Giving back the POWER to Parents
in preterm birth, the NICU, and beyond.
Resources for Parents & Birth Workers
Feel better prepared, more confident and capable to navigate your journey.
Fifteen percent of all babies born are admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The most common reasons include prematurity, low birth weight, infection, and respiratory difficulty. Half of all babies admitted to the NICU are full-term. Given the emergent nature of a medical crisis, a NICU stay is not an experience that most parents prepare for or consider when birth planning.
We know that educating parents about what to look for in NICU facilities and services and how to navigate them using the latest research and a little rebel talent to know when to push and what to ask for is fundamental because, similar to hospital policy and birth, NICU policy determines the culture that exists behind closed doors and the parenting practices supported and encouraged there.
The NICU at your chosen birthing place or backup hospital will directly determine the resources, life-saving and -sustaining technologies, and parenting practices that are available to you and your family—all of which impact your baby’s development and long-term health outcomes.
A NICU admission is a family crisis that impacts siblings, partner relationships, finances, job security, and more. NICU Parents experience a wide range of emotions that can feel overwhelming.
One of the most painful aspects of the NICU is the physical space between you and your baby.
Parenting in the NICU means partnering with your baby’s medical team to understand and actively participate in health care and medical decision making.
Parenting in the NICU includes a broad range of choice around nutrition, comfort, and integrating your baby’s developmental needs with your desire to be present and engaged in your baby’s daily care.
Parenting in the NICU may look like: providing and sourcing human milk and fortifiers; touching, holding, and comforting your baby with your voice and your body; transitions to breastfeeding/chestfeeding; and even the normal parenting joys of decorating and personalizing your baby’s space, dressing, bathing, and changing diapers.
Parenting in the NICU is best supported when you have access to your baby any time day or night and for as long as you desire. This should be the standard in all NICUs.
Parenting your baby in the NICU helps you get to know your baby and learn their personality, their cues, and important trends in their health status.
Parenting your medically fragile baby will build your confidence as your child’s advocate while nurturing your shared attachment, which is a solid foundation for Life after NICU.
NICU parents are 2-3 times more likely to experience perinatal mood disorders (PMADs) like postpartum anxiety, depression, and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Parents whose babies are hospitalized in the NICU experience stress, grief, and trauma; their risk for Perinatal Mood Disorders (PMADs) remains elevated after discharge and into the first year as they transition to caring for their medically fragile baby at home.
We know that NICU families need less trauma and more connection.
Actively parenting your baby in the NICU protects your mental health and supports your baby’s social, emotional, and cognitive development. It benefits your baby’s brain growth and weight gain, lowers their stress, and increases their comfort.
We know that NICU policy and bedside practice should encourage, support, and celebrate parents as integral to their baby’s optimal health and well-being. Family-centered care empowers parents to cultivate the relationships that babies, parents, and families need to thrive.
If you are pregnant and expecting a preterm baby or a NICU stay, if you are in the NICU with your baby right now, or if you are a doula or support person—Empowered NICU Parenting is here for you. You don’t have to navigate alone. We’re here to share what’s possible so you can feel better prepared and better equipped, find your voice as your baby’s advocate, and become the parent you want to be no matter what path your family’s NICU journey takes.
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