I never once thought I would be a parent of a premature baby, not once did this situation ever pop in my head of possibilities while pregnant. However, at 27 weeks pregnant, I woke up and something just felt "off", so I checked my blood pressure with my at-home blood pressure cuff and that reading changed the course of my pregnancy journey forever. Through a series of ups and mostly downs, I found myself at St. Mary's Hospital with what doctors and nurses referred to as "severe preeclampsia". Our daughter came into this world like a wrecking ball, which is how my husband and I ended up first-time parents of a premature beautiful baby girl.
Let me first start by saying that every single nurse we have encountered in the NICU has been amazing, but one nurse stands out above the rest, and that nurse is Ann - my daughter's primary nurse. I understand that it is not the nurse's job to make me, the mother feel good, but when I am around Ann, simply put - I do.
For the first month of my daughter's life, I was in what I would describe as a state of shock and depression. I was recovering from my c-section, pumping around the clock, sleep deprived and driving 45 minutes every day to see her. Watching my baby fight to live was painful to see. Every time I would go and sit beside her incubator I would silently (and sometimes not so silently) cry. I was overwhelmed with everything, overwhelmed by the beeps, overwhelmed by the alarms, overwhelmed with the NICU lingo and anxiously waiting for the next shoe to drop regarding my her health. What changed my perspective of her stay in the NICU was around her "one-month" birthday. This is really, where Ann entered our lives and changed the course of our experience in the NICU forever. She bought (yes, bought) her a tiny birthday hat, had a custom tutu made, and dressed her in a pretty onesie so we could take pictures of her on her "birthday". To most, this gesture could seem small, but this was the very first time I felt like I could celebrate the birth of my daughter. Ann made me feel a sense of happiness and joy for my daughter, instead of sadness and guilt like I had been feeling.
Shortly after the photo shoot, Ann went on vacation - and it felt like she was gone forever. I created a secret countdown until she came back because knowing Ann was taking care of my girl provided me with a sense of comfort.
Ann is truly one of a kind and each time I am with her I ask her many, many questions and she carefully explains everything to me in a way that I can understand. I look forward to the weekends when I know she is working. When we talk, whether in person or over the phone, she is able to calm me down which allows me to carry on with my day or night - until I am able to see my daughter again.
I am, of course, writing this letter to nominate Ann for a DAISY Award. I hope that soon my family's NICU journey will be coming to an end, and when I read about this award, I thought to myself - Ann should be honored...without question. Ann is exactly what a NICU nurse should be. She is patient, kind, intelligent, soothing, funny, empowering and makes both the parents and of course, the baby feel cared about. These types of qualities in a nurse cannot be taught, they are unique and they are Ann.
Any parent who finds himself or herself in the NICU can feel a little better knowing that Ann is caring for their baby. Ann is, and will forever be a huge part of my family's life - she truly has helped (and continues to help) us get through one of the most challenging times in our lives. I am thankful every day for her and St. Mary's Hospital. This NICU is lucky to have a nurse like Ann.