Oprah said many years ago about keeping a journal that:
Journaling is someone to talk to when there is no one to talk to.
There are many benefits for NICU Parents to keeping an account of their time in the NICU as a Journal or a daily diary.NICU Staff, Nurses and Social Workers may encourage parents to keep a daily account of their NICU adventures as a way of coping with the NICU.
Keeping a NICU Journal allows parents to monitor the changes that are occurring with their NICU newborn which may be easier to see when reviewed over time.
To paraphrase a quote by musician John Mayall, Journals are markers to whatever is going on in your life, at a particular moment.
They are the memories and recollections...and the stories that were going on at the time.
What to Include in a NICU Journal
There are several different NICU Journals that have been created for NICU Parents either to purchase or to download for free.
Things to include in a NICU Journal information about your baby's.- Age
- Weight
- Types of Monitors, IV's, Lines
- Breathing Help
- Method of feeding
- Medications
- Tests and Procedures
- Ways of Interacting
- Nurses and NICU Staff
- Visitors
- Questions to Ask
- Other Thoughts and Feelings
Initially it may be enough to just be including the medical information that you can understand and the questions that you might want to ask. In time, you might include how you are feeling and what you are thinking about the NICU experience.
Benefits of Keeping a NICU JournalThe benefits of keeping a journal also apply to keeping a NICU Journal.- Journaling can be an effective way for the journal writer to process stressful, traumatic or life-changing events.
- Keeping a journal can have a positive impact the journal writer.
- Journaling serves as a catalyst for self-discovery and self-reflection.
- Journal writing can also lessen symptoms and improve physical and mental health.
Other benefits found in Telling the Story also apply to NICU Parents journaling their NICU Experience and Telling their NICU story:- Writing our stories can help in explaining the world and making sense of the insensible.
- Storytelling has been used for centuries as a beneficial way for grieving people to cope with loss.
- For many patients and parents telling their story is what helps them to cope with or heal from their disease or situation.
- Writing the story about one’s life experiences helps improve a person's physical and mental health.
- Grieving NICU parents should be encouraged to tell their story of grief as often as needed so the reality of the loss becomes real.
Keeping a NICU Journal may be a very helpful and useful way for NICU parents to cope with the their NICU experiences and another way of becoming empowered NICU parents.More Articles:
Dyer KA. 2009. Students benefit from e-Journaling or using Web Journals in an Online Grief, Loss & Bereavement Course. TCC Worldwide Online Conference. Refereed Proceedings. Vol. 2009. No 1.
Austprem. NICU Checklist. Products, Resources and Links.
Hathorn M. Keeping a Preemie Baby Diary in the NICU. Premature Baby - Premature Child.
Dyer KA. 2009. Free NICU Journaling - NICU Diary Resources Available for NICU Parents. NICU Parent Support Blog.
Image: René de Cock. Writing a Diary. Royalty Free Use.
Three different resources have been created to help NICU Parents in keeping track of their baby's NICU experience are My NICU Journal, the NICU Diary® and Tiny Steps - My Journey Through the NICU Scrapbook.My NICU JournalNICU Nurse, Shelley Stevenson, RNC developed My NICU Journal as a useful product for parents of preemies and NICU nurses.
According to the Hearthworks website:
My NICU Journal is a book created to help parents record the milestones their preemie accomplishes as he or she improves and grows in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, creating a keepsake for parents to look back upon later.
The book is 30 pages, measures 8½" X 5½" with color illustrations. My NICU Journal is available with pink, blue, yellow or green covers for $9.95 each.
My NICU Journal is available online or by mail at the Hearthworks website.
NICU Diary®The NICU Diary®: A journal for preemie babies was designed especially for moms and dads who have babies in the NICU or Special Care Nursery.
The NICU Diary® is available for purchase at the Preemie Store and More. According to their description:
The NICU Diary® gives you places to write weight gains, feeding changes, tests, oxygen needs and much more. You even have your own space for thoughts, feelings, and little notes.
The NICU diary® records your baby's special start in life and gives you a treasured keepsake for years to come. It includes two detailed pages for each of 45 days and extra pages for photos and to record for "baby's first." Priced at $9.95 each.
The NICU Diary also includes a gram conversion chart and a page to graph weekly progress.
Tiny Steps - My Journey through the NICU ScrapbookTiny Steps is a scrapbook to record your baby's journey through the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and was created by Esther Thomas, a nurse with 18 years of experience in the NICU.
The Tiny Steps NICU Scrapbook is available at the Preemie Store and More. According to their description:
Every page of The Tiny Steps NICU Scrapbook is filled with bright and colorful art, lots of space for special photos of your baby, family members, and hospital staff.
Plenty of space is also provided for writing notes, recording daily experiences, thoughts, precious moments, and those one-of-a-kind expressions that only newborns make.
Priced at $ 24.95.
The Tiny Steps NICU Scrapbook Contents:
* An easy to understand vocabulary list of the most commonly used medical terms in the NICU.
* Inspirational Bible verses, song passages, and humorous phrases to help you get through some of the more difficult days in the nursery.
* 90 daily entries that allow you to write your thoughts, and keep track of your baby's progress.
* A special pocket envelope to save tiny mementos.
Since these products were designed for Preemies, they wouldn't have worked well with our daughter's case, being a 'Sick Newborn.'
I probably would have used one of the free resources available, like the NICU Parent Diary from Cedars-Sinai's Good Beginnings.
More about Journaling in the NICU
Dyer K. 2009. Benefits of Keeping a NICU Journal. NICU Parent Support Blog.
Dyer K. 2009. The Importance of Telling the NICU Story. NICU Parent Support Blog.
Dyer KA. 2009. Free NICU Journaling - NICU Diary Resources Available for NICU Parents. NICU Parent Support Blog.
Cedars-Sinai's Good Beginnings has developed reference materials specifically designed for the NICU parent and may be helpful during your child's hospitalization.
One of the useful resources available from the Good Beginnings Program is their their freely available NICU Parent Diary.
NICU Parents can download and printout the NICU Parent Diary to use as a means of tracking your child's progress and remembering important details about your NICU baby's growth and development.
Parents who are interested in more formal NICU Journals can see the different options available at the Creatively Coping with NICU Journals, Diaries and Scrapbook post.
More about Good BeginningsGood Beginnings was founded in Los Angeles, California in 1979 by a group of concerned parents who had gone through the NICU and saw a need for a support group to help babies and their families in their time of crisis.
Today, over 25 years later, the organization is still comprised of volunteers, most of whom are former NICU parents, who relate to the struggles NICU families face.
They care deeply and can appreciate first hand the importance of the work that an organization like Good Beginnings does in providing critical support during a NICU family's time of need.More about Journaling in the NICU:
Dyer K. 2009. Benefits of Keeping a NICU Journal. NICU Parent Support Blog.
Dyer K. 2009. The Importance of Telling the NICU Story. NICU Parent Support Blog.
Dyer K. 2009. Creatively Coping with NICU Journals, Diaries and Scrapbook. NICU Parent Support Blog.
