Anonymous
Post 08/25/2017 18:53     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
I am an experienced NICU nurse still work in the hospital and IBCLC who does night nursing on the side for multiples and premature infants with and without monitors.
I have many references and charge $30-$40/ hr.
You may contact me by email at
cathy.patrick82@gmail.com.

My references from clients are buried in the past so just wanted you to have one more person to consider
Anonymous
Post 01/09/2017 06:57     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:If you have a night nurse and any of the following you're an idiot:

Student loans
Credit card balance
Car loan
Didn't max out your 401k


Oh please. But you standards, having the kid is a financial mistake.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 23:22     Subject: So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:You know what I always wonder about families who use night nurses? Especially when they use them every night for months? What happens after the nurse leaves? Do the parents get up at night? Cuz we all know kids get up at night for a variety of reasons, from teething to illness to bad dreams to restlessness, etc., until well into toddlerhood and sometimes beyond.

What do the parents do then? How do they handle that when they're not used to waking up in them middle of the night? Do you think there are people who use night nurses for years on end?


I had a night nurse with each of my kids when they were newborns. Of course I got/get up if one woke/wakes after the night nurse was no longer providing services. What a stupid question.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 23:16     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:

np here. not a valid comparison. this is your child. it can be rough with a newborn. it's supposed to be. you both grow and bond over it. having a stranger feed and comfort your newborn child at night while you sleep is a pretty strange concept. unless absolutely necessary. i don't understand this wanting to have it all mindset. what is the point of having children if you don't care for them, to have heirs?


Actually in some asian countries its pretty common to hire a special confinement nanny for a month after the baby is born. She's usually an older lady and she would be the one taking care of the baby full time and also cooking special nutritious food for the mother. Only thing the mother has to do is rest and breastfeed. There are even specialized confinement centers with doctors and pediatricians available. We believe that giving birth takes a lot from the mother health-wise, so in order for her to recover it is essential that she gets proper rest and eats a special diet. It has nothing to do with being unable to care for your offspring or being lazy.


Yes, this is my culture. I think postpartum recovery is very important. It's sort of strange to hear it as an either-you're-selfish-or-not false dichotomy. In my culture, nourishing the mother IS nourishing the baby, especially at this very early point in life. Nutrition and sleep for the mother helps her produce more milk, have better mental health (and therefore more to give to the child), and a better overall physical recovery that can impact health several years down the line. I hear a lot of stories of women being completely depleted after birth for months and years after. Especially with the new attachment parenting fad, which is BS. A lot of these AP articles cite "ancient Chinese traditions" as the reason for baby wearing, co-sleeping, etc. What they don't say is that these practices take place in a culture where the mother has a LOT of support. You can't do all those things without a great deal of help. People cooking for you, extended family taking turns to hold the baby, no crazy expectations.

We hired a night nurse for four days a week the first three months for my first and plan to do pretty much the same for the second. Both of us work, and it's not practical to be starting a marathon with a sprint.

Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 22:06     Subject: So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:Newborn Care Specialist here. I think it is important to know that the industry has moved away from the term "night nurse" because if you are hiring independently and they are a) not a RN or LPN and b) advertise as a "night nurse" then that tells you somethinf about how much time they have spent learning about their field. Experience is important, but there is lots of misinformation and unsafe practices out there so you really want to be sure that they have experience caring for newborns WHILE USING BEST PRACTICES.

What I have seen is basically three tiers:

Newborn nanny: someone who has worked with newborns for a long time. Again, i would be cautious with this group unless you are hiring someone through a reputable agency. You want to know that they will be practicing and teaching you the safest way to care for a newborn.

Newborn Care Specialist: a true NCS should be certified (usually through NCSA) and should therefore have at least 1800 hours of newborn experience as well as classes certifying they have studied best practices.

Night Nurse: a true night nurse is an RN or LPN who also cares for newborns. These women are extraordinary, but unless you have a medically needy baby you probably don't need a night nurse specifically.

People have hired me everywhere from 6 days per week to only one. Reasons vary widely:
Mom struggling with PPD or PPA
Twins
Single parent
Parent returning to work early
Parents without much/any prior newborn experience
Colic
Reflux
One parent had minimal leave and a long work day
SAHM with existing child who needs to be attent to both kids during the day
Just occasional date nights

In some cases the parents truely never get up at night with the baby/ies. I've had several twin parents like that who handled two babies all day but said they could only manage that with at least 6 hours of sleep at night. Many others get up at night even if I am there, in which case I might bring baby in to nurse but mom can go right back to sleep while I burp, swaddle and soothe baby back to sleep. That can be the difference between 20 minutes awake each feed or an hour awake and can be very helpful for mom.

In addition, many new parents value having an expert there to troubleshoot and advise them. Everything from learning how to swaddle to establishing a routine can be helpful. Some people actually hire me only during day hours and spend a portion of the time just shadowing me and talking through how and why to do things.

A typical overnight looks like this:
I arrive and put my things away. I speak with the parent(s) about the day/week and we discuss any concerns or questions they have and any scheduling things I need to know for the baby.
They go to bed.
I wash and prep any bottles I will need, then I compose an email addressing anything they asked about, with links to reputable sources so that they have a written, supported document they can refer back to.
I sit or lie down in baby's room and rest until baby wakes, then I either feed baby or bring baby in to nurse, then burp, change, swaddle, soothe etc. until baby is sleeping safely in his or her own bed. Repeat a few times until my shift ends. Before the end of my shift I wash all bottles I've used and prep bottles as needed for daytime feeds. I also send the parents a written schedule of feeds, diapers, sleep times, etc. along with the email I composed earlier. If there is anything I need to show the parents hands-on, I might do that in the morning.


I conceived twins. My mom had passed away and I was a single mom by choice. The idea of twins was daunting. I looked into hiring a NCS like you. Sadly I lost one of the twins at 14 weeks. With a singleton, I felt I could manage alone. I was fine most of the time except for when I realized I had no idea what I was doing and no one to discuss my fears with . Luckily for me, my daycare provider stepped in and gave me lots of advice in a caring, motherly way. Without her, I would have been lost. All this is to say that your experience and willingness to address concerns with new parents is a fantastic
Plus to your service.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 21:57     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
If you have a night nurse and any of the following you're an idiot:

Student loans
Credit card balance
Car loan
Didn't max out your 401k
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 21:51     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Young mothers today are so spoiled and entitled.

Please - just get up with your baby yourself. It is part of the experience as well as bonding. Moms and Dads have been doing it for generations.


It's not the young mothers- it's the 40 year old granny moms who are too old to be having babies.


Or someone with an emergency c-section with twins and a spouse deployed overseas. I hope everyone in your life treats you with as much venom as you put into these comments.




New poster here but I think you are projecting "venom" as I didn't read it like that at all. I think the poster is just tired of the complaining.

And seriously, what percentage of new mothers in the USA had c-section twins while her husband was deployed? Maybe .00001% of all births in 2016 were c-section twins with partners on active duty overseas.

Please stop the silly drama, PP.


Hi sock-puppet insulting PP. It's rude to call a 40 year old mom a granny, K?

There are plenty of people who outsource things and are able to pay for it, should we hate on them too? Like if you have a cleaning service, someone work on your garden, etc. If people can afford it and want to - it's their own personal business. If you can't afford any of it - move on, being a jerk does not have any positive effect on your own low budget situation.


np here. not a valid comparison. this is your child. it can be rough with a newborn. it's supposed to be. you both grow and bond over it. having a stranger feed and comfort your newborn child at night while you sleep is a pretty strange concept. unless absolutely necessary. i don't understand this wanting to have it all mindset. what is the point of having children if you don't care for them, to have heirs?


It's not martyrdom olympics. If someone feels they need help let them get it, better than PPD and a mom on a cocktail of antidepressants. If you need to get a medal for suffering - get it, but for others it may not be relevant. You don't need to understand it. Different strokes for different folks, move on.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 21:38     Subject: So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:You know what I always wonder about families who use night nurses? Especially when they use them every night for months? What happens after the nurse leaves? Do the parents get up at night? Cuz we all know kids get up at night for a variety of reasons, from teething to illness to bad dreams to restlessness, etc., until well into toddlerhood and sometimes beyond.

What do the parents do then? How do they handle that when they're not used to waking up in them middle of the night? Do you think there are people who use night nurses for years on end?


What do you care? And why are you wondering in such detail? Why not wonder about something that's actually useful to you and your family?
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 12:35     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Young mothers today are so spoiled and entitled.

Please - just get up with your baby yourself. It is part of the experience as well as bonding. Moms and Dads have been doing it for generations.


uh fuck you i'm not going to martyr myself when i'm rich and have an important professional job

which is incidentally how i was raised by my amazing CEO mom who i have always had a wonderful relationship with


Wow. "I'm rich and important, so why should I bother to do the tough parts of parenting? I'll just hire out the tough stuff."

Your poor kid. What is the plan? To have the nanny dress them up in a cute outfit for the annual Christmas photo, and spend 10 minutes with them before dinner until they are old enough for boarding school?

I had serious PPD, and if DH's job has prevented him from stepping up, I would have looked into a night nanny. So no judgment on that. But I am judinging PP's snotty entitled, why sacrific for my kid? attitude.



I would like here your answer to the question: "Why sacrifice for my kid?" Seriously. There are things a baby/child needs, including affectionate, attentive care and a secure attachment to both a primary caregiver and one or more secondary caregivers. If baby's needscan be met without parents making a specific sacrifice, why should they still feel the need to sacrifice?
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 12:18     Subject: So how much do night nurses cost?
Please PP's stop with this myth that these parents are lazy or clueless or whatever.
11:37 is right that no one in the US cares about postpartum parents, especially moms and plenty of families have 2 parents that need to be on all the time for work, older kids, they have multiples, whatever. Sleep deprivation makes the system break so night care is the care they choose to keep their system working. Just like daycare or nanny etc. is what others choose.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 11:39     Subject: So how much do night nurses cost?
You know what I always wonder about families who use night nurses? Especially when they use them every night for months? What happens after the nurse leaves? Do the parents get up at night? Cuz we all know kids get up at night for a variety of reasons, from teething to illness to bad dreams to restlessness, etc., until well into toddlerhood and sometimes beyond.

What do the parents do then? How do they handle that when they're not used to waking up in them middle of the night? Do you think there are people who use night nurses for years on end?
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 11:37     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:

np here. not a valid comparison. this is your child. it can be rough with a newborn. it's supposed to be. you both grow and bond over it. having a stranger feed and comfort your newborn child at night while you sleep is a pretty strange concept. unless absolutely necessary. i don't understand this wanting to have it all mindset. what is the point of having children if you don't care for them, to have heirs?


Actually in some asian countries its pretty common to hire a special confinement nanny for a month after the baby is born. She's usually an older lady and she would be the one taking care of the baby full time and also cooking special nutritious food for the mother. Only thing the mother has to do is rest and breastfeed. There are even specialized confinement centers with doctors and pediatricians available. We believe that giving birth takes a lot from the mother health-wise, so in order for her to recover it is essential that she gets proper rest and eats a special diet. It has nothing to do with being unable to care for your offspring or being lazy.


yeah well that's not what people think in the US, lol. You have to be up and at 'em two days post partum and if you're not back to your skinny jeans at 6 weeks you're a lazy cow.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 11:36     Subject: So how much do night nurses cost?
$30 an hour. Used for ten hours a night for 4 months. Should have done 6.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 11:24     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:

np here. not a valid comparison. this is your child. it can be rough with a newborn. it's supposed to be. you both grow and bond over it. having a stranger feed and comfort your newborn child at night while you sleep is a pretty strange concept. unless absolutely necessary. i don't understand this wanting to have it all mindset. what is the point of having children if you don't care for them, to have heirs?


Actually in some asian countries its pretty common to hire a special confinement nanny for a month after the baby is born. She's usually an older lady and she would be the one taking care of the baby full time and also cooking special nutritious food for the mother. Only thing the mother has to do is rest and breastfeed. There are even specialized confinement centers with doctors and pediatricians available. We believe that giving birth takes a lot from the mother health-wise, so in order for her to recover it is essential that she gets proper rest and eats a special diet. It has nothing to do with being unable to care for your offspring or being lazy.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2017 09:55     Subject: Re:So how much do night nurses cost?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Young mothers today are so spoiled and entitled.

Please - just get up with your baby yourself. It is part of the experience as well as bonding. Moms and Dads have been doing it for generations.


uh fuck you i'm not going to martyr myself when i'm rich and have an important professional job

which is incidentally how i was raised by my amazing CEO mom who i have always had a wonderful relationship with


Wow. "I'm rich and important, so why should I bother to do the tough parts of parenting? I'll just hire out the tough stuff."

Your poor kid. What is the plan? To have the nanny dress them up in a cute outfit for the annual Christmas photo, and spend 10 minutes with them before dinner until they are old enough for boarding school?

I had serious PPD, and if DH's job has prevented him from stepping up, I would have looked into a night nanny. So no judgment on that. But I am judinging PP's snotty entitled, why sacrific for my kid? attitude.


Like I already said I was also raised like that, have a happy life, great job, wonderful husband, loving marriage, happy well-adjusted kid. There's more to sacrificing than sacrificing sleep, no parent avoids it, but sleep deprivation is torture and I call BS on the baby needing mom or dad to be tortured.