Survive NICU No matter what the circumstances or what your experience is, everyone has the same objective when their baby is born premature: Survive NICU life. Not only are you scared for your baby, but your whole life changes and your priorities shift. While not everyone may be able to be there all day, every day, you do your best to be with your baby as much as possible. … [Read more...]
Smiling through the Fight, Dior’s Story
Smiling We've all heard that "attitude is everything." In an extremely difficult place like the NICU, it can be really hard to remain positive and hopeful all the time. Just smiling can require great effort on the part of a parent that is so worried and scared for their baby. However, as the mother of today's micro preemie points out, we are their support system. We need to … [Read more...]
IUGR, Sophia’s Battle
IUGR Many people may not be familiar with the acronym IUGR, but I am unfortunately very acquainted with it because one of my twins was affected by it. IUGR stands for Intrauterine Growth Restriction, and it is a very serious condition that can happen during pregnancy. For multiple births like mine, it is called SIUGR, or Selective Intrauterine Growth Restriction because it … [Read more...]
Identical Twins Bentley and Oakley
A single baby or identical twins? I found out at 8 weeks that I was carrying identical twins. My doctor had a small, portable ultrasound machine, and she was experienced with twin pregnancies. She could not see a dividing membrane at the time, and sent me to a high risk specialist for my 12 week appointment. Many obstetricians do not have portable ultrasound machines. In my … [Read more...]
A TTTS Journey with Amanda and Andy
Twin Mom Support Both during and after my twin pregnancy, I was lucky enough to find a great support system online. I found a great group of twin moms that had been through or were going through TTTS (Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome.) One of those moms that I met was Amanda. Not only have I gotten to talk to Amanda and her husband, Andy, in our Facebook group, but I got … [Read more...]