NICU Awareness Month

September is NICU Awareness Month.

This month is an opportunity for me to reflect on where my girls started and how far they have come. 

After spending 120+ days in the NICU, your world is no longer the same.

I have seen my girls fight to live, as well as many other babies. The NICU is a whole world most people have no idea even exists. You may have heard about a NICU, but unless you have been inside a level 3 or 4 NICU, you honestly have no idea.

So here is some insight into what's it's like:

1. It can be a loud place.  It's not loud from babies crying, it's loud from the constant beeping of heart monitors and the running of ventilators and oxygen machines. 

2.  NICU nurses are rockstars. They are awesome nurses with amazing and unique set of skills. They can draw blood from the tiniest veins, anticipate health scares, change diapers and handle babies that weigh just a pound,  soothe distressed parents, insert catheters and feeding tubes into tiny babies, and they assist with scans, intubations, and oxygen levels. They do lots more but you get the idea... They are the heart of the NICU. 

3. Not just small preemies are in the NICU. Babies born with all types of health problems spend time in the NICU.  Health problems I had no idea even existed. 

4. Generally the NICU is not a happy place. Doctors and nurses are very seriously working, parents are grieving their child's existence in the NICU, and babies are living an unnatural life. It's not uncommon to see a mom cry. Most parents just walk around nervous and scared. It's almost like a place parents go to turn into zombies.

5. You have to scrub in when you enter a NICU. Some places require you to wear a gown too. 

6. Babies live in isolates. People always call them incubators, but Incubators are for bird eggs friends. :) The isolate is designed to mimic a mother's belly. It is temperature controlled and as the baby gets bigger, the temperature changes, until finally the baby can warm themselves. Preemie moms spend their time putting their hands through the wholes in the isolate to touch their babies. The first time I touched my girls was through the wholes of an isolate. Nurses also do a lot of their work through those holes... Once again NICU nurses are rockstars. Some bigger babies are in cribs too.

7. Life in the NICU is a roller-coaster. Not the fun kind that makes you go whoo-hoo either.  Some days are uneventful in the NICU and some days are full of test after test. Things can change in moments and sometimes things stay the same for days. It's unpredictable with lots of ups and downs. 

8. You can surprisingly build friendships in the NICU. I am now dear friends with a fellow NICU mom. We have been through a lot together. We are a constant support to each other and it's a support only a fellow NICU mom could give.  I am also friends with nurses the girls had. We check in with each other on Facebook. They love to see pictures of the girls and I know they are proud of how far they have come. 

I hope the above 8 things give you a little insight into what it's like in the NICU. Remember it's NICU awareness month! If you know a mom who spent some time in the NICU, it's a good time to giver her a pat on the back. Chances are

She has been through a lot.