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It’s a good thing that having babies is a job left for the young. I wonder how many women in their 50s would ever decide to have children!
My grandson is three weeks old today though he is still 2-3 weeks preterm. He’s making progress, and can now regulate his temperature and is out of the incubator. The concern now seems to be that he sleeps a lot and doesn’t stay awake long enough to make it through a feeding. Weight gain is going slowly.
It’s impossible not to worry about him, and about my daughter who is being a trooper but I know how hard this is for her. Her love for that tiny boy is both at the same time absolutely natural — and miraculous to me. I know that many, many readers of this blog were deprived of having a mother who could feel those powerful feelings for them – myself included.
Love, patience and excellent care. That’s what everyone surrounding my grandson have for him. There are so many unknowns once parents choose to bring a new life into this world. Just thought I’d mention this because until the required time goes by that will let that little body grow itself further into the world, we all worry about his well-being, most especially my daughter.
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Stop the Storm 
I imagine sleep is what he would be doing in utero if he were still in there, so it seems natural he still needs it.
You might find the analogy inapt, but a few years ago I took in a ferret that had been wandering around in August (very hot and ferrets don’t pant, so they can die easily in temps above 85F). He was dehydrated, malnourished, and traumatized (having also been attacked by a dog). I had an “Animal Bowen” treatment done on him by a homeopathic vet. She explained that the treatment, which is something like acupressure, resets the sympathetic nervous system from fight/flight back to rest/digest mode.
After the treatment, the ferret, Charlie Bear, slept for three days straight. He would wake for nothing – not to eat, drink, or pee or poop. I was worried. The solution I came up with was to wake him every 4 hours or so and feed him by syringe (without a needle!) a liquid compound called Ferret Duk Soup, which is high in nutrients, good bacterias, etc. He would barely wake for his “meal,” would lap it up and fall right back asleep.
After three days of sleep and liquid diet, he came back into the world again and became an active member of my ferret/cat family, ensuring the others knew who he was by his attentions.
I feel certain that your daughter’s baby will make it through, as he has lots of loving people caring for him, giving him the nutrients he needs, and allowing him the sleep that is also so necessary to infants.
I send my love your way.
Yup, I try to tell my daughter that! When my son, who is 25 and fine, was still ‘in there’ he hardly ever moved – which scared me! I tell my daughter that he was evidently sleeping! (Or, knowing my son — thinking!)
I am glad the med folks are paying very close attention – but it’s hard to know when to be concerned. Part of the concern is about Prosac in my daughter’s milk – though she was assured it was ‘harmless’ while she carried him, there’s pitifully inadequate research about the breast milk. I don’t believe any of these high powered drugs are harmless – but my daughter needs the meds – they took the little one off of her milk for two days, but considering the long halflife of Prosac, not sure what they think they’ll actually be able to tell that way – it might be making him lethargic. I hate the thought of that drug in his little body.
I think part of my daughter’s depression was caused by my own depression (I didn’t know) when she was born – depressed mother’s cannot possibly respond to their infant’s ‘happy cues’ – research is clear on this. Either way, she’s incredibly sensitive –
Thanks for your story. Part of what concerns the med folks is that little one doesn’t, say, get mad when his diaper is changed – which my daughter doesn’t really understand, “Why SHOULD he get mad?” Time will tell……..