Holding your baby for the first time is an indescribable feeling. It’s one of the most important moments a mum will ever experience in her life.
One mum didn’t get the chance to experience that special moment when her baby was first born as he was rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit. Her son was only 26 weeks and three days old when he was born. She shared her emotional story on the Love What Matters Facebook page.
The mum didn’t understand why she gave birth so early, she did everything right during her pregnancy, “They have no idea why I had him early, I’m a fairly healthy person, never missed taking my prenatal vitamins, completely cut out caffeine and exercised kind of regularly.”
The mum patiently waited to hold her dear son whilst he was being treated in the NICU. The baby boy spent a total of 84 days in the neonatal intensive care unit.
On the fourth day of his life, his mum finally got to share that special moment with her son. She had been yearning for the milestone since she found out she was pregnant.
The new mum was overjoyed when the momentous day finally arrived, “Four days after birth, I held my baby for the first time.”
She expressed her joy, “It was the best feeling in the world to finally be able to hold him in my arms.”
Due to the boy’s weak and vulnerable condition, the mum was not allowed to hold him or touch him when he was first born, "He was only 86g at birth."
All she hoped for was a normal pregnancy and a normal birth, but the mum overcame these hurdles, and so did her little boy.
She explained, “I just wanted a normal pregnancy, a normal birth, I wanted to be able to hold my baby right away, feed him and snuggle him.”
It’s been six months since her son Grayson was born and he is doing so much better. The tiny tot spent such a huge chunk of his early days in the hospital, but thankfully he has a courageous and loving mum to take after him.
“He is doing absolutely amazing after his 84 days NICU stay. He’s happy, healthy and now I get to snuggle him whenever I want,” explained the mum.
She discussed the horror of going through a premature delivery. “It’s scary to think 1 in 10 babies is born prematurely. I just want other parents who are going through this to know it’s hard, it’s scary but you’re stronger than you think you are, your baby is a fighter and you're not alone.”
She concluded the touching post with a message to mums in similar situations, “I hope that someday soon you get to bring your baby home, too."
