Hi, J: I visited my friend yesterday at the hospital; she had lap rny, and honestly I don't think she even opened her bag that she had packed. She was in one of the hospital gowns; there will be some drainage, so you don't want to ruin you own gowns. I'm scheduled for August 19th, and I intend to bring a robe, slippers, my mini-travel sized toiletries (toothbrush & paste, shampoo, conditioner, soap) LIP BALM! That's an important one. And I'll probably bring hand lotion; mine tend to get dry and crack when I wash with the antibacterial soap. Our hospital provides fans, so she didn't even need to bring that. I thought about bringing some mags and puzzle books, but Ann told me basically when she's not up walking, she's sleeping. You get tired very easily. Good luck on your surgery! You might want to go to your doctor's forum and get in touch with someone in your area having surgery around the same time, correspond with him/her and see if they'd be your angel. That's what Ann and I did; so I was her angel, and next month she's gonna be mine. Although with all she's taught me in these last couple days, she's already started angel duty! Good luck!