Your Premature Baby: Everything You Need to Know about Childbirth, Treatment, and Parenting

This book was an absolute godsend. My baby was born 6 weeks premature after a very long and difficult pregnancy. I spent the last 4 weeks of my pregnancy on complete hospital bedrest with preeclampsia, and my daughter was born via emergency c-section due to a severe drop in heart rate. She was placed on a ventilator, had central lines, and I couldn't even hold her until she was three days old. It was terrifying. However, while I was in the hospital, my neonatology group gave this book to me (we knew I wouldn't be able to carry her much longer due to my severe preeclampsia) and I began reading it a week before she was born. While the experience was very frightening and stressful, I really felt like I knew what was going on, and I didn't have so many nagging questions. If I thought of something during the night or while the doctors weren't around, I picked this book up and the answer was almost always there. Dr. Frank Manginello (the book's author) was my daughter's attending neonatologist while she was in the NICU, and I can't begin to tell you how amazing this man is. He's a brilliant physician and wonderfully compassionate. When meeting with him, he would encourage us to ask questions. When he finished answering one question, he would say, "Ok, what else?" We never felt rushed, and he cared for our daughter with love, compassion, and an absolute mastery of neonatal skills. His book is a reflection of his work. Our daughter went home 8 days after she was born, in time for her first Christmas! She is doing beautifully! I really feel this book helped me through the whole situation, and I thoroughly recommend it to any mom who has the prospect of having a preemie. It is really written for parents (like me!) who don't know anything about neonatal medicine and want the truth broken down simply step by step. This book is even broken into chapters regarding how premature the baby is. If you're researching this book, good luck to you, and I recommend it highly! I just want to add that this book is not meant to be for emotional support, or a breastfeeding resource. That is the job of the NICU staff! Dr. Manginello was VERY encouraging and supportive of my decision to breastfeed my baby! This book is meant to be a resource to help answer questions you have about what happens to preemies, not an emotional resource! I don't think any book could effectively give the emotional support needed to get through this time. It just makes your experience easier when you know what's going on.

This was a wonderful book. After getting home each night from the NICU I'd read up on what they told me about my son (born at 33 weeks). It is very important to read ONLY the sections that apply to your baby. Otherwise you'll worry about things that do not apply. I do not agree with Jenny William's review above. Sometimes while baby is NICU it CANNOT breast feed because sometimes preemies need special formula due to digestive problems. And many (as mine did) have alot of trouble learning to suck and need to be tube fed for awhile. This book covers the NICU from soup to nuts in a manner that the parent can understand.

This book was an excellent reference book writtern on the parents level, but some of the stories can strike the emotions hard. Be cautious when reading stories similar to your own situation too soon after they occur. The information, however, can help a parent deal with the NICU without feeling overwhelmed