The 2 main things you’ll need at home for postpartum care

If you haven’t noticed, I like to be prepared. Always. I’m a BIT of a control freak and that’s okay. But with pregnancy and labor I learned quickly as a new mom that much of this is out of my control and that postpartum I needed to make sure I took care of myself too. So that’s where I went and researched the top items I’d need for myself and baby. Next time I could set things up better and regain some of the high ground I knew I’d lose to the tiny being growing inside of me.

We’ve talked about what you should pack in your bag for the hospital already, so in this post I’m going to run through the two baskets you should set up for when you come home from the hospital / have delivered baby. One for you and one for baby. Starting with YOU because if you don’t take care of yourself first, you’ll quickly find things become a lot more difficult.

Taking care of your business

Okay so it goes without saying that giving birth does a number on your body. I don’t care if your baby was 6 pounds or 11 pounds, things are not going to be the same and you are going to be uncomfortable in the first month or so. This is where basket #1 comes in. It’s one that I like to put together for new Mamas-to-be and that I ALWAYS set up for myself. Your Bits Basket needs to include the following:

1. Nipple Cream – if you’re going to breastfeed you’ll need to make sure you take care of your body. Nursing hurts in the beginning and this will make it easier and less likely for you to have complications. Nothing to crack a joke about here.
2. Peri -Bottle – likely you will get to take this home with you from the hospital, but in the off-chance you don’t I sincerely hope you order one of these. Hell, order several depending on how many bathrooms you have. Fill them with warm water before each use and then lightly squeeze the water out on your bits when you use the bathroom. It will take any sting out and help you feel cleaner. Promise.
3. Boat-sized Pads – basically take whatever worst week you’ve had and times it by 4 . This is why you’re gonna need a bigger boat.
4. Long, skinnier pads – You won’t need a lot of these but here’s what you’re gonna do. You’ll take a few, soak them, and freeze them. Then when you get home you’ll have these handy ice packs to sit on that are sized perfectly for where you need them.
5. TUCKS witch hazel pads – these things are miracle workers, but you gotta do this one extra step to really take advantage. Put them in the fridge. Don’t worry about grossing anyone out. You just brought life into this world after carrying it around for nearly 10 months, they can deal with a container of medicated pads next to the ketchup for a few weeks. Then, after every boat pad change, toss one of these cool slices of heaven on top. Seriously so soothing.
6. Prep H – I’m so sorry. It’s likely going to happen and there’s nothing you can do about it. Just get some of this and be prep-ared (ha).
7. Stool softener – Okay, at this point you’re probably wondering WHY AM I DOING THIS? Again, I’m sorry, but trust me you’d rather have some assistance here than none. This push is nearly as scary as delivering the baby. And that’s the hard truth.

Taking care of baby’s business

Seasoned mom truth here: You’re going to be all over the house with baby and you’re going to be exhausted and sore in the beginning. It will be unlikely that for every diaper change you’ll want to travel back into the nursery to tend your baby’s needs, especially in the middle of the night. So here’s what I recommend doing: set up a small basket you can carry around or leave in other rooms to make life easier on yourself. There are tons of these available online or you can just use any old tote bag or box you have around the house. Here’s mine and what’s inside:

1. Diapers – duh
2. Wipes – double duh
3. Disposable bags for easy removal
4. Portable change cloth / pad.
5. Small container of diaper rash cream
6. A spare soother (if you’re using them)

Seems so simple right? It’s something I definitely overlooked the first time round and am happy to have set up properly now with baby #3.

Am I missing anything from my baskets that you would add? Let me know in the comments below!

-S