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Hopefully you are reading this postpartum essentials guide before you have given birth so you can shop and buy everything before going into labor! If you have already given birth, congrats Mama, and Amazon is about to become your new best friend.
And if you are still pregnant and preparing for birth, make sure to read my hospital bag packing guide!
It is hard to know what you will actually need or use post-partum. Honestly, every Mom’s list will look a little different depending on how labor and delivery went.
There were a few items that I purchased and never used and then there were items that I was ordering at 2 am off Amazon and anxiously awaiting for them to arrive.
This post will break down post-partum essentials into a few different categories to help you navigate items you may want to purchase.
Post-Partum Essentials: For Mom
- Frida Mom Upside Down Peri Bottle: This will be your best friend when using the bathroom after delivery. The hospital gave me a peri bottle but it was not nearly as easy to use as the Frida Mom. The upside down design really makes a difference.
- Frida Mom Instant Ice Maxi Pads: These are not comfortable or easy to walk around with them but they bring SO much relief! You don’t need to purchase a ton of them; I used 2-3 a day for about a week and then was fine without the ice packs.
- Tucks: These provide instant relief! They are easier to use than the ice packs. I lined each pad with 2-3 of these. They worked well over night too.
- Pull Up Underwear: You will still need the huge jumbo pads (I know, it sucks) for the first few days but once the bleeding slows down, it was so nice to just wear these and line them with the Tucks. They are less bulky and can just throw them away when you need a new one.
- Maxi Pads: I HATE pads, like seriously despise them. They are so uncomfortable to me. Luckily you don’t need them for too long but still buy a decent sized pack. You won’t get through without them.
- Sitz Salt: This is really helpful for healing in general and if you happen to get any hemorrhoids post-partum.
- Stretch Mark Lotion: I used this same lotion during pregnancy. I don’t know if it made a difference or not, but I used it post-partum for the first month as my skin was adjusting.
Post-Partum Essentials: For Nursing
- Nursing Pillow: It is really hard to figure out how to hold your tiny newborn. There are so many positions you will mess around with but you will absolutely want a nursing pillow. I had the Boppy pillow and recommend it because when your baby is a few months old, you can use the pillow for supported sitting.
- Haaka: This is a GAME CHANGER. I used it every time I nursed and was able to store a lot of milk just from my letdowns that would have otherwise gone to waste into a nursing pad.
- Gel Pads: A friend recommended these to me and they were amazing. They are super easy to wash and reuse too. It brings instant relief when you are sore or have any cracks.
- Nursing Pads: Use the reusable ones! This set has one for each day and comes with a bag to wash them in. The disposable ones are junk; they are thin, shows through your clothes, move around in your bra, and the packaging is just annoying.
- Nipple Cream: Breast feeding definitely hurts and newborn cluster feeding is the worst! Even if you are exclusively pumping, you will want to have a good nipple cream to use. I tried a few different ones and preferred the Honest nipple cream.
Post-Partum Essentials: Clothing
- Pajamas: Buy yourself a new comfy pair, or two, of button down pajamas! Kennadi was born in January so I chose long sleeves and pants but they make the same button down pajamas in short sleeve with shorts. These are nice for nursing/pumping but also offer great coverage for when you have company over.
- Nursing Bras: I lived in the soft, sleep type nursing bras from Target for weeks. Once I started wearing clothes and going out again, I preferred this one from Motherhood.
- Nursing Nightgown: I wore this to bed for at least the first four months. It was easy for nursing and pumping and extremely comfortable.
- Lots and lots of comfortable sweats and lounge outfits! Post-partum underwear, pads, ice packs, etc. means you need extra room and loose fitting bottoms. You will likely have friends and family coming over so it is worth it to buy a few sweat outfit options for when you have company.
Post-Partum Essentials: Items I Disliked or Didn’t Use
- Frida Mom Perineal Cooling Pad Liners: These liners are SO thin. It was difficult to pull just one out of the packaging. I found these liners would bunch up easily and because they were so thin, they didn’t really make a difference. Opt for the Tucks pads instead.
- Donut Cushion Pillow: My friend gave me this as she didn’t end up using it since she had a C-section delivery. Well, I had a vaginal delivery and didn’t use it either. I tried to sit on it for the car ride home and it was way more uncomfortable than just sitting normal.
- Dermaplast: This might be useful if you tear but I personally bought two cans and didn’t use it once.
And last but certainty not least, LOTS of grace! You are learning how to navigate motherhood and a brand new baby. It will feel overwhelming and stressful and you will likely question yourself all day and night. Trust that you know what you are doing. You are the best Mom for your baby, don’t doubt that!
Remember to give your partner grace too; it is a new season for both of you. You will look back one day at laugh at the craziness. On night three of being home from the hospital, my husband (completely sleep deprived) changed our daughter but forgot to put on a new diaper and just zipped up her pajamas and then handed her to me to nurse her. Well, pee and poop went right through those footsies and onto my hands. We laughed in the moment but it is definitely our favorite sleep deprived, newborn stage memory that we often crack up at.
If you want a checklist of postpartum essentials, as well as a hospital bag packing list, click the button below!
Anyways, there you have it, my guide on post-partum essentials. Hopefully this helps you and have fun ordering away! Good luck mama, you got this! And if you are close to delivery, don’t forget to check out my hospital bag packing guide!
I would love to hear about what stage of pregnancy you are in! Comment below or connect with me on Instagram! And don’t forget to subscribe to be notified of new blog posts.
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