought my blanket with me to the hospital.  I never even took it out of the bag. 



Me Writing My Blog with my Favorite Blanket!

The first night after my surgery I didn't have it. We left my personal items in the car until I had a room and by the time I had a room, the doors were locked so if my husband went to the car, he wasn't coming back in. By the time I really woke up on the second day, I realized that the hospital smelled really gross.  I can't blame ECMC, much of the smell was coming from me. I had dying skin sewn to my chest, bloody bandages all over me, I was sweating from hot flashes, I had 6 drains coming out of me and emptying into some contraption behind the bed (thankfully out of my sight because I surely would have passed out), and my hair was starting to stink.  My blanket was my primary recovery resource when I got home, and it was my plan to never have to wash it lest it lose its softness!  I simply could not expose this blanket to the elements in the hospital! It would definitely need to be washed, maybe even twice if it touched me right now. Not to mention, since it hadn't been washed yet, and I was a slew of open wounds, maybe it shouldn't touch me for my sake. 

Last but not least, you might puke on it. Refer to the 2 items above!

 

Things to Definitely Bring

A Back Scratcher - Remember those Duck Pond prizes from Crystal Beach? Remember the plastic hand on a long arm you used to scratch your back from that game? You or maybe your parents probably threw them out long ago just like nowadays we throw out our kids cheesy Happy Meal toys. Well, those scratching hands will come in handy if you are in the hospital for any length of time. I was recovering from 6 surgical incisions and skin transplants on my torso. I was in excruciating pain. Which incision hurt most? None of them, the Heparin shots I was receiving every 8 hours was making me itch myself to death.  Seriously, I was trying to rip the skin off my thighs and back.  The very first night, the back scratchers that we had bought our kids as souvenirs on our recent trip to the Poconos was on the list of what my husband needed to bring to the hospital the next day. And believe me, it got used.  If you don't have a back scratcher, the hospital gift shops usually have them or you can enlist someone to stay with you in the hospital and scratch you all day long. Or you can ask the nurse for Benadryl... but that is not the best choice if you desire to be coherent and awake at all for the next 4-6 hours

Socks/Slippers - The hospitals give you great surgical slipper socks! Use them! Wear them in the shower. Otherwise they are ill fitting and very scratchy. Treat yourself and bring yourself 1-2 nice soft socks or slippers for each day.  If your blanket doesn't reach your feet, often nobody will be there to reach it.  If your stomach muscles are compromised, you can't reach it either.

Baby Powder - If you will be bed bound for more than 2 days, I highly recommend you bring some baby powder or Gold Bond medicated powder. Why?  When you are on a bed propped into a 45 degree position for most of the day with your feet up so they don't atrophy orr swell, what is the lowest part of your body? Your butt and thighs.  All your blood will pool there. Not only are you prone to bed sores, but you are likely to swell.  When your ass and thighs swell, they touch. When you walk, they rub.  Any women with meat on her bones knows what happens next. Men who wear jeans in the summer know what happens next.... chafing. The best way to recover from surgery and prevent hospital-borne illnesses such as pneumonia is to get up and move around.  This will be very painful if your legs and ass-cheeks are chafed. So don't let it happen. Be proactive! Plus, all that scratching that you are doing may also be caused by sweat on your back. Medicated powder can help relieve that as well helping you avoid the dreaded Benadryl shot.

Dry Shampoo - If you have hair, I cannot stress how important this is. One of the first things to show grease and stank if you are a girl is your hair (well, maybe the 2nd...). When you are unable to shower because of open wounds, drains, or inability to move, you need to do something about that hair! The hospital offers an ingenious contraption called a Shampoo Cap. It looks like a shower cap. You add a little water to it, put it over all your hair, and then your lather through the shower cap. So it is like real shampoo and conditioner and water on your hair, but it is all contained with the shower cap. Sounds great doesn't it? I feels great! But there is a huge flaw... you don't rinse it out. It says it is a leave in treatment. By 'leave-in' they mean when you take off the shower cap you don't see suds.  You will feel like a million bucks for about 2 hours. Then, after that short 2-3 hour period, your hair will be more disgusting than it has ever been in your entire life.  It will be greasy. It will be sticky. It will smell like the hospital. This great invention is the REASON hospitals smell... I couldn't even stand the smell of myself after using this cap. DON'T DO IT! There is a better way!

My sister Jessie and I were at Tops Supermarkets the night before my surgery.  She introduced me to dry spray on shampoo.  It is readily available and is made by TreSemme, Garnier, Loreal, Got2B, along with others. I bought the Got2B dry shampoo for $5.99.  I should have just used this, but I was interested in this amazing con'trap'tion the hospital offered and so I fell for the trap.  After I damned my hair for at least 2 more days with the hospital shampoo cap, I switched to the spray on shampoo for some relief.  I didn't get great results because I had already destroyed my hair by basically putting shampoo and conditioner in it and leaving it there. But it definitely helped. The dry, spray on shampoo is basically a superlight powder that sticks to your hear, absorbs grease, and refreshes and deodorizes your head. When I used it again after my second surgery, it was wonderful. It was like I just washed and blow dried my hair!

To use the dry shampoo, part your hair every 2-3 inchest and spray along each part and lightly about halfway down. This is easiest if you let someone else do it for you. Once you have applied to your whole head, comb it through.  For the 4 days that I could not shower (3 after the first surgery, 1 after the 2nd), I relied on this stuff more than I relied on food! It was a life saver and I will never go to the hospital without it!



Me Receiving a Dry Shampoo from Mom's BFF Tina

Baby Wipes - If you are not able to shower, baby wipes can help you continue to feel somewhat fresh and keep smells at bay. Again, the hospital supplies moistened, soapy wipes, but they leave a residue.  I think the baby wipes leave a film too, but I think the hospital grade residue is heavier. 
Baby wipes can help you refresh your face, chest, shoulders, underarms, legs, unspeakable parts, and neck.  They don't smell that bad either. 

Smelly Lotion - Your skin will dry out. Your room will smell. These are givens. Combat both with your favorite Bath and Body Works scent.  Keep it on your night table and use it often.  You will thank me later!

Chapstick or lip gloss - Whether you are male or female, you should prepare yourself for the dryness of the hospital. You may dehydrate from meds, or in preparation for surgery, or just from sleeping so long without waking up to drink. Quench your lips in comfort with some Burts Bees or Chapstick.  If you are a lady, you will feel much more presentable to guests with a natural colored lip gloss at your side at all times.

Large Water Bottle - The nurses in the hospital usually stress how important it is for you to drink plenty of water and stay hydrated while you are in the hospital. Then they give you this little water
pitcher that will fill up a 12 ounce styrofoam cup 2 times.  And if you can't get out of bed, you may wait a long time for more water.  I am a naturally thirsty person. On any given work day, I drink 6 32oz mugs of water.  Plus what I drink when I get home or go to the gym, I usually take in almost 200 ounces of water a day (and then my doctor lectures me that if I just drank more water I would lose weight. See why I didn't have a PCP for over a year? They don't listen!)  Even if you don't drink as much as me, certain drugs make you thirsty. Be prepared with a large water bottle and have the nurse fill up your pitcher AND your water bottle. Remember, this is usually tap water. If this bothers you, bring a 6 or 12 pack of bottled water with you, just realize it will likely be room temperature unless you don't mind adding it to the hospital supplied ice.  Being unable to move, hot, and thirsty sucks. Be prepared!

Summary

I am writing this blog from my own experiences. Some things I did right and I wanted to share so you do them right too. Some things were an epic fail, and I learned for next time.  If you or someone you love is planning an extended trip to the hospital, please share with them!