When my middle son, Aran, was born in 2009 at 35 weeks, they opted to admit him to the neonatal intensive care unit to check that everything was fine. They put him in an incubator and there they monitored him until hours later his mother could be with him.
At that time the entrance was not free . There were a few times to feed him (every 3 hours) and once you entered you could stay a little while, and then let him rest. What we did was always arrive early and always leave late, so that we could have a lot of skin-to-skin contact with him and make sure that we would get out of there as soon as possible.
And it is that the kangaroo method, having the baby in skin-to-skin contact with us, is so important that even a father and a brother can do it , as you can see in this beautiful photo that has been going around for a few days on social networks.
What do we know about this photo?
It has been shared by the Initiative for the Humanization of Care at Birth and Lactation (BFHI) and we know that it is a photograph taken in a Swedish hospital in which Professor Uwe Ewald and his eldest son are seen practicing the method. babysitting with the new members of the family, twins born prematurely. The father claims that the parents’ chest “regulates temperature better than an incubator” and skin-to-skin contact “helps the baby breathe better.” As a result, children’s stress is reduced and they gain weight faster.
When we see her, we all wonder the same thing: “Where is the mother?” And we can respond with three possible hypotheses: 1) Or she has just given birth and right now she cannot be with the babies, and that is why the skin to skin is being carried out by the father and the son (I do not think, because at the beginning The fear, the nerves and the lack of confidence are such that surely it would be the father who would put them both on his chest), 2) He cannot be with them for some reason or 3) he is taking the photo, because they are two babies that they were born very early and that they have been in the NICU for several days, to which we must add those that still have to go through.
I sign up for the latter. They have been in there for days now and are turning that little corner of the hospital into their little “house” where they can enjoy babies. In order not to delay contact with the babies until discharge, they choose to do skin to skin all , including the brother.
Why also the brother? Well that’s why, because parents spend a lot of time there with their two premature babies and he also suffers the consequences of it. His life has completely changed, they are no longer at home, they no longer do what they always do, and attention to him has been completely diverted to his new siblings. It is worth making him participate in it, it is worth it that he knows them, that he also takes care of them and that, in this way, he begins to feel and love them, and understand that everything is for their good. In short, it is great that the brother does it because he is creating a bond of love and affection towards them .
Why our interest in kangaroo care for a long time
I have commented above, we went before and we left later. We were the ones who spent the most time with the baby because after feeding him we would put him in our dressing gown and make skin to skin for as long as we could. We did it because we knew that that was how we would go before (parents who have had a premature child will know what I am talking about … if your life already changes when you have just had a baby, imagine how it changes if you have a baby and you cannot take care of it at home, in your environment, and if you also have an older child).
Leave before?
That’s how it is. We had it very clear and even now I affirm it: children who spend more time in skin-to-skin contact with their parents go home earlier because they evolve better than those who spend less time and are more in the incubator . And it is so because the benefits are multiple. As you can read in a study published here in Spain, in which a pediatrician who discovered this method in Colombia participates, where the lack of resources caused many children to be “incubated” in their mothers’ breasts, progressing better than those who did. incubator, skin-to-skin contact with the baby helps thermoregulation, promotes frequent breastfeeding (the baby is always close to the mother and takes more feedings), is calmer and has fewer apnea episodes, pain is decreased, suffers Fewer infections, grows and gets fatter (eats more and is also calmer) and is an ideal way to create and strengthen the emotional bond with parents.
In addition, the greater contact with the baby makes the parents feel more autonomous, more capable , and from the same unit they are seen to be more resolute and skillful, and they can leave discharge even early, knowing (the professionals) that at home they will have the same care on their part. If there, at home, it continues, doing a lot of skin to skin, it has been seen that parents respond better to stressful situations and it has been seen that mortality rates are lower .
Come on, we knew that by taking charge of our baby’s care and helping him gain weight and feel good, we would go earlier, so we did not miss any chance of putting it on our chest to give him our love and warmth.
In the case of the photo of the father and his son, the same thing that I have commented, beneficial for the babies and also for the father and the son, who feel involved in the care, responsible, and able to empathize with the needs of the children. two little brothers. Do you think we will see it soon in Spain?
Photo | IHAN Facebook
In Babies and more | When your baby is born, practice the Kangaroo Mother Method, even if it is not premature, What is the Kangaroo Mother Program? Benefits of the Kangaroo Mother method for premature babies
