[slou!]

Aw, I love this thread! It is exactly things like this that makes me want to become a nurse! I mean I know it won't always be all sweet and happy like these stories, but still this is why I want to do nursing! Keep them coming

[BabyRN2Be]

I'll sure a few of my cute stories from the last 2 months working as a NICU volunteer:
- the little girl who was trying to escape, arching her back, perpendicular in the warmer, stamping her feet against the plexiglass. I picked her up, she gave me an innocent look of "Nooo.. that wasn't me who was causing all the noise, honest!
- yesterday, the little screamer boy who had to be moved because he was bothering some of the more critical babies. This boy had lungs for a mec aspiration/PPHN! Noisy boy. Once we got him his bottle to nipple feed, he instantly gulps down enough to satisfy his taste and immediately goes to sleep, curled up in my arms, again with the look of, "I couldn't possibly be the one causing all the trouble."
- all the crazy names you see. You can't beat "Candy Apple". Or "Precious".

Hope this helps you in your first days back to work!

[hica19]

When I was still a student and doing my precpetorship in the NICU, I had one baby who was almost ready to go home and needed to run the car seat test first. Anyways while she was sitting in the carseat she had a peculiar look on her face and she almost looked as if she was trying to flick us off with her middle finger. I jokingly told her "don't you stick your middle finger at us". It caused the parents to laugh hehe.

[dawngloves]

I love dressing up the babies!!!! We had one feeder grower and her mom left an Easter Dress and asked if we could bath and dress her for when the family came to visit. Slow day, so we all gave her a huge bubble bath and dressed her in the frilliest dress I ever saw!She looked like a lamp!! We propped her up and took pictures of her as well as her in her bubble bath. So cute and funny!

[danissa]

putting twins together in the same cot/incubator for a wee cuddle!Love how they always touch each other then cuddle in to sleep! melts my heart.

[traumaRUs]

I don't even work NICU but you guys are wonderful - thanks for the day brightener.

[nell]

When a parent gets to hold their baby for the first time, that is so heart-warming. Managing it with a tiny one on CPAP requires some time/effort, and engineering it with a baby on HFOV is really difficult, but the joy of the parents is worth it.

nell

[WeeBabyRN]

Originally Posted by danissa

putting twins together in the same cot/incubator for a wee cuddle!Love how they always touch each other then cuddle in to sleep! melts my heart.

Where I am the docs likes twins to co-bed, unless there is a problem with one of the twins. Anyways, I love when they go to sleep and synchronize their heart rates or respiratory rates.

I don't work in the NICU yet, I am almost finished with my practicum. I hope to work there after graduation. I have been off a week and I really MISS those babies.

Loving your patients is a huge happy moment for me. I also love that sometimes the simplest things make a fussy baby happy, like a cuddle or a gentle head rub.

[2curlygirls]

Originally Posted by danissa

putting twins together in the same cot/incubator for a wee cuddle!Love how they always touch each other then cuddle in to sleep! melts my heart.

Your post brings me back to the time I spent in Edinburgh with the community midwives there (I've since dragged my husband there because I loved it so much)
We have a nurse in our unit from Glasgow who always charts in the comment section "Out for a wee cuddle" I love it!

[RainDreamer]

Originally Posted by nell

When a parent gets to hold their baby for the first time, that is so heart-warming. Managing it with a tiny one on CPAP requires some time/effort, and engineering it with a baby on HFOV is really difficult, but the joy of the parents is worth it.

nell

Ohhh that's the absolute BEST!! Reminds me of a baby we had a few weeks ago for mec aspiration, sick little girl ..... mom couldn't hold the first few days because she was on HFOV and had UAC/UVC. This little girl started doing so great that they weaned her from the HFOV to the conventional vent to off the vent on room air in just a few hours. Then we moved her to an open crib. So the last time the mom saw her was in the morning and she was still on the radiant warmer, with the UVC/UAC, on the HFOV. Mom came in that night and just started BAWLING when she saw her in the open crib, off the vent, and only with a PIV. I asked how she was and she said "I'm great now!" I gave her a big hug and asked if she wanted to hold her. It was the first time she was able to hold her in her arms. It was awesome just watching her cuddle that sweet little baby

What a great thread, I love this!! Could we make this a sticky maybe?