Packing your hospital bag will be one of the fun things you’ll do while pregnant. However, you are probably wondering how early is too early to pack your hospital bag?
The answer is simple: It’s never too early to pack your hospital bag. If you do end up having your baby earlier than planned then it’s one less thing to worry about.
Many parenting websites advise that you start packing your bags at least 2- 3 weeks before your due date. Even the NHS recommends this as well.
However, the reality is that many expecting moms have their bags ready at different times.
So, if you’ve been wondering whether 25, 26, 30 or 32 weeks is too early to pack your hospital bag, now you know it’s not!
You can pack your bags whenever you want but there are several valid reasons why some pregnant women pack their hospital bags “early”.
By early here I mean long before 30 weeks of pregnancy. You might fall into any of these categories below.
Why Some Women Pack Their Hospital Bags Early
1 – High-Risk Pregnancy
If you’ve been told that your pregnancy is a high risk, you’ll likely go into pre-term labor.
So, it makes sense to start packing your hospital bag early, so that you’re as prepared as can be.
You can also get to buy what you like for your baby instead of having to delegate your baby shopping to family and friends.
2 – Previous Miscarriage
Women who’ve had miscarriages before and need bed rest this time around will want to get their hospital bag ready earlier than most.
You can be on bed rest for months and get no opportunity to shop for your baby or yourself for that matter.
If you’re already on bed rest and need to get a hospital bag, consider buying a pre-packed maternity bag.
Pre-packed hospital bags as the name suggests are bags pre-filled with all the hospital bag items you’ll need for you and your baby.
They also usually include last-minute hospital bag items like toiletries etc.
3 – Having Twins Or Multiples
Twins and multiples usually come early.
And since you can never tell when a baby or babies, in this case, will decide to show their faces, it’s a wise idea to pack your bags early if you are expecting more than one baby.
4 – A Previous Early Baby
Second babies usually come earlier than the first.
If your first baby came very early, your second and subsequent babies will likely come early or even earlier.
In that case, it will not be surprising if you decide to have your baby bag packed and ready to go earlier than most.
5 – Major Life Changes
Life happens. And change is a normal part of life.
A major life change like moving houses or countries may mean that you need to be prepared for your baby’s arrival (labor) earlier rather than later.
6 – Super Organized
If the 5 points above don’t apply to you, then the simple reason you want to organize your bag early is that you are a type-A super organized person.
And there’s nothing wrong with that. You do you. Like I said earlier you can pack your bags whenever you like.
Don’t let anyone make you feel bad or weird for getting organized early. Even if your baby doesn’t come early, you’ll be relieved to know that you are ready and set to go when your baby decides to appear./make his appearance.
Tips For Packing Your Hospital Bag
These are my favourite hospital bag hacks to make sure you’re prepared to welcome your prince or princess.
1 – Use Hospital Bag Organisers
For easy identification during your hospital stay, use hospital bag organiser pouches like this one.
You can also use regular Ziploc bags or fancier, cuter ones like these.
One good hack though is to make sure the pouch is transparent so you or your birthing partner can easily see what’s inside and pick what is needed.
2 – Get A Hospital Bag On Wheels
Whether you’re planning to use a hospital bag or a suitcase, consider using a hospital bag on wheels. They’ll be easier to move around the hospital or birth centre.
3 – Leave Baby’s Clothes And Blanket Until Last Minute
If you wash your baby clothes before packing your hospital bag, you’ll discover that they don’t smell as fresh from being washed, and will get creased.
So. leave your baby clothes out till at least 30 weeks or keep in mind that you’ll need to rewash them before your baby arrives.
4 – Don’t Forget These Important Hospital Bag Essentials
One of my best hospital bag posts talks about 15 things most moms forget to pack in their hospital bag.
Things, like thank you cards or gifts for your medical team, are thoughtful things to add to your bag and many more you can read in the post above.
5 – Pack A Baby Arrival Kit
Everything baby will need as soon as he is born- a onesie, vest, nappy, swaddle, hat.
This will be helpful if you’re not in a position to get these things for example, if you have a C Section and can’t rummage through your bag for your baby stuff and someone needs to do it for you.
Finally, place your baby arrival kit on the very top of your hospital bag for easy access.
Wrapping Up,
Packing your hospital bag early is absolutely fine.
Sure, you may get bored with nothing more to do if you’re are so set very early on.
But I can reassure you, you’ll keep re-packing your bags till you go into labor.
One pro-tip: If you find yourself bored with nothing to do, pack a second hospital bag if you end up staying in the hospital earlier than planned.
All the best packing!