Blog
PTSD and NICU Parents
When my son, Theo, was born at 27 weeks in 2014, I went from blissfully pregnant to survival mode in a matter of hours. For six-and-a-half months I sat by Theo’s incubator, and later crib, bonding with him as best I could while he was hooked up to monitors,...
Mental Health in the NICU: Barriers to Treatment & the Effect on the Whole Family
Any NICU parent will tell you that having a baby in the NICU is a stressful situation. And the research is behind us on that claim. Research has shown that NICU parents experience higher levels of stress than typical parents of healthy, term babies. When it comes...
Give a Meaningful Gift This Mother’s Day
"You are the mother everyone wishes they had." Mother's Day can be an especially emotional time for NICU parents, parents of preemies, and those who have suffered a loss. Some will be celebrating at home with their newly-discharged baby. Some are years out from...
Emerging from Prognosis
I understand that doctors try to give families an honest warning in a prognosis, yet it only gives us one potential outcome. Parents share the discrepancies between prognosis and reality all the time. We learn later that prognosis will not give us the big picture...
Thrown in Deep, Far from the Edge: Emerging as Parents of Micro Preemies
When I was pregnant, I remember reading about classes for new parents-to-be. There were options like Caring for Your Newborn, or Caring for your Newborn Twins, or Breastfeeding 101. I definitely don’t remember any offerings called Caring for your Micro Preemies....
#BornInaHurry: Help Bring Kacey Musgraves to Austin
Help Hand to Hold bring recent Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Kasey Musgraves to Austin! Why Kacey Musgraves? In her hit song "Slow Burn," Musgraves alludes to her own premature delivery: Born in a hurry Always late Haven’t been early since ’88...
Prematurity and the Myth of “It’s Good for Their Immune System”
One thing parents of preemies and NICU babies hear often from well-meaning friends, family and even strangers is, "Don't be so overprotective about germs! It's good for their immune system!" Unfortunately this manner of thinking is dangerous and can put your baby...
Measles Outbreaks: Should Parents Be Concerned?
According to the CDC, from January 1 to February 28, 2019, 206 individual measles cases have been confirmed in 11 states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas and Washington.1 While many of...
Finding Peace When Life Feels Out of Control
by Karri Friedenberger When something traumatic happens to a person or a family you often hear about them adjusting to their "new normal." One finds their new rhythm in life, adjusting their sails and moving forward. In February 2001 our twin girls, Hanna and...
Connections While Quarantined, Part II: Isolation at Home
As someone who has always been very connected to people – and who regularly connects others to people and resources – I found being a new parent of micro preemies very isolating: hospitalized bed rest, having twins, stopping full time work, spending the first three...
Addressing Unconscious Bias in the NICU
Prematurity does not discriminate. Women of every race, religion and socioeconomic background experience premature birth of their babies every year. But black women in the United States experience disproportionate and unacceptable poor maternal health outcomes. A...