First Day of Neonatology

The NICU is a whole different world

[chocolatereigns]

The 12 days my daughter spent in the NICU were 12 weird days. That neonatologist was great, though. When my daughter had to be re-admitted to the NICU 20 hours after going home on day 8, he was very careful to look me in the eyes and say "You did not cause this. Babies just throw curve balls." I needed that that day and he knew it.

[danehrovitnir]

I think we underappreciate how impressive it is that so many pre-term babies survive and thrive with proper medical care these days!

[marionlark]

The med student's excitement about the idea of holding a bunch of babies is adorable, even if the NICU nurse would snap his neck if he tried 😂

[JarrodFrates]

Our firstborn was 7 weeks early. Some violent event had just happened somewhere else and I overheard two of the NICU nurses were talking about a directive from the hospital administration that if a shooter was announced in the building, they were to close all interior doors for isolation rooms, pull all the curtains for the remaining beds, and close and lock the bay doors and then head to the safe room. Both of them scoffed at it and said anyone dumb enough to be a shooter would have to go through them before they got to the babies. I had been feeling very vulnerable as a first-time father and a NICU parent, but I felt much safer about my son after that.

[sandylgb]

My daughter was a 26 weeker and at her lowest point weighed 1 lbs. 5 oz. I can attest to how you become so focused on tiny babies, you lose all perspective. Once, when a newborn was admitted to the NICU, my husband and I said wow look at that big bruiser? How much does he weigh? We found out the baby weighed 5 pounds! Boy was our perspective skewed! I’m happy to say my daughter is now 25 years old, is taller and (probably) smarter than me and is a fourth grade teacher!

[tracyaf]

Extremely protective Nicu nurse here: 🙏 thank you! I’ve been waiting for our specialty to be covered and you did a great job! ❤ I will drop kick someone if needed to keep my baby healthy 👍🏻

[PolinaLee]

My mom is a neonatologist. Everything here is spot on. Nothing "normal" ever works, strong instincts and creativity are masthave and nurses are ninja-warriors. Also at home my mom used to calculate doses of medicine for hours, murmuring to herself and scribbling like a mad scientists. Infants are so weird and so small, doses have to be precise to a 0.0001 gramm.
This job is very demanding.

[sbcic]

As a med student, I was in NICU and I cleared my throat/coughed slightly (was wearing a mask and this was pre-covid!) and I was unceremoniously booted out of there. Those nurses mean business

[akku]

Can confirm, NICU nurses are INTENSE. They will cut a bitch if you don’t adhere to their protocols. When I was rotating in peds surg and had to write a follow up note on a CDH baby when my seniors weren’t there, the NICU nurses literally made me turn out my pockets and watched me scrub and gown. They’re intense and I love them.

[QueenGummibBear]

Ha 😂the NICU nurse thing is so accurate, our daughter was in NICU and no one told us that my mum couldn’t hold her 🤦🏼‍♀️ we got such a lecture.

[OaxBratt]

Gives me a whole new perspective on a story my mom likes to tell. When I was born I was put in the NICU briefly for observation. I was larger than normal, but had some health issues. Between post partum and my being in the NICU my mom was understandably upset, and when she came to look at me she started to cry. A neonatologist came to comfort her, and asked what was wrong. All my mom could muster was “he’s so small!”. The neonatologist asked which baby was hers, and when she pointed at the giant 9 pound me, the neonatologist apparently turned to her and said “Ma’am you’re baby is NOT small” and he could not help but laugh. That helped my mom feel better apparently, and we still laugh to that story.

[michellecoats]

A more accurate description of a NICU nurse has not been done. Fiercely protective is an understatement.

[rachelr.]

“You give caffeine to babies?”
This shocked question and the neonatologist’s nonchalant response, are my favorite parts of this video.

[kiaraplunkettwilcox]

My mom is a NICU nurse and she LOVED this video! She showed it to other nurses in her unit last night and said they were belly laughing 😂

[juliecampbell]

My Dad is a retired NICU nurse, and is also a retired Army nurse. He was kind and patient with the (often scared) parents and babies, and professional with his co-workers. But if he saw anyone doing something they shouldn't because it endangered a baby, he would let them know right quick regardless of who it was. You have to be that way with a baby that you can hold in your cupped hands.

[MattieAMiller]

My sister had just finished her neonatal rotation for med school when I had my son. He was full term, but weighed just under 6lbs at birth and very long, so he often looked even lighter to people. I constantly was getting comments about how tiny he was, even for a newborn. When my sister finally got to see him, the first words from her mouth were "oh my God, he's HUGE!"

[blackwolf]

I was in a medical shadow program in my senior year of high school, and I was the only student in the program allowed to have a rotation in the NICU because I was on a career path to become a midwife. I visited the NICU for 3 hours, twice a week, for 3 months.
The majority of the time, I would follow around whoever was doing the most active tasks that evening. I knew which babies I was allowed to interact with unsupervised, but it was only ever to give them pacifiers, adjust hats, retuck unswaddled arms, etc.
On uneventful days, the NICU nurses tried to find other things for me to do. I was sent to watch a c-section once, and to a circumcision another time.
One of my clearest memories though was just after my own birthday. We had a baby who had been in the whole time I'd been shadowing, even though she was much larger than the others... she wasnt premature, she was detoxing. Babies who are being weaned off of opiods tend to be inconsolable and feel the need to be held and rocked way more than other babies, but for some reason, she was even MORE fussy that evening. The NICU nurses and I spent that our time trading back and forth, lightly dancing or sitting in a rocking chair with her, listening to old christmas music on pandora...
I remember she liked the genuine old stuff, and hated when Michael buble covers came on.
I still think about the babies I helped look after, even though that was 5 years I still remember exactly how to wash my hands properly before being allowed in, and the smell of the soap and the weird antibacterial lotion. For real. It sticks with you.

Edit: It wasn't all peaceful memories, of course. My shifts were Wednesdays and Sundays, and I recall meeting an extreme micro premie one shift who was gone by the next. That hospital's cutoff date for NICU care at the delivery of a premature infant is 21 weeks, and that baby was born at 21+3 I believe, barely overly the line.
Related to that, here's an example of nurses being extremely strict over something seemingly innocuous...neonates that young barely have skin. Their eyes are still fused shut, but their eyelids are so thin that the developing eyes can be damaged if you expose them to too much bright light--fuss with the blanket over a micro premie's isolette, and a nurse WILL end you.

[kshaw]

I was born at 26 weeks and spent the first several months of my life in NICU. Considering how poorly I was when I was born I'm in good health. Big thanks to all the NICU staff!

[lmboh]

As the aunt of two tiny preemies, I can relate. But, those two tiny preemies grew up to be US Marines and the gentlest of men when handling infants and children.

[JaRule]

I give blood regularly and found out about 10 years ago that I am able to donate to immune compromise folks and to premature babies. They call me a baby donor and I feel very blessed that I can help ❤️🙏🏻