Baby in NICU

[Anonymous]

My full term baby was born with a low birth weight and he's been in the NICU for a few days. At first it was due to feeding issues but now they're thinking it could be a brain infection. He's not breathing well. I'm trying to stay positive but it's so hard. I can't hold him. He had a spinal tap today. It will take 24 hour's to get the results. I really want to cuddle with him.

[Anonymous]

Hugs, OP.

Trust the NICU nurses, they're the best and full of love.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hugs, OP.

Trust the NICU nurses, they're the best and full of love.

+1 Hugs and prayers.

[Anonymous]

I’m so sorry OP, I hope things look up soon. My son was in the NICU his first week as well due to breathing issues and not being able to hold them is heartbreaking. I hope you are able to soon.

[Anonymous]

I’m so sorry. Hopefully he will be home with you soon.

[Anonymous]

So sorry. My oldest spent 2 months in the NICU. The nurses are wonderful. Spend as much time there as makes you comfortable. Hope he improved quickly.

[Anonymous]

The NICU is rough—even short stays can be a roller coaster of emotions. Every time you make steps forward there seems to be an unexpected step back. My dd spent over a month there and now my ds is there too but for a much shorter stay (presumably.) Why won’t they let you hold him? That seems unusual. Most NICU’s have a social worker or counselor available to talk to and I found that helpful. We were at Georgetown and although we aren’t religious, the NICU chaplain is a really nice woman (if she’s still there) and was so comforting to chat with.

[Anonymous]

Oh no! I am so sorry. Agree with the posters that say be there as much as you can. It is a hard place to be though and I get that. Can you touch and hold your baby’s hand? Read him books?

I hope they figure out what is going on soon so they can treat it and you can go home.

[Anonymous]

I’m so sorry, OP. Having a baby in the NICU is extremely stressful, hoping for the best for you and your precious little one.

[Anonymous]

Oh op also wanted to share that singing to our baby while holding his hand helped us all a lot when we couldn’t hold him

[Anonymous]

I’m so sorry OP. I hope you get to hold your baby soon. It helped me to read books to my baby and sing to her when she was in the NICU. And I echo all those who said NICU nurses are amazing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The NICU is rough—even short stays can be a roller coaster of emotions. Every time you make steps forward there seems to be an unexpected step back. My dd spent over a month there and now my ds is there too but for a much shorter stay (presumably.) Why won’t they let you hold him? That seems unusual. Most NICU’s have a social worker or counselor available to talk to and I found that helpful. We were at Georgetown and although we aren’t religious, the NICU chaplain is a really nice woman (if she’s still there) and was so comforting to chat with.

OP here. Thanks. I went tonight and it was tough. Lot's of babies were crying and lot's of beeping. I'm also recovering from birth myself. It's been hard to stand up for example. I can't get comfortable in any sort of position. Tomorrow I'll be discharged without him. I reached out to friends from church to let them know what's going on. It will take 2 days to get the results from the spinal tap. The NICU doctor did say all of his other tests are coming back with good results. They're basically trying to see why he turned blue twice and why his blood sugars were low. He also has cold feet.

[Anonymous]

OP, my friend had three NICU babies and then I had mine. Two things she said stuck with me and helped.

First, the day you get discharged and the baby doesn't will be tough. So I mentally prepared myself, I was strong, I was fine! I left, made it through the car ride, got home, then sobbed for an hour. And you know what? That is okay. It's okay to feel sad or scared or whatever. Don't hold in the emotions.

Second, your first instinct is to spend every moment there. But remember: you are still recovering from birth and need to heal. And you will have to be strong and rested for when baby does comes home. (Realize there will probably be lots of doctor appts, etc.) So try to balance the time at the hospital vs time healing at home. You can still stay in touch from home...we would call the NICU and talk to the nurse before we went to bed every night. I'd call at random other times just to see how he was doing when I couldn't go in until later. The staff always made time to check in with me when I called.

Agree with PP, lean on the NICU nurses, they are AMAZING.

Finally, I'm not sure if this is dependent on the reason for NICU, but the nurses had a schedule and every three hours the baby came out in order to be changed/fed/etc. They encouraged me to be there at those times so I could hold my baby while he was out. Maybe ask if there is a similar schedule or time where you can take advantage of the baby being out of the incubator and get some hug time in.


Thinking of you and your little one.

[Anonymous]

I went through that 14 years ago, and my husband and I had no friends in the area at the time. It was so surreal I didn't even realize how stressed out we were until much later.

Many kids come out of the NICU and go on to lead healthy lives.

My son pulled through but is twice exceptional: he has learning disabilities, ADHD, and is also gifted, and has many allergies, including an anaphylactic nut allergy. He was developmentally delayed and had lots of physical, occupational and speech therapy as a young child, and is in a gifted/learning disabled program in his high school. We have had to advocate for him all throughout his school years, to get him appropriate accommodations and services.

Best of luck, OP. You can stay strong for your precious little one! It's amazing what fortitude you'll find within yourself as you see your baby fighting to get healthier and stronger!

[Anonymous]

Thinking of you OP