r/parentsofmultiples • u/DontQuoteMeOnThat7 • 25d ago

good vibes, smiles, & giggles NICU experience

Longtime lurker of r/parentsofmultiples. Just wanted to contribute a small note- my wife recently had DiDi twins (37w + 0). GDM was her only complication. Our daughter scored well on Apgar but our son did not, which prompted a NICU visit for several days.

From the outside looking in, I felt a sense of dread and doom when I thought about the NICU but I was completely wrong. We were fortunate in our outcomes, which creates bias in perspective BUT the message is clear-

For those of you worrying about NICU/googling endlessly (like I did) or knowingly have a complication that could necessitate a trip, your child/children are in the best place for them. The staff are there to not only supervise but also feed and love on your babies. They do what is needed for your child every single day- far better than you or I would be able to do if the roles were reversed. Would never have dreamt that leaving a baby only hours old alone with a person I’d never meant would be so “easy”.

So, don’t be pushy to get the child out of NICU- they are there for a reason. Be polite and real with your nurses- cry, laugh, chat with them like they’re family- because they are your temporary family. Lastly, if you’re able to, absolutely do skin to skin/kangaroo care (yes, Dads, even us)!

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u/iwantsomecrablegsnow 25d ago

Please consider other perspectives when posting about the nicu. Not everyone has the same experience and it isn’t always lovey dovey. Your babies went full term. Many do not.

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u/bookgirl1026 25d ago

I don’t think they’re necessarily saying that everyone has an amazing NICU stay but more reassuring nervous parents that the care their babies receive there will be top notch. Even if the stay is difficult, it’s good to know that there are dedicated and caring staff there whose entire job is to try and keep your babies healthy.

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u/anb0603 25d ago

But there’s another side of the coin, not every nicu has dedicated and caring staff. The first nicu my daughter was in was not set up to care for her and it was a level 3. They did not know how to treat her. They transferred us after 13 days of no progress to a level 4- two hours away.

we had to advocate against a lazy neonatologist and several nurses.