what to REALLY bring to the hospital...

No, not crazy at all to see if they have wireless....I would! I had my hubby bring my laptop a few days after surgery. I was pretty out of it the first couple of days so I wouldn't have used it. I didn't have a smart phone at the time. An iPad would have been even better if you have one just because it's so compact.

The hospital i was at was really strict about the no jewelry thing. I just kept everything at home. I brought my slippers but never used them because they always had those grippy socks on my feet so I just used those. I think I used the lip balm the most. I don't know what it is about hospitals but my lips always get so chapped. Honestly I slept and watched TV the majority of the time. I think I saw every episode of Cake Boss that week! Don't forget to bring the charger for your cell phone.

Definitely ear plugs, also an eye mask (unless you sleep fine with lights on). Something to play music on and headphones. Your own lotion is good to (to go w/the lip balm).

I like having a laptop in the hospital, not crazy at all, although the first two days after surgery I wasn't up to using it.

One thing I had that was nice was a "surgery book" -- my partner collected little things that people I know sent for me.... I wasn't up for reading much, but there were little poems and jokes and things that kept me feeling connected.

I think it's also good to get some deodorizer for the bag. They don't tend to have it. Just in case no one told you, at first your output will be smelly green slime, but it's not always that way after you start eating.

Hope all goes well.

Oh yeah, another thing: Bring a nice soft comfy pair of sweatpants and and comfy top to go home in. Your belly will be swollen and tender and you don't want anything restrictive on it.

The hospital gowns / robes can be kind of uncomfy, cold and difficult to cover you up if not tied perfectly so a nice robe to out on top of or instead of any robes in the hospital are excellent for the many mandatory and recommended walks you will be needing to do (initially with a nurse's assistance and eventually with a walker and finally on your own) to wake up your guts and restore healthy bloodflow. Most hospitals have wifi now. If you ever wanted to get an ipad or ipad mini now is the time lol- soooo much easier to use when doped up, than a laptop.

Something to note is that many hospitals allow you to request a "quiet time" during the night with minimal interuotion, depending on your med schedule-- i.e. A period of 6 h or more where you wont be subjected to getting your vitals with the lights gurned on every 2 h, as sadly tends to be the case if you dint ask about it. Often they can coordinate the med staggering to give you such a time.

Don't be bashful about staying ahead of the pain curve... It takes a lot more meds to get things settled if you ever get behind the curve, and that's where being proactive helps esp if the nurses doing rounds forget about you at med time, even though they are supposed to be keeping track, ir simply because the meds arent working well and need to be adjusted. The squeeky wheel gets the grease.

Re a cushion to protect your stoma when wearing a seatbelt and shoulder harness in the car on the way home and for the first couple months or so after surgery (after that there is no need at all, IMO- I dont even think about it ) , the u shaped neck travel pillow works perfectly as a protecector, I find, using the gap in the u for the stoma.

Post Edited (Probiotic) : 3/6/2014 7:08:01 PM (GMT-7)

I see you have received great advice. I didn't know what to bring for my first surgery (5 hour resection, temp ostomy,etc.) but I sure did for my takedown! This was all eons ago, almost 15 years ago now. I didn't even own a cellphone! And back then I didn't even use the computer except to play solitaire. But here is what I packed:

Gym shoes (for serious walking)
Slippers (only to use walking to the bathroom)
Warm socks (actually thick, winter ones even though this was in June)
Robe
Sweatpants to wear home, nothing with a zipper and pullover tops, no buttons
Warm blanket from home (Biederlack, we've had these on the couches for years)
Small legal pad of paper and pen to keep track of my hourly breathing exercises and walking laps (eventually around the entire floor)
Blow dryer - nurses didn't want me to wash my hair the first surgery stay but this time I was determined to feel clean. It was heavenly not to sleep on an oily pillowcase from dirty hair!

What else to bring - this may sound corny but I only "brought" my immediate family with me - only 3 people knew I was having my takedown, my husband and 2 children (4th and 7th graders at the time). First time at least 50 people (relatives, friends, neighbors) knew and called me all the time. At first attention was greatly appreciated but it was just draining. During my second stay my hospital room was ever so quiet, a nurse asked me if I had any visitors that day and I said - NO and I'm relieved! Especially since my colon was getting reintroduced to output and it was not fun. I told her I hadn't told anyone except for my family I was having surgery and she smiled, saying - you are wise to sneak in here for surgery. After it was all over, people said -but we wanted to come have lunch with you and visit. NO THANKS! But I didn't say this of course I just said oh I didn't want to be a bother to anyone. When in fact I wanted peace and quiet and to get used to having output like a newborn baby (in the beginning it was that bad).

Well that's my 2 cents, drink the water they give you, do the breathing exercises and walk-walk-walk.

Good luck.

Post Edited (Marsky) : 3/6/2014 9:06:00 PM (GMT-7)

Following Marsky, I found it helpful to set up a carepage site (or caring bridge). The first time I was in the hospital, my whole family was calling me every day, and it drove me crazy, I wasn't up for it (all out of town). With the website, you (or someone else) can update everyone at once, and then they can send back messages (which can be nice in the middle etc). It's an efficient way to stay connected while still getting your rest.

thanks people- yeah, the caring bridge thing is a little too much- not really my style, & I don't have enough people who care either! Plus, I tend to keep things pretty close, not share too much. I guess it'll lip balm, day planner, a thick book, maybe some face cream/make-up (terribly vain!), extra underwear, sweats & sweatshirts, & I'll have my husband bring me my laptop on day 3 or so, just to check in! I'll make sure he brings a pillow for the ride home- I already use a clothespin to hold the seat belt off my stomach, on those bad UC days (every day lately) I can't deal with any pressure on my abdomen. I'm in the USA, so the hospital food is... alright, from what I remember.

I'm in the USA, so the hospital food is... alright, from what I remember.

It's more quantity than quality, to be fair, although it is partly quality too. The food portions wouldn't keep a 90-year-old woman in a coma going. Perhaps this was weird, but I actually had a good appetite a day or two after surgery. If my surgeon hadn't prescribed supplemental Fortisips (Ensure-type drink) and my parents hadn't brought in sandwiches from the nearest supermarket, I'd have been in a state of perpetual hunger for a week. The last meal of the day was at 5pm and it was impossible to get a snack after that, unless you went to a vending machine in another part of the hospital. I could do that for previous hospital stays, but not one where I'd just had major abdominal surgery.

A great deal of the menu was also unsuitable for a bland diet. Breakfast was okay, because I could have rice crispies (with room temperature milk) and toast, but lunch and dinner posed problems. So many veggies and beans. And so little meat.

My (American) hospital sounds more like NHS! Definitely no snacks. When I was in for a flare (not surgery) I was on a floor with lots of different patients so I got 'regular' food, but on the GI floor they laid down the law and there's only one meal for lunch and dinner: baked chicken breast and instant mashed potatoes. Twice a day. Until you leave. (Breakfast had a little more variety... oatmeal and/or yogurt and/or cottage cheese and/or scrambled eggs).

     I didn't read through all the posts, but I didn't take jewelry in.  My husband brought my jewelry...wedding rings, watch, blessed Mother necklace (that I NEVER take off, but had to), ..to me the very next day.   Pennsylvania Hospital supplied the slippers AND ear plugs..lolol.  Guess they knew it can be very noisy in the hospital.   My room was directly across from the nurses' station and let me tell ya...those women are CHATTY!!!   It was my luck that they were building an enclosure for the nurses' station during my hospitalization.  So, bang, bang, bang, all day long.  I did bring my robe with me and toiletries.  No computer though.  No cell phone either cause I had a phone in my room.