A Pandemic Prepping Guide for Moms-to-be

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As moms and moms-to-be we want to be prepared as we possibly can for the coronavirus pandemic but the question is where to start?

This concise guide covers all the essentials to get stocked up on in the event you and your family are quarantined at home for two weeks or more.

We cover:

1. Infection Control Items
2. Baby Goods
3. Food Store List
4. Medicines, Vitamins & Home Remedies
5. Other Items
6. How to ensure you have clean water
7. Other Considerations

When I started researching what I’d need to survive a viral outbreak it didn’t take me long to realize how expensive it could get. My funds weren’t going to stretch to costly breathing respirators and six months worth of food stocks.

So what I did was work out the basic requirements for three of us to survive a 1-2 month quarantine within a budget of around $200 – $300.

Your budget may be smaller and that’s fine.

Just focus your purchases on food staples, sanitation products and toilet tissue. Whatever you buy won’t be wasted because all of these items can be stored and used at a later date if you don’t end up needing them now.

Food can be rotated into your everyday usage to make sure it gets eaten before the use by dates, cleaning products will be used. Nothing will be going to waste.

First things first. In the event of a pandemic keeping yourself and your family free from infection is the top priority. Ideally you want to protect yourselves by staying at home and having as little contact with other people as possible.

On top of that, the following items are must haves.

Infection Control Items

1. Face Masks
2. Eye Protection/Goggles
3. Hand Soap
4. Single Use Tissues
5. Antibacterial Hand Gel
6. Antibacterial Wipes
7. Disposable Gloves
8. Bleach
9. Disinfectant
10. Toilet Tissue <———– (Don’t Forget This!)

Which Type of Mask to Buy for Protection Against Coronavirus?

There are many types of masks at many different price points so knowing which to buy can get quite confusing, plus there are big issues around availability. It may be a case of buying what you can at this point.

These are the types of mask in order of how protective they are.

Full or Half Mask Respirator
N99 Masks
N95 Masks
Disposable Medical Masks
Disposable Dust Masks

A full or half face respirator mask is the most effective protection against viruses, can be reused, and they can be bought for as little as $25. I have a half face mask like this one as a back up to my disposable masks.

After that, the best ones to buy are N95 or N99 respirator masks.

BUT they are increasingly hard to find at the moment. And if you can find them, they can be incredibly expensive.

These types of masks benefit from a tight fit over the mouth and nose and can provide some decent protection from viruses. The N99 have smaller breathing holes than the N95 making them a better choice, but they’re more expensive.

At the time of writing a 10 pack of disposable N99 masks will cost over $100 and a reusable one around $50 with filters.

N95 masks are around half the cost, but worldwide stocks are very low. If you decide to buy on Amazon, make sure to check where the product is sold from (ideally the US and not China) and how long the company has been selling. There are a lot of people starting to sell masks for exorbitant prices and they often say that they are shipping from within the US when they aren’t.

Personally, I have a pack of 20 x N95 masks that I bought some weeks ago. Check your local hardware stores as Amazon and eBay are almost sold out.

Another popular choice due to their convenience and low cost are disposable medical grade masks. If you can get a few boxes of medical face masks then do so as soon as you can. 

Disposable dusk masks are the cheapest option and they are still relatively easy to find. They will do the important job of stopping you touching your mouth and nose and transferring infection but they may not offer the best protection.

Fortunately children seem to be the least affected by the coronavirus (SARS CoV-2) but it’s still a good idea to protect them and prevent them from infecting others who may not be able to cope so well with the disease. 

You can buy children’s face masks which is a good idea because they are smaller sized to fit snugly over their mouths and noses.

Eye Protection

Viruses are so tiny they can easily enter your body through the eye and it is known that the Coronavirus can enter this way. Swimming goggles or wrap around glasses will provide good protection if you have to go out during a quarantine. Also, avoid rubbing or touching your eyes unless you know your hands are clean.

Hand Cleaning

Your hands are the most likely areas of your body to get contaminated so keeping them as clean as you can is imperative. Wash your hands with soap and hot water for at least 30 seconds when you enter your home, before and after cooking and before and after using the toilet.

If you’re out wear disposable gloves and take a hand sanitizer with you as well. 

Hand sanitizer is a must have in my book. Purell brand is good but a bit on the expensive side, so I bought a six pack of Amazon’s own brand hand sanitizer. It does exactly the same as more expensive brands but for half the price. 

*EDIT* If you are unable to find hand sanitizer it’s very easy to make your own. Buy rubbing alcohol and aloe vera gel. Mix 3 parts aloe gel with one part rubbing alcohol and that’s it. If you want to you can add a few drops of tea tree essential oil.

I recommend getting a few boxes of disposable gloves as part of your pandemic survival kit as well. Disposable gloves are good value and will help you keep your hands clean when out and about. Just make sure you don’t touch your face with them and dispose of them just before you enter your home.

Disinfecting Your Home

Germs and viruses are easily carried into the home on clothing and shoes. The coronovirus could potentially live up to 5 days on surfaces, so home hygiene is incredibly important.

Use bleach, rubbing alcohol or disinfectant at least once a day on the areas that people touch frequently such as door handles, doors, light switches, mobile phones, window handles and surfaces. 

I use disinfectant wipes to give surfaces such as door handles a quick clean when I get home. These own brand disinfectant wipes from Amazon are cheap and do the job just fine.

Disinfecting Clothing

As was previously mentioned, viruses are often brought into the home on clothing.

Wash your clothes on at least a 60 Celsius degree wash to kill viruses. Add extra washing soda or disinfectant to your wash for extra germ killing power (not bleach).

When you do your preparedness shopping (which I suggest you do TODAY or at the very earliest opportunity) make sure you add laundry detergent to your list.

If you have to go out during a pandemic make sure you have a decontamination routine for when you return.

Have a set of clothes and coat that you only use for outside wear.

Get changed into home clothing outside of the home if at all possible e.g. in a garage or backyard.

Keep a bucket containing water and disinfectant by your front door to disinfect the soles of your shoes, or use disposable overshoes that can be thrown away when you return home.

Antibacterial spray can also be useful on clothing and soft furnishings.

Toilet Tissue (Don’t Forget This!)

One item you must remember to stock up on is toilet paper. Get as much as you have space to store. I bought 50 extra rolls on top of my normal 24 rolls. I like these Charmin Family Mega Rolls because they’re soft and last a really long time.