NICU to Home

I don’t remember the day my baby was born in the way people usually mean it. I remember alarms. I remember doctors’ faces. I remember being told things no parent ever expects to hear.

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Our time in the NICU was long and frightening. Somewhere in the middle of it all, we were told our child had a life-limiting condition. I nodded, because I didn’t know what else to do. Inside, everything fell apart.

Parent to Parent were introduced while we were still in hospital. At first, I didn’t think I had the energy to talk to anyone new. But they didn’t rush me. They met me where I was—exhausted, scared, and overwhelmed.

 

They helped me understand what was being said in meetings, without pushing information when I wasn’t ready. They listened. Sometimes that was all I needed—someone who didn’t need me to be brave.

 

When we finally came home, the support didn’t stop. That mattered more than I can put into words. Home felt unfamiliar. Ordinary tasks felt impossible. Parent to Parent helped me think through practical things, but also reminded me that how I was feeling made sense.

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There are still hard days. There always will be. But I don’t feel alone anymore. I feel supported—not just as a parent managing appointments and decisions, but as a human being living through something unimaginably hard.