what were your experience with a preterm baby if you have one?

Answer 1

My daughter was 6 1/2 weeks premature. She was 4lbs 3oz and 12 inches long. As soon as I delivered they took her and ran, not letting me see her for 4 hours, the scariest 4 hours of my life. She is now 8 years old and for the most part a very healthy happy little girl. She does have severe allergies and she has a bowel problem that still 8 years later the doctors can't give me a straight answer why or what exactly is wrong. She takes 4 allergy meds a day and takes a daily laxative so that she can properly use the bathroom with out pain. Even with this, she is happy, she has caught up in weight and height, and unless you know us very personally, you would never know she has these two problems. She is very smart, very personable, and love athletics. She already claims to know that when she grows up, she wants to work at a hospital in the Neonatal unit (or as she calls it, the baby area) so that she can help babies that come out of their mommies early to make sure that they make it like she did.

Answer 2

My son was 5 weeks premature. He was in the NICU (Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit) for almost 2 weeks, was on a ventilator because his lungs were not fully developed, had Jaundice and a few other problems.

He is now 7 months old and a very healthy boy! He is pretty much on track developmentally and actually weighs more and is longer than most 7 months old, people never believe me when I tell them he was a preemie!

At first he was slow developmentally. He didn't smile or laugh until he was about 3 months old and little stuff like that. My doctor told me that with a preemie you do their developmental age by their due date, not their birth date, so at 3 months he should be on track with a 2 month old.

Answer 3

They had to deliver my son 7 weeks early due to sever toxemia. When he was born he was blue and not breathing, apgar scores were very low and all I could do was lay there and watch them work on him until they could get him into nicu. After 4 hours I was finally allowed to go see him and he spent 7 1/2 weeks in the hospital then he came home on an apnea monitor. He is now a very active healthy 7 year old that is above his classmates in school and bigger than most kids, he does have asthma but it hs yet to slow him down.

Answer 4

My son was born 2 months early at 3 and 1/2 lbs. We were really lucky as he never had any breathing problems or heart issues. Today he is 10 months old and happy and healthy as ever! Pre term babies differ in so many ways depending on their health when born.
My son had to stay in the hospital for 1 month and that was really the toughest part to get through. Plus many followup visits with numerous specialists. Now when I look back at the pictures I can't believe that he was ever that small!

Answer 5

my great niece was born at 26 weeks. She weighed 1lb.15oz. at birth and was 12 inches long. She had to have laser surgery on her eyes because the oxygen she was on made the blood vessels grow too rapidly in her eyes. They also had to do surgery to close a valve in her heart that wouldn't close on it's own with medication(they clamped it shut). She spent about 14 weeks in the NICU before she was released. She is now 8 years old and doing very well. She has been wearing glasses since she was 1. It took her a little while to catch up with children her age but she has come a long way since birth.

Answer 6

well i had two babies born early my oldest elizabeth was born at 33 weeks and my youngest Emily was born at 35 weeks. Elizabeth was in the NICU for 11 days had really bad jaundice and had a feeding tube in her nose and she was born at 4lbs 6oz. now shes a happy active 2and a half old. Emily was born tiny and still is she was born at 3lbs 14oz. she has a feeding tube now because she doesnt eat solids and was not growing or gaining weight she is now 1 and a half. other then that they are happy healthy little girls Emily also has a genic disorder 47XXX.

Answer 7

I have a very healthy 17 1/2 year old who was born 6 weeks premature. He was on a form of helium to keep his lungs inflated after he was born for about a week, and we were told that in itself could cause several problems, but we never experienced any of them. (loss of eyesight, loss of hearing, learning disabilities). I also have 8 year old twins who were 7 1/2 weeks premature. They're normal 8 years olds except that they're a little shorter than everyone else in their class, but that could just be that they took after me and not their dad.

Answer 8

It relies upon on even as the baby is born and her mission. If the baby is respiration properly, can take care of her temperature and devour regularly and properly sufficient to advance, she would no longer elect to be contained in the NICU in any respect. if she has problems with any of those issues, she would spend a even as there and would or would no longer bypass abode with you. some hospitals have regulations about what gestational age slightly one desires to be no longer to be contained in the NICU. babies over 36 weeks aren't to any extent further 'time period' babies. they are not considered to be finished tern till 38 weeks, no matter if or not they elect to be contained in the NICU. those better preemies are considered previous due pre time period or close to time period and would have worry protecting their temperature or ingesting. they have a tendency to be sleepy, and performance worry getting sufficient to devour to advance, a minimum of on the starting up.