Showing posts with label preemie discharge class. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preemie discharge class. Show all posts

9.07.2009

sept 4- one baby, unshaken, to go please....

the discharge class was largely a waste of time. for those of you who haven't been to one here's the overview:

intro to infant cpr- one step is actually to pat the baby on the foot and say "are you ok? hey, are you ok?". no, i'm not kidding.

preemie video- telling me what i already learned in 3 months of nicu life. ie. don't overstimulate them. be aware of their needs. aren't preemies neat. wow, you have a preemie.

PURPLE video- this is the new, trendy name for the still terrible condition better known as colic. (i wonder what colic really is. how much of this is caused by formula? diet? environment? or some sort of undiagnosed health issue?)
p- peak of crying
u- unexpected onset
r- resistant to soothing
p- pain like face
l- long crying bouts
e- evening
why don't they just call it colic? if your baby has it, believe me you'll know.
some tips to help parents not lose their mind-
just trying to comfort the baby can actually lessen crying by up to 50% (imagine how bad it COULD be!)
also, my sister used baby's bliss gripe water methodically when my nephew had colic. i would, and i'm positive she would, recommend it highly.
carry them more, walk and talk.
it's ok to be frustrated.
it's ok to walk away.

which brings me to the "don't shake your baby" video. really? do people need this? it seems like no amount of talking about it will prevent it from happening... am i right? maybe i'm not. but if i get one more pamphlet or reminder not to shake her, i might shake the person telling me.

they also said that half of all preemies will be readmitted in the first year of life. ick. let's hope not. i'm posting a poll on that. please take the time to fill it out.

[poll discontinued] 60% of you said that your preemie was not readmitted.

9.06.2009

septemeber 3- doctors and other strangers





here's the plan:
today: discharge meeting, carseat test
tomorrow: discharge class
saturday: hearing test
wednesday: oxygen gets delivered to the hospital
thursday: ROP exam
friday: day 100!!!

somewhere in between wed and Friday we're going home!!! :) and it could not come soon enough for this nicu mommy!

i've had enough of being told when i should and shouldn't give a bottle (a different doctor again??!!!) to being told what car seat i shouldn't buy due to cost (who is this lady anyway??!!!) i've had just about enough of micromanagement of my parenting (why is this nurse torturing me??!!!) i also had conversation number 8 regarding vaccination.(did i stutter??!!!) which, surprise, we're still not doing... big shocker.
it will be so great to be able to parent amongst ourselves, asking for advice when we want it- without being pressed to compromise our stand or change our minds.

the discharge meeting went ok. they actually said there's a decent chance that she could be off oxygen before we move! woot! we're not getting our hopes up- but we're holding a little teeny tiny bit of hope in the very back of our minds that she could be off soon.
we went over some of the logistics of traveling with oxygen... ugh. what a crappy trip that will be. but at least they're setting it all up for us ahead of time.

i'll send more of the play by play in the days to come.

love to you all.