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My NICU Journey…67 Days in the NICU
My NICU journey began the same way that it does for most NICU dads. My wife was in the hospital, recovering from a C-section; my new baby was in the NICU, after being born at 27 weeks; our oldest daughter was at my parents house with our dog, trying to enjoy her first week of summer break. Now began what I like to call “The NICU Dad Shuffle”. Where do I go? Who do I spend time with first? Who needs me the most? How long can I go without sleep? Or a shower? These were all questions that would become my daily routine. My wife was in the hospital…
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10 things I wish I would have known as a new NICU Dad…
I knew people who had children in NICUs, but I never really understood what that really meant. I knew that babies that needed surgery or babies who were not doing too well, were in NICUs. What I never really thought about was the NICU experience, especially for a NICU dad. Now having gone through our own 67 day NICU stay, there are several things I wish I had known about being a NICU dad. I can only speak from my experience, but I’m sure I’m not alone. There are some things that I wish I had known or at least been able to prepare for as a NICU dad. I…
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My Story. How it all began.
It was right around Christmas when we found out that my wife was pregnant. Our first daughter had been born at 30 weeks, so we knew we were a high risk pregnancy. We immediately started seeing specialists. We were seeing doctors every couple of weeks and getting ultrasounds on a regular basis. Everything was looking fine. We even started injections, just to be sure that we would go full term. I would have to give my wife these painful shots, which was an event within itself. We made sure my wife was taking her prenatals, eating healthy, and really taking care of herself. We did all of it! Once we…
