Six weeks in NICU

In total we spent six weeks in NICU - two weeks were in Level II NICU, a further three and a half weeks were in PIN (Parent Infant Nursery), and a final four nights in the Parent Room - before we could take Nate home. With the care of the NICU team at Auckland Hospital, Nate continued to slowly grow, and his personality began to show itself as he spent a little more time each day awake.

Little wee Nate in his man cave

Over this six week period, we spent as much time as we could with our wee boy. I spent every day, and Robin came every evening and over the weekends. Initially we were feeding him by tube, and then increasingly by a combination of breast and tube, and eventually all breast feeds. We were enjoying doing all of his cares, and spending lots and lots of time cuddling and chatting.

Daddy doing all the work....

...while Nate chills out :-)

Like many premature babies, Nate was jaundiced at birth. At first I thought it was my Mediterranean skin coming to the fore (?!), but eventually we had to accept that his orange skin was not a good look :-). As a result Nate spent many a contented hour in his blue light disco with his sunnys on :-)

Snoozing in my blue light

Sun baking in my sunnys

Not too long after our shift into PIN (where there are 4-5 babies to each nurse), Nate graduated from his incubator to a cot. This was done at a time when it was felt he would be able to maintain his temperature and when it became evident that he wouldn't need as much monitor support. At this time, he was also allowed to put on his first outfit! Wrapped up warm, he adjusted quickly to his new bed but seemed to swim in it :-)

My first garbs

A big boys bed!

As Nate continued to grow, we had a few more visitors, and a few more 'firsts'. Nate's big sisters (Mia 15y, Ruby 13y) stopped by a few more times to chat with their new bro, and proud grandparents (Jen's parents) made many a visit.

We kept everyone else close to Nate through a stream of emails and photos updating on Nate's latest wins (a weight gain, increased platelets, a solid breast feed etc), as each of these wins and 'firsts' came and went.

Nate also had his first bath while in NICU. Initially wrapped in a nappy to help keep him calm, he slept through the whole thing in a blissful state. I was unwell at the time, so being careful to avoid spreading my bugs on.

In hindsight, our time in NICU seemed both lengthy and stressful. However in reality, most premature babies are kept until term, so the six weeks was not unusual.

But in addition to the excitement of having Nate in our lives, we felt that much of that time was characterised by a continual stream of pressure around a variety of different things.....why Nate had stopped growing in the womb, why Nate's platelets took so long to increase, establishing a milk supply after a c-section and then maintaining the three-hourly expressing, why Nate didn't seem to gain weight at the typical weekly rate, where we were going to live given that we had yet to find a rental home (our house was about to undergo a major renovation, and our rental had fallen through when my Dad was so ill), challenges of feeding as Nate learnt to suckle, both Robin and I getting sick at various times, transportation issues with Jen unable to drive while recovering from the c-section, why Nate had failed the infant hearing screening test, and so on and so on.

That six week period was culminated by the final four nights in the Parent Room, where parents are required to stay full-time with their baby in a room close to nursing support but without nursing support, and with no tubes or monitoring.

At one with my new dummy

Blissfully peaceful

While it was fantastic to have finally reached that stage, the Parent Room exists to ensure parents can not only manage the care of their premature baby, but primarily to ensure that the baby can maintain his weight, and in fact continue to grow. Four days and nights in one very small hospital room, feeding and expressing every three hours, and living on hospital food, is not for the faint-hearted. And inspite of our best efforts, Nate grew only a very small amount over this time. While we were at pains as to why, we were eager to get into our rental home and into a more settled environment, where we felt sure he would thrive and grow.

And so on Sunday the 21st of April, Nate's original due date, we were finally discharged from Auckland Hospital's NICU unit. We were still no wiser as to why Nate had been IUGR and premature, but we were discharged with only minor things to follow up on - a possible hearing loss in his right ear, a clicky hip (that was expected to right itself), and a undescended testes (also likely to self-correct). What a relief after six long weeks!

Heading home, but not too pleased with my car seat!

 

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The first few days

The first few days were an exhilarating blur! Nate had indeed caught us on the hop with his early arrival. I was sent back to the ward to recover from the c-section, while Nate was housed in NICU in his man cave (incubator).

Robin spent that first weekend going back and forth between us, and sitting with Nate and watching all of his monitors. Like all newborn premature babies, Nate's pulse and oxygen saturation were being monitored constantly, with alarms occasionally sounding that sent fear into the hearts of new parents! However he was on Level II NICU support, which meant he shared a nurse with only one other baby, so was well cared for and tended to.

While I saw Nate briefly after the birth, I didn't get to visit him until the next day when a wheelchair was found to take me down there with Robin. I remember thinking how very very small he was. We were allowed to put our hands through the window to touch him, but we were unable to hold him at that stage. He was delicate, of fine features, and of course gorgeous to us!

But while Nate looked to be covered in wires and tubes and closed away in his incubator, in reality he was doing remarkably well. His biggest issue seemed to be his small size, given that while he was born at 33w6d, he had stopped growing at 30weeks (known as IUGR). For the first couple of weeks he experienced low platelets, for which he went through almost daily heel pricks for bloods so the doctors could watch for positive increases that eventually came through. Nate was tube fed his breast milk through his nose, as his suck reflex was yet to develop at his premature age.

Nate in his man cave

On the third day, I visited Nate with Granny (my mum), and I was finally allowed to hold our wee man :-). I was terrified of picking him up with all his wires and with him being so tiny. But with the nurses support, he was placed on me. I was absolutely smitten. He snuggled into me and went back to sleep.

First cuddle with Mummy!

The NICU team couldn't account for why Nate had stopped growing at 30weeks. Tests were undertaken immediately after birth to see if there was a problem - my placenta was checked, both Nate and I were tested for various infections, and Nate underwent repeated blood tests and culture tests. But nothing ever showed up. In fact even weeks later, all they could tell us was that sometimes these things happen.

Robin was in daily to visit, while also managing to work. Robin also bought Nate's big sisters Mia and Ruby in for visits too. Nate had lots of tummy time with Daddy, and began his introduction to the world of music courtesy of classical baby melodies in his iPhone.

Daddy and Nate

Jen was in hospital for a week and half with Nate, the first week as a patient herself recovering from the c-section, and the rest of the time as Nate's Mummy staying in a parent room. We were spoilt with gifts and flowers, texts and emails to celebrate our wee man!

Proud parents!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Enter stage right....

On Thursday the 7th of March, following a harrowing and stressful three weeks with my father extremely ill in hospital, Robin and I went for a 33week scan of our wee son. We had only recently found out that we were expecting a boy, and we were both very excited at the prospect :-)

An early photo in our pregnancy

Both my kids!

At our scan we were told that a further follow up was needed, as from what we could gather, it appeared that the baby was not quite the size that they would have expected him to be based on his prior scans. We were referred back to our specialist that afternoon, who then referred me on to the maternity day clinic at Auckland Hospital for further tests the following day. She noted casually that I might be admitted for the weekend for observation.

Friday arrived and I spent all day hooked up to various machines in the day unit. Late afternoon they advised that yes they would indeed be keeping me in for the weekend and I was then moved to a ward. Some friends popped by to see me, and Robin came in after work to sit with me. I prepared mentally for a weekend of hospital food, some gossip magazines, and bed rest.....

Saturday morning arrived with the same machines. I was pretty non-plussed and sat and read the paper and started my cereal. I remember feeling sorry for the lady next to me who was 36weeks, highly emotional, and a diabetic, and who was arguing with the doctor about whether she should be allowed to go home for the day. I remember thinking 'goodness lady you really need to be here, it's me that should be able to go home!' But literally less than a few minutes later, the same doctor sat down beside me and told me that they had decided that they needed to get the baby out sooner over later (in fact in an hour or so!), and the breakfast tray was quickly taken away. I started to text Robin at home with the news...and then thought that maybe I should call on this one...heaven forbid he sleeps in and misses it :-)

Robin arrived at the hospital shortly after, and we were wheeled to theatre for an emergency c-section around midday. It was all a bit surreal really, everything was happening so fast, and in hindsight I can see that I wasn't fully with it. But ready or not, at 12.56pm on Saturday the 9th of March, Nate David Ryan-Chang arrived into the world.

Nate cried almost immediately, and I remember feeling relieved. Robin did the honours cutting the cord and snapping plenty of pics. Nate's apgar score was a solid 9 - he was just very small, weighing in at a feather-like 1.580kgs :-)

Don't worry, I'll grow into these feet...

My first close-up :-)

Before he and Robin headed off to NICU and the warmth of an incubator, I got the chance to call out his name and say a brief hello - I was SO pleased when he extended his little arm out to touch me! As Roy (Robin's Dad) said, he "nose" me.....:-)

Mummy meets Son

You'd cry too if you had to wear this beenie

Our wee man was then whisked away to NICU and connected up to a variety of tubes and wires - monitoring his pulse, his oxygen saturation, a nose tube inserted for feeding, and various lines for drips and bloods. Inspite of his small size, he only briefly required oxygen and settled in nicely into Level II at Auckland Hospitals NICU unit. Mummy and Daddy were both relieved and hugely excited by the arrival of our wee man!

Tubes, wires, monitors, and a nappy that could double as a toga

 

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