Thursday 8 December 2011

The Day You Were Born

The personal blog prompt over at Britmums this week is all around birth, either telling the story of how we found out we were pregnant, sharing the news with our partner or our birth story. This blog is built on my birth story, and I've shared all this on my blog before.


What I think about often is how I will tell Joseph the story of his birth and his start in life on the NICU. This is one idea of how I might do it.




joseph 142


Dear Joseph,

You were born on a hot Friday on the 8th May. Most babies are in their mummy's tummy for 40 weeks or so, to grow, to learn how to suck and feed, to get ready for life in the outside world. Sometimes, for lots of reasons babies are born early.

I had become poorly, I had an illness called pre eclampsia. We had some tests and the doctor found out that you weren't growing anymore, so you had to be born.

Your daddy was there, and lots of doctors and nurses. They had to cut my tummy open, and pull you out. You were born upside down!

Because you were very small, and hadn't finished growing, you had to go with the doctors and nurses straight away into a special part of the hospital called the Special Care Baby Unit. You had to have tubes and wires to make sure that they could look after you properly. You had to be fed into your tummy with tubes, because you hadn't learnt to suck and swallow yet. You had to live in a plastic box called an incubator, to protect you from infection, to keep you warm, and to provide you with special air with extra oxygen.

Every day you got a little big bigger, and a little bit stronger. We were so proud of you. After a while, you moved into a different part of the unit, and we were allowed to cuddle you whenever we wanted to. My favourite sort of cuddles were "kangaroo care" and you loved these. I would pop you onto my chest and you would go to sleep. Every day we were excited to see you, I would sing to you, and read you stories.

After 10 weeks, you were strong enough, and big enough to come home with us, it was a very special day!

You made lots of special friends, and you are still friends with Max, Izzy, Kate and Emma who were all born too early as well.

Your birth was a little different to lots of other babies, but it was a very special time for your daddy and I, and we are so very proud of you.

Lots of love

Mummy
Birthday boy 104


2 comments:

  1. Lynne Moores-France28 January 2012 at 22:09

    Aww this is such a precious story. I'll be you cried while writing this - I know I would have. Not because I would have been sad - but because it was something very much amazing to come through with such a remarkable outcome.

    Your little boy is gorgeous :o)

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