The Magical Moments Between NICU Babies and the Moms Who Had to Wait to Hold Them
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) released the photo series below to raise awareness about Kangaroo Care — a method of bonding in which the baby (wearing only a diaper) is placed on the mom’s bare chest for at least one hour of uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact.
CHOA says this tactic has proven to lead to faster healing. In addition to emotional benefits, intimate contact helps babies breathe easier, eat, gain weight, sleep longer and be discharged from the hospital sooner.
However, some new mothers are forced to wait to offer Kangaroo Care to their children. When babies are born prematurely and have to be rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), they’re often too fragile to be held right away. Sometimes mothers have to wait weeks or even months before they can touch their child.
But when they finally get to hold and kiss their babies for the first time, it’s a magical thing.
In the picture below, one mother holds her son, Major, for the first time — nine weeks after giving birth to him and his twin brother.
“It’s kind of like when you wait on your birthday all year and open your eyes to the best possible gift,” she said on Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s blog.
Here she is holding Memphys, Major’s twin brother.
Below are Brennan and his mom. She can’t wait to take little Brennan home.
Levi is his mom’s first child.
“It feels familiar,” she told CHOA about holding her child. “It’s only the third time I’ve ever held him, but I feel perfect.”
Brody is a miracle baby. His parents tried to have a child for several years before they finally got to meet Brody.
“I don’t even know how to describe it,” she told CHOA. “It’s unbelievable the love I have for him.”
Lhundyn’s mom describes holding her child as an “overwhelming, joyous moment.”
“Looking at her tiny feet and knowing that some day they’ll help her accomplish great things… I get goosebumps,” she told CHOA.
Read more about these babies and their mothers on CHOA’s blog.
Melissa McGlensey is the former News Editor at The Mighty. Her writing can also be seen in Ms. Magazine, on the Ms.Magazine blog and in The Huffington Post’s Good News, Comedy and Impact sections. Melissa is also a New York City comedian who does sketch, improv and stand up. She is passionate about social justice, politics, Thai food, literature, disability rights and more. She is currently in a long-distance relationship with her cat, Sneakers, who lives in California. You can follow her on twitter at @OhHeyMeliss.
melissa-mcglensey