Thursday, May 24/18
Having a baby taken to the NICU (Neonatal intensive care unit) is pretty daunting for any parent, so I thought I'd share my experience, the positives and negatives and overall how it made me feel. I will say my baby's stay in the NICU was very short compared to many others at only 5 days, but I thought it was still worth writing about.
WHY MY BABY WAS THERE
My baby was born at 11:47pm and she was a healthy 9lb 2oz bundle of joy delivered via emergency c-section. I'm a type 1 diabetic, and at the end of my pregnancy my insulin need had decreased by almost 80%. When my daughter was born, her blood sugar was low, so they tested it each hour to see if she'd adjust to a normal level. For every hour that her blood sugar stayed low, they needed a vial of blood from her heel which was a horrendous experience for me, I was stuck in bed after the surgery and all I could do was watch the nurses squeeze her tiny foot to fill the vial. It genuinely makes me want to cry just thinking about it. Anyway, after a few hours of this going on, the decision was made that she needed to go to the NICU and be put on a glucose IV. By 8:30am or so, she had been taken away, just a few hours after we had been moved to the mother and baby unit, and since I'd had the surgery I couldn't yet go and see her.
WHAT HAPPENED IN THE NICU
Eventually I was strong enough to get into a wheelchair and my husband could take me over to see the baby. The first 3 days post-surgery were horrifically painful, so these days are a bit of a blur for me. I remember going to see her, being able to hold her (but with a pillow underneath her to ease the weight on my incision, while sitting in a wheelchair) although she was attached to the glucose IV so I couldn't move too much with her. Because her sugars were low she had to supplement with formula, also because I needed to rest and couldn't make the journey to breastfeed her every 2 hours, particularly with the endocrinology team wanting to monitor my blood sugar levels from the mother and baby unit. So we were able to go to about 4-6 feeds of hers each day, with breaks to come back to the mother and baby unit where I'd eat and have my sugar levels tested. By day two her sugar levels had started to stabilize and slowly increase, so they decreased the glucose by 10% for every time her blood sugar was above 3 over a 3 hour period. By day 4 she was officially off of the glucose IV, but they needed to monitor her overnight to see that it didn't drop again. Luckily she had a perfect result and on day 5 we were allowed to bring her home!
THE NEGATIVES
- After a c-section getting around to see and hold your baby when they're way down the hall from you was a challenge to say the very least.
- The nurses in the NICU run on autopilot and are very used to caring for newborns, so they don't necessarily inform you of what's been going on, how they've been when you were gone, or really appreciate how you must feel as a new mother/worried mother with a baby in the NICU.
- Because of my daughters condition she had to be fed formula almost exclusively, and I wasn't encouraged to breastfeed. By about day 3 I was asked if I wanted to, and that if I did it had to be after she'd had a certain amount of formula because they needed to ensure she was eating enough. This is completely understandable of course, but I wish that my desire to breastfeed her was recognized a bit more- because I did struggle when I got home to establish breastfeeding, and my ambition to exclusively breastfeed wasn't going to happen.
- Bonding with a newborn after an emergency c-section I can imagine would be difficult, but to then have her moved away hours after birth when I wasn't very mobile was so hard. I didn't get to do any skin-to-skin which I had really wanted to do, and although I knew I loved her, I found I didn't feel a strong bond until she was about 3 weeks old, which is even hard to type because it makes me feel incredibly guilty and inadequate as a mother.
THE POSITIVES
- Delivering at a hospital that has a NICU was amazing because it meant even after a c-section I could see her as often as I desired (within reason), and I can't imagine how I'd cope if I had to be in a different hospital recovering.
- The staff were incredible. Although I did say the communication wasn't always super clear, they were wonderful with my daughter and did answer any questions or concerns we had. One nurse in particular was really helpful and taught my husband how to change a diaper!
- The NICU itself is designed in a way that makes you feel like you have a bit of personal, private space. It requires a key-code entry and you're given a password when your baby is admitted, so it's reassuring that when you're away from them that they are safe and closely monitored. The room my daughter was in was also private, and had a couch and sink and lots of space which made it feel as though we could stay all day and night, we never had to leave out of discomfort.
- They supply everything. I hadn't bought any formula because I wanted to exclusively breastfeed, but they had diapers, blankets, formula and nipples and more to keep baby happy. Once she was off of the IV they even had clothing for her to wear, and when we were discharged they let us take a supply of diapers, diaper cream and formula home with us which was really nice.
- The staff had shifts designed so that patients could build relationships with them. They worked 2 days on and then 2 nights on before having time off, and at the end of each shift the nurse of the day would introduce the next nurse who would be taking care of our daughter, even if we were heading back to the mother and baby unit for the night.
- The room I stayed in within the mother and baby unit roomed me with another mother who had a baby in the NICU. I didn't realize how important that was until the other mother spoke about it. She said it was nice to not have to hear me look after my baby when hers was down the hall, and when she said it I realized I couldn't agree more. I'd never thought I'd be happy about somebody else having a baby in the NICU, but when you have to share a room with them post-partum, not hearing a newborn being loved on and cared for made the heartache a little more bearable.
Overall, I cannot thank the staff of the NICU at LHSC in London enough for the care of my daughter. I'll be forever grateful for them.
Let me know what your NICU experience was, or if you have any questions regarding my story!
Having a baby taken to the NICU (Neonatal intensive care unit) is pretty daunting for any parent, so I thought I'd share my experience, the positives and negatives and overall how it made me feel. I will say my baby's stay in the NICU was very short compared to many others at only 5 days, but I thought it was still worth writing about.
WHY MY BABY WAS THERE
My baby was born at 11:47pm and she was a healthy 9lb 2oz bundle of joy delivered via emergency c-section. I'm a type 1 diabetic, and at the end of my pregnancy my insulin need had decreased by almost 80%. When my daughter was born, her blood sugar was low, so they tested it each hour to see if she'd adjust to a normal level. For every hour that her blood sugar stayed low, they needed a vial of blood from her heel which was a horrendous experience for me, I was stuck in bed after the surgery and all I could do was watch the nurses squeeze her tiny foot to fill the vial. It genuinely makes me want to cry just thinking about it. Anyway, after a few hours of this going on, the decision was made that she needed to go to the NICU and be put on a glucose IV. By 8:30am or so, she had been taken away, just a few hours after we had been moved to the mother and baby unit, and since I'd had the surgery I couldn't yet go and see her.
WHAT HAPPENED IN THE NICU
Eventually I was strong enough to get into a wheelchair and my husband could take me over to see the baby. The first 3 days post-surgery were horrifically painful, so these days are a bit of a blur for me. I remember going to see her, being able to hold her (but with a pillow underneath her to ease the weight on my incision, while sitting in a wheelchair) although she was attached to the glucose IV so I couldn't move too much with her. Because her sugars were low she had to supplement with formula, also because I needed to rest and couldn't make the journey to breastfeed her every 2 hours, particularly with the endocrinology team wanting to monitor my blood sugar levels from the mother and baby unit. So we were able to go to about 4-6 feeds of hers each day, with breaks to come back to the mother and baby unit where I'd eat and have my sugar levels tested. By day two her sugar levels had started to stabilize and slowly increase, so they decreased the glucose by 10% for every time her blood sugar was above 3 over a 3 hour period. By day 4 she was officially off of the glucose IV, but they needed to monitor her overnight to see that it didn't drop again. Luckily she had a perfect result and on day 5 we were allowed to bring her home!
THE NEGATIVES
- After a c-section getting around to see and hold your baby when they're way down the hall from you was a challenge to say the very least.
- The nurses in the NICU run on autopilot and are very used to caring for newborns, so they don't necessarily inform you of what's been going on, how they've been when you were gone, or really appreciate how you must feel as a new mother/worried mother with a baby in the NICU.
- Because of my daughters condition she had to be fed formula almost exclusively, and I wasn't encouraged to breastfeed. By about day 3 I was asked if I wanted to, and that if I did it had to be after she'd had a certain amount of formula because they needed to ensure she was eating enough. This is completely understandable of course, but I wish that my desire to breastfeed her was recognized a bit more- because I did struggle when I got home to establish breastfeeding, and my ambition to exclusively breastfeed wasn't going to happen.
- Bonding with a newborn after an emergency c-section I can imagine would be difficult, but to then have her moved away hours after birth when I wasn't very mobile was so hard. I didn't get to do any skin-to-skin which I had really wanted to do, and although I knew I loved her, I found I didn't feel a strong bond until she was about 3 weeks old, which is even hard to type because it makes me feel incredibly guilty and inadequate as a mother.
THE POSITIVES
- Delivering at a hospital that has a NICU was amazing because it meant even after a c-section I could see her as often as I desired (within reason), and I can't imagine how I'd cope if I had to be in a different hospital recovering.
- The staff were incredible. Although I did say the communication wasn't always super clear, they were wonderful with my daughter and did answer any questions or concerns we had. One nurse in particular was really helpful and taught my husband how to change a diaper!
- The NICU itself is designed in a way that makes you feel like you have a bit of personal, private space. It requires a key-code entry and you're given a password when your baby is admitted, so it's reassuring that when you're away from them that they are safe and closely monitored. The room my daughter was in was also private, and had a couch and sink and lots of space which made it feel as though we could stay all day and night, we never had to leave out of discomfort.
- They supply everything. I hadn't bought any formula because I wanted to exclusively breastfeed, but they had diapers, blankets, formula and nipples and more to keep baby happy. Once she was off of the IV they even had clothing for her to wear, and when we were discharged they let us take a supply of diapers, diaper cream and formula home with us which was really nice.
- The staff had shifts designed so that patients could build relationships with them. They worked 2 days on and then 2 nights on before having time off, and at the end of each shift the nurse of the day would introduce the next nurse who would be taking care of our daughter, even if we were heading back to the mother and baby unit for the night.
- The room I stayed in within the mother and baby unit roomed me with another mother who had a baby in the NICU. I didn't realize how important that was until the other mother spoke about it. She said it was nice to not have to hear me look after my baby when hers was down the hall, and when she said it I realized I couldn't agree more. I'd never thought I'd be happy about somebody else having a baby in the NICU, but when you have to share a room with them post-partum, not hearing a newborn being loved on and cared for made the heartache a little more bearable.
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| Baby Ivy at 3 days old in the NICU at LHSC in London, ON. |
Overall, I cannot thank the staff of the NICU at LHSC in London enough for the care of my daughter. I'll be forever grateful for them.
Let me know what your NICU experience was, or if you have any questions regarding my story!
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