Need Ideas for a Care Package for M. on Bed Rest

I would try a basket filled with magazines and great quick reads. Also, you can fill it with healthy snacks as well as some bottled water.

I haven't been on bed rest but a few friends have. I have sent magazines that they would normally not buyor are hard to get (british vogue, etc). The big hit was always dinners. I would cook up something and send it over.

Call her. Call her call her call her!! I was on bed rest for a couple of months, and it was not easy. The best thing was to have someone to talk to. Books, magazines and puzzles are also great ideas. If she has access to a tv and dvd player, another great idea is movies and tv shows. TV shows are especially helpful because daytime tv can be so awful, and it's nice to have something more interesting to watch. A manicure or pedicure set would be nice so she could try to look after herself.

Another idea is to give her a gift certificate for restaurants that deliver. Or bring meals. You could get a group together to go to Dinner By Design (dinnerbydesignkitchen.com) or another meal assembly place. You could prepare a bunch of meals to put in her freezer for her. Just read the instructions for the meals before you choose which ones to make because some of them require more than just shoving them in the oven, and she won't be able to do more than that.

This is a tough time. Probably what was hardest for me is that people do not realize that it's hard. It seems like a gift - hey - you get to do nothing for two months! Maybe it is for some people. I have another friend who was on bedrest for even longer than I was. It's hard to not be able to prepare your home for the arrival of your new baby because you're stuck on the couch. It's hard to have to ASK for everything instead of being able to do things for yourself. The hardest thing for me was watching someone else care for my 15-month old daughter because I was on bedrest with my second baby. I ached to pick her up and play with her, but I could only have someone else put her in my lap to read to her and sit and play quieter activities with her. It was all worth it for her heathly baby brother, but it was definitely tough.

Oh - one other thought. If she hasn't had a baby shower yet, bring one to her. Don't surprise her, though. Let her get ready for it. She doesn't get to go out, so she'll want to look nice for the party. Plus she'll have something to look forward to. And as part of the party, have a game of putting together the equipment she receives. That's another thing she won't be able to do. (But make sure she's registered for everything so she doesn't lose the chance to take something back if she receives something she wasn't registered for!).

Anyway, that's much more than you or any one person could do, but maybe it gives you some ideas that you could choose from and others to pass on to her other family or friends. I hope so! You are a kind friend to think of bringing her a care package. I'm sure she will appreciate it!

Hi Mary,

When I was on bedrest for 4 months, I appreciated when people brought fun, healthy food, movies, and scrapbooking materials. I had never made a scrapbook before, but when I had all of the materials, it made the day fly by. I had movies that I had always meant to watch, but never had the time. Voila! Now I had loads of time to watch all those movies. That is what helped me. Good luck to your friend!

S. S.

Books, magazines, Sodoku, crossword puzzles, does she have any hobbies she can easily do in bed?

I was on bedrest and it was tough. Visitors were the best... but I enjoyed flipping through magazines. Maybe a 2 month subscription to Netflix?

I was on bedrest at 16 weeks out, and I got to tell you, its gets old super fast. Here are some of my ideas:

1. Books on newborns - helping them to self calm and sleep, what to expect the first year, etc...
2. Books from her favorite non-baby author
3. Her favorite pregnancy healthy snacks she can keep near the bed
4. If she is allowed to get out of bed to go to the computer, or if she has wireless, a list of some neat websites to check out including new M. message boards.
5. Crossword puzzles or word finds
6. Catalogs - baby and non baby
7. A frame to put her ultrasound picture in next to her
8. A phone book with phone numbers in it
9. TV Guide - kinda of a poke fun of thing
10. Pack of sugar free gum
11. blockbuster gift card - so she can rent movies
12. Stamps, writing pad, lap desk for writing, envelopes
13. A pillow to tuck between her legs and support her growing belly - if she has one, then a pillow case for it.
14. CD's - soothing sounds, nursery rymes (might as well learn them all now), her favorite band/musician
15. Baby announcement ideas - I worked on my birth announcements from bed, all that was left was to put the picture in of the baby when she arrived.

I would recommend to your friend to take advantage of the time to sleep and relax, but to remember to move and exercise her legs. I hated bedrest when I was going through it, but some days, I miss the opportunity to get restful, uninterrupted sleep.

Hope this helps.

T.

Dear Mary,

I feel for your friend. I was on bed rest for 4 months and it was rough. We lived out in the country where there was no cable or dish. So I read the same books over and over. My one friend gave me a body pillow and some relaxing candles with the relaxing cds. I played a lot of video games that we borrowed from a friend. Tell her good luck.
B.

Hello Mary K,
I was on bed rest for from my 12th week of pregnancy until I delivered my daughter at 30 weeks. In the beginning I could sit up so I really enjoyed crafts; crochet, cross stitch, scrapbooking, etc. At 20 weeks I wasn't allowed to even sit up, I had to lay on my left side except for very short bathroom breaks; that made everything except reading, writing and watching tv difficult. I did receive a wonderful journal for expecting mothers, it was the type that helped you write letters to your unborn child. It gave me things to think about that I would not have consider on my own. As suggested in the journal, I wrote letters on why I chose her name, how her father and I met, I told her my favorite songs, wrote a short autobiography, told her about her grnadparents, told her about my dreams for her, etc. I cant wait to share it with her. I also received a belly cast kit that I would have enjoyed decorating had my daughter not come early.
In short, I think the perfect gift would depend on what your friend likes to do and what she is allowed to do. I think your visit will do more than you can imagine.

Hi there. I'm sorry for your friend. I was on bedrest for 4 months last year and it's not fun. LOL I had a 3 year old at the time, so there were things we did together, but she could also do alone. Puzzles on a tray, crosswords, scrapbooking, crocheting, cross stitch birth announcement, paint a wood birdhouse. Someone gave me a book of short stories. movies, hand held games like yahtzee or soduku, but my biggest savior was my laptop and wireless internet LOL

Hope that helps :)

If she has a tray (like a breakfast-in-bed type tray) maybe give her things that will give her a jump start on putting together her baby book - scrapbooking things, etc. I had all kinds of ultrasound pictures and cute pregnancy memories that I have put into a book for my son (outside of his baby book), I was also on bed rest for the last 8 weeks of my pregnancy and that was what I worked on.

I was on bedrest for 3.5 months due to pre-term labor and I agree with most of what has already been posted (m.y laptop and internet kept me sane) It really is a tough time. Is this your friend's first pregnancy or does she have other kids already? The single most difficult thing for me was not being able to do anything with my then 20 month old daughter. An active toddler will only sit so long next to you while you read book after book with her. After a while my daughter figured out that I could not come to her when she called out and she stopped calling out for me when she woke in the morning or after naps - it broke my heart. Ofcourse things returned back to normal after little brother was born, but its a year and a half later and I still sometimes think about those almost 4 months when I felt like I couldn't really be a proper Mommy to her and missed out on 4 months of her life. So if your friend does have another child(ren), perhaps an offer of babysitting or taking the child(ren) out for some fun outings that M. can't do, etc.

One thing that I did while on bedrest that was very "therapuetic" for me was a baby blanket cross stitch project. I'd never done cross stitch before, but I found the need to focus helpful in not dwelling on trying to feel yet another contraction and worrying about it. During the early weeks of bedrest, there was some fear that we might loose the baby before he reached viability age and working on the blanket was a great way to feel connected to him and with each section of the blanket finished it was visible proof that we were that much closer to survival if he were born early. Ironically, I never did finish the blanket (it is huge)....

K.

Mary,
I feel so bad for your friend. I never had to go on bedrest, but know alot of people who have and I know it sucks. That is so very thoughtful of you to want to take her a care package. What a great idea. I would put in some books, if you know what she reads, magazines, crossword or wordsearch puzzle books. If she has a hobby like scrapbooking, some things for that which she can use right there, like maybe a small scrapbook and things to use in it. I hope this helps.

S. Bailey CLD
Aurora
www.tendermomentsdoula.com

Ugh--I was on bed rest for 6 months...
A few things people got me--

THE KEY THING: A PLANT--when you are on bed rest in Chicago during the very few months of nice weather, it can be HELL...you feel like you are really missing out and the winter will be that much longer.

1. Netflix subcription
2. fresh flowers for three months (they would arrive once a month)
3. chocolate covered strawberries...
4. great websites on baby or anything else she is interested in (my family actually got me a laptop computer and a wireless system)
5. A book of inspirational stories or a website of inspriational stories about people who have made it through
6. comfortable clothing--maternity pjs (check out the Pajama Grams, they have a maternity line)
7. Two pillows--one vert soft and one firm
8. Something to check out daily like one of those calendars that you tear off each day for a new joke
9. A BABY BOOK--these are fun because there are pages and pages in the front that you fill out before the baby is born
10. Scrapbooking stuff for her to catalog her "journey"...so her baby knows someday what she went through ;-)
11. I also got a lot of TV shows on DVD...I got really into Scrubs--keep the laughing and I could all the episodes in a row with no commercials.

I could go on and on--but really, anything you send will help distract her--my family took turns sending me something once a week...my one sister sent me a foot spa kit etc. It was just nice to get a package in the mail each week and to know that they were thinking of me--they also logged a WHOLE LOT of time on the phone with me...friend AND family all kicked in to keep me distracted in that way.
Please wish her luck from me!!!

Oh, I feel for her! I did 14 weeks of strict bedrest, 4 of those weeks in the hospital. It was really rough.
People brought me a lot of parenting and fashion magazines, interesting books (find out what she likes to read), sodoku books, crossword puzzles, I even learned how to crochet blankets so maybe you could buy her one of those start up kits with all the needles in it with a book of how-to's. Otherwise, I watched a lot of tv. A journal might be another good idea so she can write down what she is feeling and what the baby is doing.
Another good idea is healthy snacks. She won't be able to be on her feet long, so bring pre-washed fruit, maybe even slice it up yourself. Yogurt and graham crackers, cottage cheese and strawberries, a big casserole dish of a favorite food.
Good luck!

I was on bedrest for 10 weeks and while it was modified, it still wasn't fun. I enjoyed when people brought me things that were pampering -- like very luxurious body balms/lotions and scented candles, really good gourmet chocolates, etc. Magazines were also great as were the little hand held games you plug into your tv -- I had Pac Man and the unit is only about $20.

I agree with the M. who posted to call her and even better -- if you can do it frequently, stop by. It gets lonely when the rest of the world is out doing their thing (especially during summer!) and you're home because you have to/want to be (for baby's sake!)

Puzzles are awesome for this! Especially if you can find a good mat that she can work on, fold up and put away. Check the game stores for them.

I was on bedrest for a lot of my pregnancy. I started knitting, reading books, magazines, really anything that you can do without moving. You start to get so bored, you can only watch so many talk shows. Even movies are good. I am sure your friend will find anything great.