I find myself in Cork University Maternity Hospital unexpectedly in June, while the country experiences the longest bout of insanely good weather I find myself literally baking alive inside a newish building that was built without air conditioning….firstly I think that’s insane because honestly I cannot describe how hot and uncomfortable it is here on the plasticy beds with windows that only open a crack into a courtyard thus leaving me without even a whisper of a breeze….anyway, can you tell I’m waiting a long time to be seen so I’m getting cranky!?
I did however come relatively prepared for the heat, partly because it’s the same few bits I’ve been leaning on to survive pregnancy during a heatwave outside the hospital. I’m not going to do a ‘what’s in my hospital bag’ post, there are so many of them out there that I don’t need to add to all the noise! But I just thought while I’m here that these tips might be useful for Mums who, like me, have no experience with being in the hospital during the summer, this is a first for me despite it being my fourth, my other ladies were Spring and Autumn babies.
So without further ado, my three summer baby weather hospital bag essentials…
- A Chilly’s Water Bottle – I got one of these in the lovely Little Shop at Shells Cafe in Sligo, it was €35 for the 750ml which may sound pricey but once you start using it you’ll never look back. I have used mine round the clock since I got it and it is such a relief and pleasure, particularly during the warm weather and at night, to constantly have cold water. I bring it everywhere with me and I also bring the girls reusable plastic bottles which I fill as they need with the cold water from my Chilly’s bottle. I already see its usefullness and I’m only a few hours in the hospital, they did bring me cold water with ice so I poured what I could into my own bottle and I did notice that the water in the plastic jug was lukewarm within a half hour. Honestly this is a must for me for any hospital stay and also it’s so useful for any pregnant or breastfeeding Mums out there.
- Thermal Water Spray – ok first things first my husband literally thinks I’m insane to suggest to people they should part with their hard earned money for a bottle of pressurised water BUT the man has never been pregnant so what does he know right!? At home I keep a bottle in the fridge, a small one in my bag and one in my bedroom, oh the relief when I spray this is just wonderful, albeit fleeting I don’t care!
- A fan – I don’t have one but plan on getting one for when the baby lands. Actually a fan and the thermal spray together would be particularly refreshing. I would also recommend this for baby too, whatever about having a winter baby that you can layer up there is only so much you can do to cool down a summer baby and I think a fan is essential. I’m only here a few hours and I’m pure dopey with the heat, babies need to be somewhat alert so they wake for feeds, this sort of heat would make a baby groggy. If you’re breastfeeding a baby doesn’t take on much fluid in those first few days when it’s colostrum rather than milk you are producing. They need to wake for this and if they are too tired they could become dehydrated quickly enough which would not be good.
So there you go, a quick, spur of the moment post written in the hours while I wait to be seen, honestly I should sit back and enjoy the rare and uninterrupted peace and quiet but it’s quite honestly too hot to enjoy it, so I figured I’d be productive and write this. Any other hot weather hospital stay advice you can share please drop it in the comments, the more advice the better because this isn’t something I’ve seen written about much.
