It was suprising to be a mother for this Mother's Day, since I was not expecting it, but I was excited I might be able to hold Joshua that day. Brian was supposed to speak that day in church and he never got around to writing the talk. I had been bugging him and he said he had a general idea in his head. He was able to get out of it though, so he was glad he saved the effort.
We called the hospital or we went over that morning, I can't remember now, but we got the go ahead for me to hold Joshua that afternoon. Brian and I asked our family to let us do this time alone since we had missed having close family time with our new little family since Joshua was born.
When we went to see Joshua he was under bili lights for gaundice. 
It is normal for preemies to have it, and easy to take care of since they are already in the hospital they can just shine the lights on them and take care of it. He had to wear a hat and "bili goggles" over his eyes to protect them from the light. Brian really liked how the pictures came out he thought it made Joshua look like an angel.
It is normal for preemies to have it, and easy to take care of since they are already in the hospital they can just shine the lights on them and take care of it. He had to wear a hat and "bili goggles" over his eyes to protect them from the light. Brian really liked how the pictures came out he thought it made Joshua look like an angel. When I went in to hold him they had me sit in one of the many rocking chairs they have hanging around in the NICU. The nurse also got me some pillows to make me more comfortable. They had me hold him skin to skin, they said it is best for the babies, helps them get to know their parents, and it helps them grow. And it helps bring the mother's milk in, since it is much more natural than the pump. They gave me a special shirt thing to wear, and put Joshua on my chest, and then put a warmed blanket over him to keep him warm. 
The nurse gave him his feeding then too, so he would start to associate eating with being around mom. I think he was getting 2 ml every 3 hours at that point. I had to hold him really carefully to make sure his chin didn't fall down. Preemie's windpipes aren't hardened all the way, and if they bend their head forward they can't breath anymore. The nurse had to readjust him a couple of times, but then we got it right.
It was nice to just to be able to hold him. He settled down and seemed quite content and I was able to hold him for about 45 minutes. 
When we put him back in the isollette he got very upset. He screamed and screamed, and the nurse came and turned him to a new position and he still screamed. The nurse then put him on his stomach and said we would try this position, but other that I don't know what to do. Joshua still screamed, and started pushing himself up the isolette. Imagine a baby doing army crawling, but pushing more with the legs instead of pulling with his arms, and not having any head control, so just pushing the head up too.
When we put him back in the isollette he got very upset. He screamed and screamed, and the nurse came and turned him to a new position and he still screamed. The nurse then put him on his stomach and said we would try this position, but other that I don't know what to do. Joshua still screamed, and started pushing himself up the isolette. Imagine a baby doing army crawling, but pushing more with the legs instead of pulling with his arms, and not having any head control, so just pushing the head up too. I felt so bad because I couldn't pick him up and comfort him. He cried for about 30 minutes until he finally fell asleep. It was really sad to have to put him back, but they said I could hold him again tomorrow morning, and Brian would be able to hold him the next afternoon. So it gave us something to look forward to. Being able to hold Joshua for the first time was a wonderful gift on my first Mother's Day.
No comments:
Post a Comment