Life in the NICU
It is a whole new world in the NICU. In order to enter you have to show ID, they only allow parents and grandparents in. Then you have to enter a wash room where you do a 3 minute scrub up to your elbows before entering the actual NICU. The NICU is broken up into “pods” and each pod has 6 babies in it. Miles is in pod B1. His incubator is in the middle of two other babies who both look so much smaller than he does. He is the brute of the pack! One isnt any bigger than the palm of your hand. It gives me a reality check once in a while to look around and see what Miles has going for him. Miles’ station has lots of monitors and pumps and lines running all around him. We are able to pull up a chair next to his incubator and reach our hands in the sides to touch him.
He is not responding very well to touch right now which is hard for me. His repiratory rate goes up and he squirms a bit. I like to see him lying quietly and comfortably, so I havnt been pushing it too much to touch him. I have learned a lot about how to touch and care for a preemie as well. You are not supposed to rub or stroke them when you hold their hand which is everyone’s tendency to to. It is too much stimulation for them and upsets them. Instead, they like to have firm touch and really like to have their feet held in and their head cupped down like they were in the womb. They also dont like to be rocked or cradled, it is also too much stimulation. When you hold them, they like to have their hands and feet tucked in tightly and held firmly. The nurses keep saying that he will tell you what he likes and doesnt like and sometimes it is best to just back off and keep him comfortable. It is a hard concept to grasp as I love to rock and hold and kiss my older son Nolan. They say the closer Miles gets to his due date, the more he will like to be rocked and cradled as well. Everything comes slowly to a preemie.