by Hand to Hold Staff | Dec 12, 2016 | Mental Health, NICU Life
I will never be able to adequately express my thanks for the outpouring of support that flooded over my family in the weeks before and after my son’s birth. I had a five year old at home, and was in the hospital for two weeks before my urgent c-section, and heading...
by Kelli Kelley | Dec 5, 2016 | Mental Health, News
On a cold day in December in the early eighties, my dad saw a man walking down the highway carrying an old sewing machine. My dad stopped and offered the man a ride. As the miles passed, the man shared that he had taken his late wife’s sewing machine into town for...
by Hand to Hold Staff | Nov 14, 2016 | Mental Health, NICU Life
Holidays are fun, energetic, loving, and a time for everyone to be together. The baby comes and you realize it wasn’t in your plan for them to come that early. Your mind then goes in a million different directions on what happens next. The “holiday...
by Kelli Kelley | Oct 6, 2016 | Life after the NICU, Mental Health, News
Many people have strong reactions to and opinions about being told, “everything happens for a reason.” I recently read an article that equated these words to “nothing less than emotional, spiritual and psychological violence.” I know while my son was clinging to life...
by Hand to Hold Staff | Oct 3, 2016 | Medical Info & Resources, Mental Health, Professional Insight
Nightmares. Jitteriness. Feeling jumpy. Heart palpitations. Avoiding places that remind you of “that awful time.” What does that sound like? Without any context, to most, that list sounds like symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is something many...
by Hand to Hold Staff | Sep 19, 2016 | Mental Health, NICU Life
It’s so easy to feel alone in the NICU. Your dream of a perfect healthy little baby may have been quickly taken away in a rushed birth. Sitting by your baby’s bedside, you can seem like no one understands how you feel. You might feel like no one understands the crazy...
