Packing for an IBD Hospital Admission

After being lucky enough to spend a few years free of hospital admissions, I struggled with 2 back-to-back admissions over the last month. A quick-onset Crohn's flare brought me to the ER on a Saturday morning, and I knew before I left my house that I wouldn't be coming home that same day.

What I didn’t know, what I couldn't remember off the top of my head, was what was important to include in my hospital bag.

Previously, before remission, before Remicade at 5-week intervals, I was a hospital admission veteran. I always had a bag partially packed, with a reference note in the pocket of what needed to be added before walking out the door. Anyone could grab that bag, fill in the necessary items, and bring it to me in the emergency room – my husband, my parents, my friends.

But that was before. That was a different version of me. A version that didn't have a daughter, that always anticipated the next Crohn's challenge, that never let her guard down.

Unprepared for an IBD hospital admission

Today, I am a toddler mom, I work full-time, and I constantly feel like my brain is overloaded with lists upon lists upon lists. So, when the moment came that an on-call doctor advised me to go to the hospital, I was completely unprepared – both mentally and physically.

I no longer had a list – partial or full, of what needed to be included in my hospital bag, or any recollection of where those things were in my house. I did my best, in a frantic sweep, and my husband packed me into the car and drove me to the hospital.

The next morning, he dropped off a few things I wanted and hadn't thrown in my bag. And the morning after that, a few more. So, after discharge, when I was resting at home, I made a list on my phone as I unpacked my bag. I left off the things that weren't necessary, and I included everything I had asked for after previously forgetting.

IBD hospital bag: packing list

I want to share that list here, so you can bookmark this page and refer back to it in the moment that you need it.

What I need in my IBD hospital bag:

• Several pairs of underwear
• 2 pairs of leggings/sweatpants/pj pants
• 2 t-shirts
• Zip-up sweatshirt or cardigan
• Several pairs of socks
• Deodorant
• Face wash
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Hair brush/comb and hair ties/headband
• Hand sanitizer
• Lotion
• Pads/tampons
• Eye mask for sleep and ear plugs
• Chapstick
• Long phone charger
• Computer and charger
• Headphones
• Wallet
• Thin blanket
• Pillow

Something I also included, which is obviously subject to change based on how your hospital/doctor manages hospitalizations, but I also brought the medications I take orally, in case the hospital didn't have them in the pharmacy.

The blanket and the pillow don't often fit into my bag, but rather I have my husband or my parents bring in from the car after transitioning from ER to an admitted room. They're kind of bulky, but to me make a huge difference when I'm staying overnight (and for multiple nights in a row).

What's on your list?

Is there anything I didn't include that's on your hospital bag list? Please share below!