Stacey Tyerman

The Rest of our NICU journey

When my baby was born he was taken away with my husband straight to NICU, i had to get up and shower and organise my items that were in the birthing suite. I was then taken to a two bed room on the mat ward which had another mother who had her baby with her. The fear of the unknown was overwhelming i knew that i was going to be there in that bed listening to a baby that wasnt mine cry while my baby laid in NICU hooked up to so many cables, we couldn't see his face properly we didn't get to hold him or have those first moments that you dreamt of.  It was a tsunami  of feelings of love, worry, stress, uncertainty, guilt - seeing this tiny baby so frail and helpless with monitors beeping and unable to breathe on his own. It wasn't until 9.20pm that night that a nurse asked me if i would like to hold him - I was able to hold my baby and in that moment we were so grateful, we got our first family photo the three of us together.

As the night went into the morning we were told that our boy was going to need to be transferred to another hospital to have a Contrast study done.

Our baby had 7 listed issues on his transfer paperwork.
1 - Prematurity
2 - Lower Birth weight (1900grams)
3 - Respiratory Distress Syndrome + apnoeas of Prematurity
4 - Risk of early sepsis
5 - Bilious aspirites
6 - Jaundice
7 - Hypoglycaemia

The NETS team were amazing, the first crew was unable to take him as they needed a team with a doctor due to his status at that time, the crew of three arrived and transferred my baby to the next hospital. My husband and I drove to the hospital and was unable to find him for a period of time as he was taken to a different hospital to what we were originally told which was extremely scary thinking he was alone without us and we couldn't locate him. Upon finding him all the forms were signed and he was taken in for the testing, the surgical team consulted and requested the test be run again the following day.

Thankfully the second round of testing came back clear and we just needed to wait for a NETS transfer back to our local hospital. This took 4days to be co-ordinated, once back he continued to get stronger and stronger the medications were weaned down and after 8days he was finally off the CPAP and breathing on his own. The monitors and alarms were a constant reminder of how precious those breathes were.

When their born early nothing can prepare you for the outcomes, the tests, the uncertainty. Your told to not disturb them let them rest they dont understand that they have been born yet, in a heartbeat that then changes to  pick the baby up, feed them, change their nappy, ignore the cables and start to transition into the mother role. You dont get a handbook or directions, there isn't always a clear moment that the status has changed and that was very hard for me personally, I feel like I missed out on time holding him purely by not realising I could, that I was aloud to - its the strangest  thing to have to ask to hold your child. Each hospital, each staff shift, each person you interact with while on this journey has different rules, advice, thoughts on how you should be interacting with your child. Navigating that is challenging in itself.

I am so grateful that we had the opportunity to have machines available to us to help our baby, to have him here - to be able to hold him tight, watch him grow into the amazing boy he has become. Because of the machines and the staff that operated them we have our baby boy home with no complications of being born that early. Beside bringing home every bug under the sun from daycare he is a happy, healthy full of energy now 3year old and we couldn't be more proud of him. All the challenges he has overcome astounds me everyday, this child has been through more than what the average adult deals with in a lifetime.

To all the babies laying in those cots you are strong and resilient, you can do this you have so many people cheering you on. To all the mums and dads - breathe....breathe for you, breathe for them. They know your there and it makes a world of difference. The mums going home without their babies every night I see you, I feel your pain, you can get through it. We waited just under 6 weeks to bring our boy home. Your day will come to.

About our Journey

Amazing Start!

This November I’m taking on the Premmie Marathon Challenge

I’ll be clocking up my kms in the Premmie Marathon Challenge to raise funds for life-saving neonatal equipment that will give critically ill and premature babies a better chance of survival.

I'd love your support - if you can, please make a generous tax-deductible donation here.

Thank you for your support.
Your donation will help keep me motivated as I complete my challenge through November, knowing that each km I complete is helping save the lives of sick and premature babies.

Fancy joining me? You can sign up for the Premmie Marathon Challenge too! Simply choose your challenge distance and start clocking your kms for premmie babies.