Love, Amanda

“Dear NICU Mama, When your baby sees you, they see warmth, protection, stability, and safety. They see someone they spent months getting to know inside of your womb. They see home.

You’ll spend days, weeks, months, maybe years, worrying that they’ll look at you and somehow remember the beeping of the machines and four am heel pokes. You’ll worry they’ll see a person who couldn’t keep them inside for nine months, safe and warm and away from the loudness of the NICU. You’ll worry they’ll see you and remember all the tears, the fear, the countless hours of a living nightmare. But they won’t. They’ll see home.

They’ll see someone strong enough to push aside her healing from surgery to focus on her premature baby who didn’t have real skin yet. They’ll see the person who held them so tenderly after a code event. They’ll see the person who is always smiling down at them when they wake up, and the person who kisses their forehead good night. They’ll see love. And one day, mama, I hope you see that in yourself too.”

Love,
Amanda