Before having my son, I had read about bringing nurses gifts with me to the hospital because of all they do for you and your family. I gladly did this but knowing what I know now, I’d do it very differently in the future. I really only thought about the nurses that I’d have during labor and delivery (not that I had ANY concept of how much they would actually help with). But I didn’t prepare anything ahead of time for the nurses I had for the few days following (I had a c-section). Both sets of women did things for me that I’ll never be able to properly thank them for. Here is what I did and what I’d do differently in the future to show my appreciation.
What I brought with me last time
I had heard of women who made individual gift bags but not knowing exactly how many I’d need stressed me out. I bought two decorative photo storage boxes (like this one here) and filled them with mini bags of trail mix, individually wrapped cookies, travel size lotion, and chapstick. I liked the size of the boxes and the fact that they had lids for ease of transport.
I also wrote out on a card that read…to all nurses and staff, thank you for your help in bring our little boy into the world, love Shereena Duncan and family. I put that card in the box and then once we got to the hospital, placed the lid on the bottom of the box and stuck the card inside the lip of the lid so it stuck up for anyone at the nurses station to see. One box was taken to the nurses station on the day I arrived. The other box on the following day.
I was induced the evening before Valentine’s Day. The next day, I had a little red and pink bowl (something I didn’t need to get back) right at the door of my room with individually wrapped chocolates inside. It was fun to wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day and to let them know there were chocolates for them on their way out. It was my mission to make sure every nurse and doctor I encountered knew I appreciated them and everything they were doing for my family. What says that better than chocolate?
What I’d do next time
First, I’d do exactly what I did last time again. No regrets on what I did, just on what I didn’t do. I had run out of gifts after my son was born. The care he and I received was just getting started! The women that cared for us on the days to follow helped me use the bathroom, shower, changed my bandages, helped me breastfeed, helped me swaddle and answered all my neurotic new mom questions at all hours of the night.
THEY DESERVED SO MANY COOKIES!
That is not to say that the nurses I had during labor and delivery didn’t! They were all angels on earth but for some reason I didn’t think about the length of time that I could be in the hospital so I wasn’t prepared for the amount of angels I’d be blessed with.
The nurse I had throughout the bulk of my labor is the main reason I’m writing this post. Her name is Nadia and the kindness, support and compassion she showed me was beyond anything I could have ever prayed for. I am not exaggerating when I say that before switching to a different OBGYN I messaged her (yes we stayed in touch) to get her opinion on the office and hospital they’re affiliated with. I value her opinion deeply.
Before I started writing this, I asked her about gifts she’s received in the past. She mentioned that many people bring gifts similar to what I did…snacks, lotion, hand sanitizer etc and that those are always appreciated. She also mentioned that means the most to her is receiving a card written out to her with the name of the baby in it. Her words were that she “holds onto those forever”.
The other thing that Nadia shared with me is that the highest honor for a nurse is to be nominated for a DAISY award. Raise your hand if you’ve even heard of the DAISY award before! Apparently if you’re not a nurse or don’t have one in your family, odds are you may not be familiar with it. But now that I know, you can bet I’ll be nominating her and I’ll be on the lookout for others to nominate in the future.
No matter how you choose to say thank you to your nurses/staff/doctors, I’m certain that it’ll be appreciated. I’m proud of you.
