Save the Smallest Among Us
Nearly 1 in every 11 babies in Colorado is born premature. A baby is considered to be premature if they are born before a mother has reached 37 weeks in her pregnancy. Premature babies may struggle with growth and meeting developmental milestones, and are at greater risk of death and disability. Reports have also shown there are much higher medical costs associated with caring for a baby born too early compared to a baby born on time, which puts a heavy burden on new parents. In 2016, our nation’s preterm birth rate increased for the first time in eight years. Unfortunately, there are certain traits that by nature increase a woman’s risk for preterm birth, such as her race/ethnicity, her age, if she is carrying twins or multiples, or if she has had a previous preterm birth. Certain medical conditions can also increase a woman’s risk for preterm birth.
Weld County WIC Registered Dietitian, Alana, is here to share her story:
As a dietitian and lactation counselor, I thought I would be a pro at knowing what to do if my baby was born early. I have a kidney transplant, so my high risk specialty doctors had warned me that it was very likely that my little girl would be premature, no matter how many healthy choices I made during my pregnancy. I felt prepared for it to happen.
When my little Tenley was born at 32 weeks by emergency c-section, the reality was that I was not prepared at all. My husband and I were thrown into the world of the neonatal intensive care unit, and all of my professional training went out the window as I gazed at our tiny daughter in her incubator. It was terrifying. I felt like I wasn’t even her mommy – the doctors and nurses performed all of her care and made all of the decisions related to her care. Breastmilk is very important for premature babies, so I pumped milk around the clock and knew that at least she was getting my milk through her tube. The NICU was a very long journey, and while I am beyond thankful for her stellar medical team, I am still bitter that I feel the first 2 months of her life was taken from my husband and myself. We couldn’t hold her or feed her at will, and we were separated from her for 52 long nights. Even with my lactation credentials and many years of counseling others in similar situations, our breastfeeding journey did not go how I wanted it to, so I grieved that loss. Now that Tenley is 2 years old and doing great, I look back and know that I was suffering from postpartum depression for the first 6 months. Things did get better with time, and life with her was wonderful by the time she was about 9 months old and had outgrown her preemie issues such as severe reflux.
If you are experiencing this journey, be patient with your baby and with yourself. Allow yourself to grieve the healthy postpartum experience you had envisioned. It is likely that with time your little one will grow into a healthy and happy toddler, but that doesn’t mean that you haven’t experienced a trauma. You are a strong and wonderful parent even when you can’t touch your baby, simply because you love them so much!
If you have a family member or friend with a baby in the NICU, try to support them by being there for them. Go spend time with them as they sit for many hours alone in their baby’s hospital room. Don’t ask how you can help because they are likely so tired and emotional that they don’t have the energy to think of an answer. Just think of something that seems useful to you like cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, or just spending time with them, make sure that the time you have picked works for them, and go do it!
If you are a professional working with parents of premature babies, please be sensitive with them. They often feel like a failure already for not being able to carry their infant to term or not being able to breastfeed well. You may need to offer support more than they are willing to ask for. Screen moms for postpartum depression and post-traumatic stress syndrome. If there is any possibility, offer them time to spend with their babies in the NICU overnight. Offer them lots of breastfeeding support if they are interested – not just a quick nipple shield giveaway. They will likely need to pump, but also be provided with ample opportunities to practice latching their baby and encouragement. Speaking as a mom of a preemie and as a professional in the field of lactation, please be extra sensitive regarding comments about size of a preemie infant. If they are growing well, try to refrain from making mom overly concerned about how fast her baby gains weight. Many of these moms hear comments about their tiny baby so often that they eventually begin to overfeed their baby into toddlerhood, and then we are faced with a new set of health concerns related to obesity.
Prematurity is very common, and babies born too soon have a better chance of survival than ever, but it can be a long and stressful experience for these little ones and their parents. Please join us as we celebrate prematurity awareness this November and make a vow to become more AWARE of these miracle babies and their families!
Making healthy choices and gaining a healthy amount of weight in your pregnancy is important to help your baby grow and develop fully inside the womb. This includes seeing your doctor for routine visits during your pregnancy, eating healthy foods, staying active, and quitting smoking, alcohol and other recreational drugs. Talk to your WIC Educator about what you can do to reduce your risk for preterm birth.
November 17th is World Prematurity Day. The March of Dimes is asking you to join the global movement to save the smallest among us and raise awareness for prematurity. Wear purple and post your photos to social media with #givethemtomorrow and #worldprematurityday. For other ideas on how to raise awareness for prematurity, visit www.MarchofDimes.com/mission/world-prematurity-day.aspx.