What is a premature baby aka “preemie”?

Welcome back! Today I wanted to talk about what a preemie is and what a micro preemie is. There is a difference and then we will also mention full term babies. Alright, so lets start with the fact that there are differences between the three even though they are a bit sublet in some ways and very different in other ways there are still differences. There are two different preemie types a micro preemie and preemie and then there is a full term baby which is most babies. Now let’s talk about a full term baby first since that is the norm. A full term baby is a baby that is born 39+ weeks gestation, so right around their due date or after. They are born weighing 5 1/2 lbs and up, they eat from 8 to 12 times a day and they are ready to leave the with their parents when discharge comes around. Now most babies that are born are at full term and so long as they have no problems with their health like breathing or eating then babies can go home with their parents. Now, what happens when kids can’t go home with their problems due to having some going on with them? Well, that is what we are going to talk about now.

Okay, so when a baby has a problem with eating or keeping their little bodies warm on their own or they have some kind of breathing problem and that is just to name a few major things. Now, babies will end up in the NICU for a number of things but the nursing and doctor staff for most NICUs at least the ones that I have heard of and the one that we were in for a long time has some pretty amazing people and they have hearts of gold. NICU stands for Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and when a baby is admitted there is so much that goes into their own bed depending on what they are there for and since I am not a doctor I will not go into all the reasons a baby can end up in the NICU, but what I will say is that they usually will end up there right after they are born if they need to which means they are born and head there and haven’t left the Hospital since they were born yet. If they leave the hospital and need to go to the hospital then most of the time the baby will be sent to a Pediatric ward where if need be they will be admitted to a PICU which is the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Thankfully we haven’t had to go back to the hospital and we are counting our blessings for that. Knock on wood.

Now a common reason babies end up in the NICU is that they are born premature which is where we get into our preemies. Now a micro preemie is a baby that is born before 26 weeks or at 26 weeks so it would be 25 and 6 days gestation. They will usually weigh 3 lbs or less and have a lot of other problems more than likely that include having a hard time breathing on their own. Now usually a micro preemie only eats up to 1 oz if breast milk a day and the staff will always push for breast milk before they use formula. The reason for that is that breast milk has the vitamins and minerals and so many other good stuff that preemies need to grow big and strong. The staff will always try to go in this order and that is: moms breast milk, if not available then they move to donor breast milk and if they can’t use that then they use formula. Now I know what you are thinking are they sure about the donor milk and yes they are because all the NICUs in the country go through actual milk banks and vet all the milk that comes to them because they take care of the smallest and most vulnerable patients in the hospital. They are very careful.

Now the next kind of preemie is just a preemie and they are born after 26 weeks gestation and usually weigh from 3 to 5lbs and can eat and are usually able to go home in a few weeks. Now here is the big thing micro preemies usually have more problems than preemies and for a micro preemie the stay in the NICU can be from a couple weeks to a few months. You tend to learn so much in the NICU and it kind of desensitizes you to some things that other wise you would probably freak out about like when a baby has reflux. Well at least that has been my experience and yes I know everyone has a different story but it does happen. Now that you know the difference between them I have to say this to you: things are gonna be okay. Take a deep breath and know things will be okay.

My husband and I know for a fact that being in the NICU and the hospital is stressful and if you are like me who doesn’t like surprises for the most part then you feel powerless to help your baby and feel like you are at the mercy of the hospital. Just know things will be okay and things will get better just what you can in the moment. If you can pump then pump milk for your little one and pump as much as you can and if you can’t don’t be upset just try to relax your little one is going to to need you to be patient and understanding. It is a crawl not a race and then when you hit the finish line then you can start to walk and then run. Trust me having a baby is hard and stressful and a presume is no exception they are even more stressful and hard on your mental, emotional, and physical health, as well as your relationship with your partner. Even so, things will be okay and you will find that you can adapt and adjust to whatever you need to and when you look back you will be shocked at all you went through and survived. I will leave you with this we were able to go through all of this and now we are thriving even if we feel like it is so super hard at times and if we can do it then so can you. Also you aren’t alone just come back and visit with me for a while when you feel like you are and send me a message on here or my social and we can start a community. Well baby is starting to cry so I will leave it like this for now. Thanks for stopping by! Till next time!

XOXO

Silvia