Episode 2: Interview with Christie: It will be harder than you think, but you are stronger than you know.
Words can not begin to express how grateful I am that Christie agreed to come on the Mighty Littles Podcast. Not only did she agree to be interviewed, but she did it with a complete leap of faith that I would share her story with honesty and integrity since she is the first person to appear on the podcast. She did a phenomenal job of showing just how real the emotions of the NICU get and answered my tough questions with heartfelt emotion. Everyone listening will get a glimpse of what NICU parenting entails.
The truth is, it is one thing for me - a neonatologist - to want to share these stories with you. However, it is another thing entirely for a mom to share her story with all of you; the love, uncertainty, fear and hope that surrounds a NICU stay. It takes an incredible amount of courage to tell your story to the world. It is through these stories, and talking about the emotion in the NICU that future families will have a clearer idea of what they are facing, and the loved ones who are supporting people currently going through a NICU stay will learn what is most supportive.
At the beginning of the podcast, Christie explains a little bit about her pregnancy and what led up to delivering William prematurely, weighing just over a pound. Christie beautifully describes her first glances and interactions with William after she was finally off of Magnesium and able to come over to the NICU to meet her baby boy.
Meeting William - “We got this mom!”
After discussing a few details of their hospital stay, we change directions and begin to reflect on their NICU stay now that William is 2 years old. We discuss privacy and connection - walking the fine line between not wanting to impose on other people’s NICU journeys while yearning for connection with someone who knows what you are going through. For every family facing a NICU stay with a tiny baby, certain fears hover over the first weeks in the NICU; the questions that no parents want to ask. In this interview, we talk about the fear of going home “empty-handed”. You can’t hide from it. You can’t ignore it. But you can’t dwell on it either. That fear provides perspective when things are going “just ok” and helps ground you when you are in the NICU to truly be grateful for each minute with our children.
My absolute favorite nugget of truth from Christie boiled down to a simple concept - the NICU is going to be worse than you think, but you are going to be stronger than you thought you could. I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I enjoyed talking with Christie about her experience. You can find Christie on Instagram @beyondthebeeps where she shares her post-NICU journey with other preemie moms.