Tomorrow, as my readers will be well aware, is World Prematurity Awareness Day. Awareness is an odd concept, what does it mean to be aware?
The simple fact is that premature birth can happen to anyone, absolutely anyone. And in most cases you cannot predict it. Just because you personally may have never experienced a premature birth, does not mean you are untouched by it.
Prematurity, it is clear, can have a devastating impact on the baby, and the family. What is truly vital, in my eyes, is the care that we give these babies AND the families.
We've got our happy ending. But it may not have been that way. Joseph had care that was exemplary. The way his NEC (necrolitising enterocolitis) was picked up and treated was just amazing, in a level 2 hospital. The way in which his other complications were managed was very timely.
We are very fortunate that Joseph has no effects of his premature arrival.
And that, my friends, is why I'm still here. I recall, in an argument, my husband being angry about my "premature baby crusade" and shouting "you are not the only person to have a premature baby you know".
And that is why I am still here. I am not the only one. I want to write, I want to campaign, I want to tell our story, a story of hope, resilience and courage and ultimately, a story of triumph.
I don't think there is a parent out there who would say any different, having a premature baby is a very isolating experience. Your experience is so different to what you have expected during your pregnancy, and different to your friends and family members experience of childbirth. Perhaps this is why the premature baby community is so strong. I've never seen anything like it!
It's a tough road, when your baby is born premature, and its a different road, one that is rarely straightforward.
But you are never alone. Help is all around, you just have to know where to look.
The simple fact is that premature birth can happen to anyone, absolutely anyone. And in most cases you cannot predict it. Just because you personally may have never experienced a premature birth, does not mean you are untouched by it.
Prematurity, it is clear, can have a devastating impact on the baby, and the family. What is truly vital, in my eyes, is the care that we give these babies AND the families.
We've got our happy ending. But it may not have been that way. Joseph had care that was exemplary. The way his NEC (necrolitising enterocolitis) was picked up and treated was just amazing, in a level 2 hospital. The way in which his other complications were managed was very timely.
We are very fortunate that Joseph has no effects of his premature arrival.
And that, my friends, is why I'm still here. I recall, in an argument, my husband being angry about my "premature baby crusade" and shouting "you are not the only person to have a premature baby you know".
And that is why I am still here. I am not the only one. I want to write, I want to campaign, I want to tell our story, a story of hope, resilience and courage and ultimately, a story of triumph.
I don't think there is a parent out there who would say any different, having a premature baby is a very isolating experience. Your experience is so different to what you have expected during your pregnancy, and different to your friends and family members experience of childbirth. Perhaps this is why the premature baby community is so strong. I've never seen anything like it!
It's a tough road, when your baby is born premature, and its a different road, one that is rarely straightforward.
But you are never alone. Help is all around, you just have to know where to look.
