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NICU Must-Haves for Moms: 20 Items To Bring
You are about to leave the house, and you head to the hospital where your precious preemie is. Make sure you have your packed bag with all the must-haves for NICU moms. Spending most of your hours inside the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit aside from being worried, you can also feel different, maybe aching, and sometimes lonely. Your preemie baby may be your primary focus during visits; you might forget to bring the essentials for you to survive those NICU hours. I’ve been where you are right now. We may not have the same journey, but I was also the mom who sat on that recliner chair and spent as…
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Breastfeeding a Preemie in the NICU
Did you deliver your baby early? Were you planning to breastfeed your baby after birth? Breastfeeding in the NICU can sometimes take you by surprise when you have a preemie. If you’re a first-time mama, it can get overwhelming. Learning the ropes of breastfeeding pumping while worrying about your preemie and your health makes your early experiences as a new mom more demanding. There are multiple ways to gather breastfeeding information a little at a time. You’ve probably researched it already before giving birth. Take those lessons in as you navigate breastfeeding your preemie baby in the NICU. You may also be worried if your milk will be enough or…
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Helping a Sibling of a NICU Baby Adjust
Parents walk into a new world when a baby is in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). Having other children at home and another at the NICU can turn your lives upside down, and it certainly makes you wish to be split in two. As a NICU mama myself, I’m sharing some ideas to encourage you in helping your child adjust to having a baby sibling in the NICU. It may not be precisely the same circumstance as to what you’re going through. Although it may look similar, you’ve got a baby in the NICU and their siblings at home with you. During our NICU time, I’ve felt broken and…
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NICU Baby is Ready for Discharge
Is your NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) baby ready for discharge? Babies born too early (before 37 weeks) weighing 5 lbs or less are considered premature. Parents celebrate when it’s time to bring a NICU baby home. So what does it take to get ready for discharge with your NICU baby? What developmental milestones do your premature baby need to meet before leaving the hospital? When my premature daughter was admitted to the NICU, I received a checklist of conditions to meet before bringing her home. I want to share some of the discharge standards we’ve encountered and what you can expect in preparation to go home with your premature…
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Tips for a Struggling NICU Mom: Surviving the NICU Life
It’s heartbreaking and harrowing having a premature baby in the NICU. But as reality hit me that my baby would stay in the hospital and not come home with me – I became a NICU mom. In this post, I will be sharing tips on how you can survive the NICU life as a struggling mom. I never expected the day our daughter was born; I would also become a member of the NICU parents club. I’d never thought I would be in this challenging situation. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) life from any parent’s perspective is frightening. Even though I am a nurse by calling, nothing could have prepared…
