Tell me about the hospital stay

hey all,
the mrs and I are having a couple of ladies in march and I'm gearin up.

Just curious how the hospital stay was for everyone? How long did they keep you? What are some unexpected things I should look out for? What are some things that would be smart to pack/bring?

thanks!

 

I really liked my hospital stay. I was there for 4 days, since I had a c-section. I liked being there, since the babies were in the NICU, and I could just go down in my slippers anytime. And when you're in the hospital, you don't have to think about or do anything.

I'd recommend bringing earplugs and an eye mask. You never know what kind of weird noises there will be in the room. Another nice idea I've heard (though didn't have time to do it, since we had an emergency delivery) is bringing cookies for the nurses.

 

thanks for the reply

I heard you can also give the babies to the nursery overnight. Is that common to do or not recommended? I'm assuming since the mrs is getting a c section I'll be the one doing everything at the hospital since she won't be able to move.

 

My experience overall was a great one. I had a c/s too and we were there for 5 days/4 nights. DH was able to stay in the room every night which was very nice. If you can, I would recommend doing that. He was a big help and a shoulder to lean on. Bring extra food if you are not fond of hospital food. I had a friend bring snacks which were great. The nurses make or break the hospital stay imo. I had 2 nurses that were horrible-thank god for the others! Also-plan ahead on what you want to do with visitors, etc...I was adamant about no one seeing us right after-and my inlaws were there in recovery, which didn't end up being that bad. However-I went to recovery at 2 pm...visitors started then(just our parents and siblings...) and we had visitors until 8 pm. I was exhausted-and the next day it was constant visitors from noon-8 pm. So I would suggest talking about that ahead of time. I was trying to breast feed, having difficulty, and was trying to take a shower. Everytime I got up to do so, someone else showed up.

Congrats and good luck!

 

I had a really good birth experience and horrible hospital stay afterwards. I gave birth vaginally on early Saturday morning (4:30 a.m.), the birth was a breeze, epidural worked great, etc. The only issue is I lost alot of blood. By Saturday evening I was so weak I couldn't get out of bed. They later ended up doing 2 blood tranfusions. At any rate I was in a hosptial where they "room in" without an option to take the babies to the nursery. By the middle of the night Sat DH was begging the nurse to take the babies for just a few hours so we could get some sleep. They ended up taking them for 3 hours but since I was having the transfusion there was someone in and out of the room every 30 minutes so we didn't sleep anyway. On Sunday I felt much better (not great, but better) and was given the option to stay one more night or go home. After the horrible care I received Saturday and Sunday morning we decided we were better off at home, so I left less than 48 hours after giving birth. My mom was at home with us for the first few days/nights and I got great care from her. I don't think that if I would have stayed an extra night in the hospital that I would have gotten any sleep taking care of the babies anyway and my bed is way more comfy at home. I think though that if you have a c-section it is about a 4 day hospital stay.

My recommendation is that if your hospital has a nursery, let the babies go at night so you can try to get some rest, I was exhausted before I even got home, and then the true work begins.

Good luck!!!

 

I had a really great hospital stay.... wouldn't mind going back .

I had a c/s both times so I was there for 4 nights/5 days. The nurses were great. We had a private room (that's all our hospital does), but I know some moms have had semi private. Personally, I chose to have my babies go to the nursery each night. With my first (the twins), it was necessary as I couldn't get out of bed for a couple of days and I was having some blood pressure issues. With Liam, I figured with 3 kids that young.....I wouldn't be getting ANY rest once I got home.

 

I had a c/s and was there 4 days, 3 nights. My experience wasn't bad- other than not being able to get the spinal in me, and ended up with epidural after 3 spinal attempts, then 4 blood transfusions the next day! But that was no ones fault! We ended up in a very nice room, where there were two beds, and hubby got one. They usually do not provide husbands with a good place to sleep, so I would suggest bringing lots of extra pillows
I agree with staying if you can, to support your wife. Also, the hospital I was at was more than happy to take the babies when we wanted and I did send them to the nursery at night alot, but they would bring them back to feed After losing so much blood and getting transfusions etc- I was happy to get some sleep!!! Knew I wouldn't be getting much more either.
I also like the idea of bringing a little something for the nurses! i am a nurse and love it when a patient shows their appreciaition with a little touch of gratitude- even if it is just a little thank you note. I gave my doc a thank you note, the nurses one, and the nurses a box of candy

 

I was stuck in the hospital for a month before I delivered the twins vaginally. The stay itself wasn't bad, but I was homesick like crazy!!
You never know how things will go...I never thought I'd be rushed by ambulance to a hospital 3 hours from home TWICE..and then stuck there for a month alone before the babies came...
If your wife is hospitalized (for whatever reason) BEFORE she delivers: a laptop was my sanity saver, that's how I found this website (another sanity saver)...also, plenty to read...and I recommend getting her out of her room as often as humanly possible even if only by wheelchair....also, you could help her check in to any classes the hospital might offer to get her mind off of things (mine had breastfeeding classes, scrapbooking, NICU, newborn..) and try to attend as many as possible with her...
If your wife is lucky enough to just go in for the delivery...then she'll be plenty occupied while she's there to not need any classes or other entertainment! ha! After delivery, my husband was a great go between for getting my medicines/drinks/food/info from the nurses, and "baby info" from the nursery...

As far as getting the babies from the nursery...I'm sure it differs from hospital to hospital, but we were allowed access to our babies (in the well baby nursery) at absolutely anytime. They were fitted with anklets at birth and we had bracelets (hubby and I)..the numbers coincided and the nurses had to check each one of our anklets/bracelets each time we came and then they signed the babies out to us. There are also alarms throughout the hospital so that if you take the baby a certain distance from the nursery you set alarms off and shut the exits down!
If you have babies in the NICU, that's a whole other set of rules: there are certain times you can visit, you have to scrub in each time, you can only have so many visitors at once, you have to leave if they are doing procedures on the babies....with any luck, you'll miss all that drama!!
Some hospitals have rules about who all can visit the baby besides the mom & dad..but, trust me, they'll bombard you with all this information the moment you walk through the door...and it won't stop until you leave! That's another thing you can help Mom with: PAPERWORK! ha! Birth certificates, picture orders, care instructions, feeding/pooping/peeing charts, CPR classes....there's a lot of paperwork that goes along with twins!!

I would make a suggestion though: as much as your wife may feel like bonding with the girls every second of those first few days, it's very advisable to allow herself quality time to sleep and recover while she has trained medical professionals as babysitters! And tell her to ABSOLUTELY not feel guilty about this: that's what they are there for!!! And she's gonna feel like she's been hit by a Mack truck before too long after birth!

Most of all, try to relax and enjoy it...there's not too many times in the lifespan of parents that they are afforded the opportunity to get doted on, waited on hand and foot! Not too mention the great drugs you can take legally (and deservedly I might add)!!! hahahaha

 

...One more thing: I completely agree that it's VITAL that you suck up to the nurses! They are your lifeline in such a hospital setting...also, keep in mind that this will entail a lot of brown-nosing because there are the Labor & Delivery nurses, the Postpartum nurses, the well baby nursery nurses, the NICU nurses..so on and so forth!!!
However, if you run into Nurse Ratchett, feel free to disagree with her and whatever she recommends and back your wife up completely!!

 

My hospital stay was great! I had a scheduled c-section, so I was admitted for 4 nights. Jack had jaundice, so he was admitted 2 extra days, the hospital let me stay in the room so I was there a total of a week. If I were to go back again, I would bring NOTHING. There was a tv, the hospital had books and magazines, and visitors to keep me busy. But when I wasn't caring for the babies or visiting with people, I rested so I didn't need stuff to entertain myself. As for clothes... I stayed in the hospital gowns (a second one on backwards for modesty when walking or with visitors), and the hospital provided soap, shampoo, personal needs, and all the food I could ever want. (and it was good!)
After I was discharged and was only there to be with Jack, the food stopped, but while I was admitted I was provided everything I needed.
Good luck!
Helen

 

I went in on Friday and was home by Sunday... they are in and out of your room at all hours and bugged me to no end.

 

I also had a really great hospital stay, the staff was incredible and showed us how to do everything (we weren't even really sure how to change diapers). The hospital will give you everything you need for the babies and as for your wife definitely a bathrobe and slippers. I didn't really have the desire to get out of my hospital gown because I had a c-section and was in quite a bit of pain. I had the twins Thursday night late and was discharged Monday morning. The one thing I would say is just make sure in the middle of all the excitement that you make sure your wife gets some rest (visitors were a big problem for us and I needed to get rest). Also if she plans on nursing I liked having a really comfortable night time nursing bra to wear under my hospital gown. Good luck with the babies!!

 

I had a c-section and was in the hospital for 3 nights/4 days. Overall I had a great experience. We also sent the babies to the nursery at night. I would recommend that. You need time to recover and getting sleep in the hospital will be your last peace and quiet for a while. I wouldn't take a lot of stuff with you. I stayed in the hospital gown and just put my robe on when I went to the bathroom or for a walk. I did take toiletries with me because my hospital didn't provide them. I would also suggest taking snacks and stuff for your husband. My hospital gave me food, but none for him, although the nurse kept giving him food so he didn't go hungry. We had great nurses and nurses assistants, with the exception of a student nurse they stuck me with one shift and she was horrible. If you don't think you are getting the care you need, talk to your Doctor. I so wished I would have had the student nurse switched out of my room, but I didn't feel like making a big deal, but she was horrible and in hind sight, we should have booted her! Also don't be afrain to kick visitors out at night if you are tired and want to get some rest. My brother in law came every night at 9 p.m. and would stay until 11 or 12. I was so tired one night, the nurse kicked him out!

Good luck!

 

I had a bad experience because I couldn't stop throwing up from the pain meds etc. I had a c-section. One thing I wish I was more aware of for me and my husband was that I was going to be a complete loon. The nurses later explained that with twins there is a huge hormone crash (more so than with singletons). I cried a lot, felt anxious, felt helpless etc. For me, the weirdest thing was that I would start crying for no reason and couldn't stop. I think this worried DH. The nurses were awesome and I loved being with the babies but I was glad to come home.

Best wishes.

 

I went into labor more than 8 weeks early. Although my bag was packed (I'm always over prepared!), my husband had nothing. Although we thought we'd be at our local hospital, we were sent to Johns Hopkins which is over 2 hours away because of our prematurity. I'd recommend taking snacks--crackers, munchies, etc. Keep them in the car or something just in case. Also, comfy slippers. My boys were in the NICU and so I didn't have the option of having them in my room. Pack a journal for the mommy--at night when I was feeling hormonal, emotional, or just up for pumping milk, I wrote down every detail of our experience. I still look back sometimes and it is amazing what you forget even in a short time! Bring a calling card too in case your hospital won't let you use your cell phone in the room and that way no one will have to leave to make calls. Bring very comfy and loose clothes for mommy to wear home. Good luck and God bless!

 

I had a c-section and chose to stay 5 days/4 nights after delivery (called the insurance company to verify how long I could stay and then asked my doctor not to discharge me until then) so that DH would be home my first night home. I sent the babies to the nursery at night at the nurses urging but only after they agreed to bring them every 2.5 hours or sooner if they cried (this was based on their daytime feeding pattern). DH was crucial in this negotiation -- he went to the nurses desk and made them understand exactly how important it was to me. It all worked out OK because I didn't have to wait for someone to come help me get them when they cried at night since they were already there bringing me the babies. I just buzzed the desk when they were done feeding and they helped me get them back to the bassinette and took care of the diapers for me (DH didn't stay over).

We were close enough to home that I didn't worry about bringing the whole house with me and I used very little of what I did bring. The hospital kitchen staff actually called me and had me choose what I wanted from their menu for the majority of my stay so I have no complaints about the food. DH did need to fend for himself, though.

Oh, and I did meet nurse Ratchett and I went all mama-bear on her. DH stepped in and provided some logical backing up of my hormonal position. I didn't see her after that.

 

I went into labor at 29 weeks, was rushed to a hospital 4 hours from home, where I stayed for 3 weeks on medication which made me sooo sick, got sent home to complete bedrest. Went into labor again at 34 weeks, they took the babies by C-section, and then flew them to another hospital 3 hours away, I maybe got to see them for 5 minutes. I had my C-section at 4:00pm on a wednesday, got released at 10:00am Thursday to go to NICU to be with my babies(on lots of medication because I was in sooo much pain)they were in NICU for 2 weeks. We didnt have a very good expierence, but it was worth every minute. Good luck!!!!

 

I had an emergency c-section at 30 weeks and although that itself was horrible, my hospital stay was great. I stayed 4 nights (one extra since my boys were in the NICU). My husband stayed with me every night which I highly recommend. He wasn't going to but Ben was having problems with his lungs and I wanted him with me in case the doctors needed to talk to us about procedures, etc. It ended up being a very special time for us. After everyone would leave for the day and after we said goodnight to the boys we would cuddle up on my bed until we got sleepy and then he'd move the the fold out chair they had.

If you do plan to stay with your wife, I recommend bringing your own pillow and blanket.

We were lucky since I delivered only 15 minutes from home so my husband would run home for a shower each day and bring back whatever I wanted that day. You really don't need all that much. I just wanted my own underwear, socks and slippers. Plus toiletries. That was about it. I just wore 2 hospital gowns while I was there. One the normal way (open at the back) and one as a robe.

If you have a laptop, I definitely recommend bringing that. It was a great way for us to share the news of the boys arrival.

Good luck! It sounds like you are a great hubby and you'll have a great experience.

 

I can't complain about mine. i requested a private room early on, and got it, and that made a big difference -- i would've lost my mind sharing a room with a stranger. I took my own hand soap (b/c hospital hand soap smells medicine-y) and lotions - little things to make it feel a little bit more like home. I also was pretty attached to my Blackberry - I was typing the email birth announcement while lying on the table in recovery, which, if you knew, me, wouldn't surprise you. Pack some extra comfy socks, a robe or long sweater-coat, and CHAPSTICK!!!!

is she having a c-section? i did - the babies were head-down and so they let me try a v-birth but i also had pre-e and a failing liver. when my liver started failing faster than my labor was progressing, they decided the babies had to come out asap and took me in for a c-section. it wasn't as bad as I'd thought it would be. Heat packs held to my incision really gave me a lot of comfort in the days afterwards. The hospital gave them to me, and then my DH bought a few from Walgreens for my first few days home. She'll need to get up and get walking as soon as she can - I walked around holding onto the back of a wheelchair. That gave me some stability and made it a whole lot easier to get around. And if i got tired, I had a seat ready and waiting Make sure she takes her pain meds - it always kills me when a mom brags that she didn't take any pain meds. Really, you don't get a medal for it. If you are in pain, take the meds, feel better sooner, so you can be a better mom faster. If you are going to stay with your wife (you should, if you can), bring yourself some extra clothes (my DH showered in my room) and toiletries.

I went into the hospital on Monday, had a c-section on Tuesday, and was released on friday. Our teeny tiny babies (born at 34w 1d) stayed in the NICU for monitoring until Monday (6 days only!). The hospital I delivered at has a level 3 NICU (which is why I picked it) so the babies were only steps away from me. I got to visit them throughout my hospital stay. The NICU is a weird place - I pray you won't see the inside of it, but we had a very good experience there. The nurses were fantastic - they taught DH and I a ton about caring for infants, which we apparently knew nothing about! They showed us all kids of tricks to burp, feed, and change the babies. They helped me get started pumping. It sucked that the boys had to be in there, but what we learned was invaluable. If you do have to deal with the NICU, spend as much time as you can there; the nurses chart every minute you spend in there and the more time you are there, the more likely they are to release the babies. Other than that, use that time to watch, learn.

good luck!!!!

 

My hospital stay was a good one. I was induced and delivered vaginally at 36 weeks, 5 days. My husband stayed in the room with me and it was nice to have him there. I had a pretty difficult delivery, so I was sore and exhausted. He did so much for me that I couldn't do for myself. The nurses were attentive and took care of all of us.

If you are comfortable, I'd recommend letting the babies go to the nursery at night. I felt so guilty but I needed the rest (and I haven't slept much since!). I was in for 3 nights, on the last night the boys stayed with us most of the night, but I let the nursery take care of the 3:00 a.m. feeding. That one was an easy one to turn over. My husband was feeling guilty as well about sending them to the nursery and helped the nurse wheel them down there. When he came back he was very much relieved because he saw that there were 8 other babies in the nursery. Made him feel better to know that we weren't the only ones.

 

QUOTE(beagledad @ Jan 2 2008, 06:05 PM) [snapback]555047[/snapback]
thanks for the reply

I heard you can also give the babies to the nursery overnight. Is that common to do or not recommended? I'm assuming since the mrs is getting a c section I'll be the one doing everything at the hospital since she won't be able to move.



I sent the babies to the nursery over night for all 3 nights I was there. It was fabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so exhausted after the delivery, I had a vaginal birth and went into labor on my own and delivered just after midnight, so those 3 nights of sleep right after their birth were the best thing ever! Plus having the babies and a hundred visitors each day was exhausting, I really needed the sleep. I wish I had a nursery I could send them to every night here at home!


ETA: Overall my hospital stay was great. Labor was so much easier and less scary than I had anticipated. After I got the epidural I delivered 2 hours later, it was a lot shorter than I had expected, I think because 1) I went into labor on my own and 2) I didn't get the epidural until I'd been in labor for about 6 hours, because I couldn't decide if I was going to have a C Section or try for a vaginal delivery. I was so happy once I got that epidural that it was all roses from that point on. My hospital only has private rooms, the nurses and staff were all very nice. The only bad thing about it was the food, it wasn't very good, but that wasn't a big concern of mine at that point.

And I had one weird nurse one of the nights I was there. When she came into the room I was in the bathroom, on the toilet, with the door closed. She knocked on the bathroom door and I said "Just one second!" Well she opened the door anyway and just started talking to me, while I'm in the middle of using the bathroom.....I was shocked!! But I guess nurses see that sort of thing every day so it was normal for her? I don't know but I'm pretty modest and I was so embarassed!!!

 

I had a scheduled c-section and was in the hospital from 12/26 to 12/30. I can't say the hospital stay was bad, just a lot of interruptions! You have nurses coming in and out, the pediatrician comes in once a day, the OB comes in once a day, plus you have visitors and the phone. I think at one point I was ready to take the phone and throw it out the window.
DH did have to (and still has to) help out alot. The first couple of days he was the one who did all the changing, lifting the babies and handling them. I did send them back to the nursery every night because I was afraid with the c-section I would not be able to attend to them properly by myself. DH was at the hospital from 8:30am to 10pm every day.
Definitely bring ear plugs, no one is purposely loud but things still go on in the middle of the night at the hospital and there are mothers who do have their babies room with them and the breastfeeding babies are brought to their mothers when it was feeding time. All of the rooms were private at the hospital and after the first night, I did sleep well being there.

Good luck!

 

My hospital experience stunk! The rooms were small, and all the private rooms were taken. So I had a roommate, who breastfed, so I was up all night as they brought her baby to her. I was not breastfeeding .. so it sucked to be woken up on someone else's schedule ... and the nurses are not quiet about it. They would walk in, turn on all the lights, it was a nightmare. The food was just ok ... I had a lot of people bring me bring me food and snacks though.

I would not have the babies room in. It's so overwhelming emotionally and phsysically recovering, and you will get NO sleep when you get home. Husbands were not allowed to stay overnight when you have a roomate so it wasn't an option for me. But even if I was in a private room, I would have sent DH home. Usually they don't have comfy places for the husbands to sleep, and the nurses still come in and wake you a few times a night to do checks on you. I think it's important for you to get some good sleep at home. And then just go back and forth every day. This way you will be well rested and up to helping her during the day, because chances are she won't be super well rested. Tell her to ask for sleeping pills! I didn't know I was allowed them until my 2nd night. Then they gave me ambien and that helped. And as a PP said, definnitely bring ear plugs. Hospitals are just super loud.

good luck! I hope your stay is better than mine!

erica

 

Mine was great... had section on 4/23 and left on 4/27. could have left on 4/26 but they wanted to keep my baby boy because of temp issues and i stayed to. Nurses were great and my stay was good. I was off pain meds after two days and simply trying to recover the mag drip i was on. Best of luck to you i think that every stay is different and i sent DH home 2 of the 4 days i was in there... I wanted rest and i was worried about my doggie...

Oh and yes babies went to nursery at night and i cared for them during the day as much as i could. I had the mag drip and it wiped me out so i was a little out of it at first. I recommend them going at night because once you are home there is no more of that....

 

I had a c-section and I was held for 3 nights. I found that I didn't need a lot of stuff. I really didn't need anything for the babies except the clothes they wore home, a blanket to cover them in the car seat, and the car seats. What I was glad to have for myself were: A really easy to get on and off night gown. I bought one that zipped up the front and was totally grandma looking, but it was so easy to deal with. I also bought a pair of slippers a size bigger than I usually wear and they were great to have. A friend suggested I take depends, rather than using the hospital mesh panties and pads and I am glad I did. They held a lot more and were far easier to deal with as I bled profusely for a few days (totally normal). I brought pillows from home and was glad to have them, as the hospital pillows weren't very comfy. I brought a camera and cherish the photos we took during that time. And I brought my own shampoo, conditioner, and some shower gel that smelled great, along with my normal toiletries. When I was allowed to take a shower, it was so nice to have really smelly good stuff. That is one amazing shower! I didn't wear any of the clothes I packed to wear in the hospital. Instead, I wore that night gown most of the time. I did bring a pair of Gap maternity yoga pants and a t-shirt to wear home, and they were just right for wearing over the incision. I just slipped on birkenstocks as my feet and lets were still quite swollen (and were for a while afterwards). I am a computer junkie, so I had my laptop with me at the hospital. I was glad to have the distraction. I am not much of a tv person, and I don't think we ever turned the tv on in our room.

Oh, in our hospital, they keep the babies in the room with you all of the time. They do have a night nursery and if it isn't full, they give the option to multiple parents first, but it was full some of the nights I was there so we had the babies all day and night. My husband didn't stay with me at night, and that was SUPER hard on me. I would definitely plan on you both being there overnight.

The worst part about the stay is that I was constantly being woken up for something. It was NOT restful at all. I was so glad to come home and have a few hours of rest without someone waking me! Of course, not much sleep happened at home either, but it is quite different when your babies wake you vs. some nurse waking you to check on your incision at 1 am.

 

QUOTE(xavier2001 @ Jan 2 2008, 07:11 PM) [snapback]555061[/snapback]
I had a really good birth experience and horrible hospital stay afterwards. I gave birth vaginally on early Saturday morning (4:30 a.m.), the birth was a breeze, epidural worked great, etc. The only issue is I lost alot of blood. By Saturday evening I was so weak I couldn't get out of bed. They later ended up doing 2 blood tranfusions. At any rate I was in a hosptial where they "room in" without an option to take the babies to the nursery. By the middle of the night Sat DH was begging the nurse to take the babies for just a few hours so we could get some sleep. They ended up taking them for 3 hours but since I was having the transfusion there was someone in and out of the room every 30 minutes so we didn't sleep anyway. On Sunday I felt much better (not great, but better) and was given the option to stay one more night or go home. After the horrible care I received Saturday and Sunday morning we decided we were better off at home, so I left less than 48 hours after giving birth.


This was my experiance to a tee! I would bring snacks -- it can be hard to get out to get food so having something quick to snack on is great (also, I got meals from the hospital, but DH did not - so that helped as well) -- bring your own pillow (and lots -- I found the beds uncomfortable) -- and your own towels (i had stayed at the hospital earlier for pregancy induced hypertention - so I knew the towles were like sandpaper handtowles -- how they thought a pg, or resently pg lady could get dry with one of those tiny scraps I'll never know!!)

Good luck!!!

 

As far as the nursery goes (in case no one else has mentioned this) -- our hospital has an option that you can send the babies to the nursery, but have them brought back during the night for feeding. This is really helpful if your wife wants to breastfeed. You don't have to deal with diaper changes, fussing, etc. at night, but if she goes all night without nursing (and the babies are getting bottles in the nursery), it can make it much harder for them to learn to nurse and might delay her milk coming in.

Our hospital provided cots for the men, and that was a godsend -- he stayed with me the whole time (I was there for 5 days) except maybe one night when he went home to sleep and came back at 6 a.m. He did do most of the baby care while we were there, because I was weak and in pain. If you don't know how to do stuff like change diapers, ask the nurses -- my DH said they were tickled that he was asking for baby-care lessons and they fell all over themselves to teach him stuff. He had to teach me how to do it when we were home again!

 

I was in the hospital for my c-section Saturday and we left on Thursday. I had one bad day but it was because I thought I could do without my pain meds. (Stay on schedule!) We had the babies in with us the entire time, but dh was in the room most of the time so he did all the diapers and stuff. All our nurses were great except for one.

 

I agree with the PP's. I had a c-section and every night they came and took the babies away, their reason was I'll soon enough be up all night I should get all the rest I can now. I'm glad I did!!!

1. YES! Suck up to the nurses. We did and we got TONS of formula, diapers, and nipples to take home, they gave us a weeks supply (which is allot for twins) (though we did take some every day from our daily use hospital supply and put it in our diaper bag) . Since they get it free anyway it's just being nice to them gets you extra stuff to bring home.

2. Try to get a private room if you can. I had one (that's the way my hospital does it) but my friend did not and had a PARADE of people through her room for the other new mommy and she couldn't get any privacy. Some hospitals will let you pay like $100 a night for a private room...IT IS SO WORTH IT!!

3. See if they provide wi-fi or if internet is provided. My hospital had internet through the TV so I didn't need my laptop (one less thing to bring) so they didn't have wi-fi or any type of other internet hookup.

4. Let the nurses know your special visiting rules. My was no one after 5pm and no one in the room while the doctor/nurse was there, or when it Breastfeeding time. This is all part of their job and they don't mind be the rule inforcer. It's easier for them to do it then for you to tell MIL or your Mom "get out" because more then likely they won't listen to you

5. Bring socks for yourself - even your toes will be cold.

6. Try to find out in advance what type of sleeping arrangement they will ahve for you in the room. at my hospital they had a pull out couch but didn't supply my DH any blankets or pillows so we had to bring our own.

Hope this helps and good luck!

 

I went in on Monday for Pre-eclampsia and had the twins on Wed. via C-section. I got to go home that Sat. I was ready to go home not because I had a bad time at the hospital I just wanted to be at my house. The nurses at the hospital were great, I did not have any problems with any of them. They all made me feel special and wanted to help as much as possible. I had the twins go in the Nursery every night so I could try and get some sleep. I had my other 2 children at a different hospital and I think the nurses this time were the best.

 

At my hospital all the rooms on the maternity floor are private which is definitely the way to go. I was there for 5 days and 4 nights. Unfortunately I didn't get the choice of rooming in with the girls vs nursey since they were born at 34 weeks and were in the NICU. My husband went home each night to sleep (we live 5 minutes from the hospital), and this was good because I needed him to be well rested and be my rock since I was in a lot of pain and an emotional mess.

Things to bring (aside from all the stuff that your wife needs), you should have: snacks, camera!!! (or multiple cameras if you are like us), a laptop if there is wifi in the rooms (or just use it to watch dvd's), bottled water, list of email addresses or phone numbers so you can either ask someone to share the good news with friends and family or do it yourself while your wife rests.

Congrats to the both of you! We welcomed our little ladies last March and this has been the most wonderful year of our lives! -Leighann