Wednesday, October 7, 2009

NICU Day 27

A short post... The babies are fine. Sweet Maya is off her canula and Bobby is in his crib. The per diem that we didnt care for had the babies tonight. :( She was an eight hour which meant no bath time (when an 8 hour has them versus a 12 hour, the bath is done on the 11pm-7am shift) and no clothes changing. This sucks because a) there is so little that we get to do and I feel like it gets taken away from us in a situation like this (especially when we leave early to get there in time to do the bath) and b) because you never know if the nurse who gets them 11-7 is gong to be a "good" one. Are they going to be miserable during their bath? Will she hold them and comfort them afterwards? Normally, they are held by us immediately after their baths... I cried like a baby leaving last night. It just tore me up inside. Leaving is bad enough. But leaving when you dont know what is going to happen after you leave is even worse.

Our 2 favorite night nurses, who are 12 hours (and have a rivalry about who gets them when they are both on shift) werent too thrilled either. I heard one of them tell Peter that she "wasnt happy" the babies were given an 8 hour for the day shift, which meant 8 hour evening and 8 hour night shifts. Our other nurse told us the other day that she writes in the report "12 hour nurse" but that it doesnt seem to make a difference. I know that, in the grand scheme of things, this isnt a big deal. But I still felt crushed. I hear the babies cry when there is no parent around to soothe them and it breaks my heart; I dont want that to be my babies.

My daytime visit was good, though... I held each for an hour and they were both so alert and happy. Little Maya got more than she bargained for when nursing and started coughing (we ended nursing in only a few minutes, LOL! I dont want the poor kid to choke!). Instead of the normal little drops she gets (their sucking reflex is still immature so they arent used to full feeds from the breast) she got a stream. Bobby, who is normally very alert and quite the nurser, seemed more interested in playing with his hands and mine, so he went for maybe 10 minutes before squirming that he wanted up. So, the morning, not a huge nursing success but a nice visit with the babies.

11 comments:

Jenni said...

I so love hearing the stories and how the babies are getting bigger and brighter. What a blessing. Give em lots of lovin from down south. lol.

Catherine W said...

Aw Michele. It is so hard to leave the hospital. Once I could hear J crying as I walked in and I was just rushing with my hand wash and my expressed milk and everything. I just wanted to get to her so much.

And I understand that feeling of having the little bit that you can do taken away. Oh my dear, hang on in there. I hope and pray it won't be long before they are home with you and Peter. xo

Donna said...

Bobby and Maya sound like like such joyous little babies. I love to hear you talk about them. Sorry about the nurse situation. I'm sorry you have to deal with that on top of everything else.

Heather said...

I'm glad you had such a good visit with the babies. And I'm sorry about the nurse/shift problems. I hope going forwards they only give them 12-hour nurses!

Anonymous said...

Aww Michele, I can imagine it must be hard to leave them. *hugs*

They are doing so well. They truely are a blesing.

Kate said...

Michele, I've had to deal with frustrating situations like the 8 hour nursing situatino (though not that issue in particular) and I urge if you can to please talk to as high up as you can go abotu te 8hour shifts. If the nurses agree they should have 12 hour shift nurses then they should and if you bug the higher ups enough they will do it to keep you quiet. Ask the nurses advocating the 12 hour schedule who you should talk to. They might not litsent o you at first but if you bug them enough, 95% of the time they will!

Justina said...

I'm so happy to hear how well the babies are doing Michelle! I look forward to logging on each day and reading an update. I'm sorry that you have to deal with that situation with the Nurses, I hope it gets better for you.

Mother Knows Best Reviews said...

I'm hoping that the more people who hear you want the 12 hour nurse, the more likely you are they get them.

Where's my miracle? said...

Sorry to hear about your bad nurse. I can only imagine how you feel. Hopefully, it will be the last time it happens. I would say something to someone. It might make a difference in the future. On a happy note it sounds like the babies are doing well! That is always wonderful news! You are doing great Mama! Keep going strong! God will give you the strength. ((hugs))
Deneshia

Debby@Just Breathe said...

Sorry about the shifts, that really isn't fair. You poor thing. ((HUGS)) You shouldn't have to cry when you leave. The only good thing is that before you know it they will be home with you all the time for you to comfort.

Melissa said...

Girl, I undersand all the stuff you were saying about people's comments. I lost my little boy 10 days after he was born at 36 weeks, due to an infection in my body. I know people mean well, but I don't look at his life as some sort of sacfrice for these twins of mine. He was his own life, with his own purpose. I, too, felt like I failed. Maybe your body did fail you, but the love you give these babies won't. I hope you can bring yourself out of this way of thinking in time -- guilt is the worse emotion to carry. Anyhow, your babies are beautiful and look so great!