Your Premature Baby : Everything You Need to Know About Childbirth, Treatment, and Parenting

Rating:
Summary: Technically appropriate, emotionally crippled.
Review: My son was born at 28 wks-while this book gave me all the med info-tech support I could have asked for, ultimately it felt 'hands off'. I am a huge advocate of kangaroo care for preemies, if you have a preemie PLEASE find a compassionate medical provider that understands and supports this kind of mother/child care! If you wish to breastfeed DO NOT GIVE UP! PUMP! It's not fun, but it can work. -DON'T SLEEP WITH YOUR CHILD IN YOUR BED?! At 16 mnths my son is just leaving our bed-it's been sweet, it's been HEALTHY. PLEASE read the Sears' 'The Baby Book' for emotional and common sense back-up, not geared specificly towards preemies, this book espouses the kind of HANDS ON parenting our children really need-especially our preemies. My '28-wkr' is healthy, bright and sweet-I credit kangaroo care and 'The Baby Book' for alot of it! I wish you the best.

Rating:
Summary: Half the picture
Review: The emotional realities of life in the NICU are as important as the medical realities. This book doesn't do a good job of recognizing the importance of emotional support, and has tone that is authoritative but not warm or encouraging on an emotional level.

Rating:
Summary: This book kept me SANE during a very difficult time!
Review: This book was an absolute godsend. My baby was born 6 weeks premature after a very long and difficult pregnancy. I spent the last 4 weeks of my pregnancy on complete hospital bedrest with preeclampsia, and my daughter was born via emergency c-section due to a severe drop in heart rate. She was placed on a ventilator, had central lines, and I couldn't even hold her until she was three days old. It was terrifying. However, while I was in the hospital, my neonatology group gave this book to me (we knew I wouldn't be able to carry her much longer due to my severe preeclampsia) and I began reading it a week before she was born. While the experience was very frightening and stressful, I really felt like I knew what was going on, and I didn't have so many nagging questions. If I thought of something during the night or while the doctors weren't around, I picked this book up and the answer was almost always there. Dr. Frank Manginello (the book's author) was my daughter's attending neonatologist while she was in the NICU, and I can't begin to tell you how amazing this man is. He's a brilliant physician and wonderfully compassionate. When meeting with him, he would encourage us to ask questions. When he finished answering one question, he would say, "Ok, what else?" We never felt rushed, and he cared for our daughter with love, compassion, and an absolute mastery of neonatal skills. His book is a reflection of his work. Our daughter went home 8 days after she was born, in time for her first Christmas! She is doing beautifully! I really feel this book helped me through the whole situation, and I thoroughly recommend it to any mom who has the prospect of having a preemie. It is really written for parents (like me!) who don't know anything about neonatal medicine and want the truth broken down simply step by step. This book is even broken into chapters regarding how premature the baby is. If you're researching this book, good luck to you, and I recommend it highly!

I just want to add that this book is not meant to be for emotional support, or a breastfeeding resource. That is the job of the NICU staff! Dr. Manginello was VERY encouraging and supportive of my decision to breastfeed my baby! This book is meant to be a resource to help answer questions you have about what happens to preemies, not an emotional resource! I don't think any book could effectively give the emotional support needed to get through this time. It just makes your experience easier when you know what's going on.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful information in layman's terms
Review: This book was an excellent reference book writtern on the parents level, but some of the stories can strike the emotions hard. Be cautious when reading stories similar to your own situation too soon after they occur. The information, however, can help a parent deal with the NICU without feeling overwhelmed

Rating:
Summary: Informative about the confusing time in the NICU.
Review: This was a wonderful book. After getting home each night from the NICU I'd read up on what they told me about my son (born at 33 weeks). It is very important to read ONLY the sections that apply to your baby. Otherwise you'll worry about things that do not apply. I do not agree with Jenny William's review above. Sometimes while baby is NICU it CANNOT breast feed because sometimes preemies need special formula due to digestive problems. And many (as mine did) have alot of trouble learning to suck and need to be tube fed for awhile. This book covers the NICU from soup to nuts in a manner that the parent can understand.

Rating:
Summary: Half the picture
Review: When I had my son three months early, I would have loved to have this book. The only book I could find was The Premature Baby Book, and it was ten years out of date. This book provides much more information about medical procedures and conditions and is very clear and concise on that matter. But I'm glad the NICU where my baby was treated isn't as uptight and rigid as the ones he describes in this book. I was able to do kangaroo care (which this book barely mentions) very early, while my son was still on the respirator. This author doesn't seem to encourage parents to question authority at all. Overall, I was VERY DISAPPOINTED in this book, especially the information--or misinformation--about breastfeeding. The author claims that in the long run, breastfed babies don't fare better than formula fed ones. This is simply untrue. If he is attempting to avoid making formula feeding moms feel guilty, he should find some other way to do it. Breastmilk is the best, and often the only safe, choice for premature infants. Later, in the section on what to do when you get your baby home, he suggests that babies should be fed every three hours and that parents shouldn't get "in the habit" of feeding them in between times. This is downright dangerous with a weak, premature, breastfeeding infant, who may need to nurse much more frequently. He also insists that babies may need to continue with bottles, since they might not be strong enough to suckle at the breast, but ALL major research shows that babies do NOT use more energy breastfeeding than bottlefeeding. I hope parents who read this book will contact LLL, as the author suggests, since he gives such bad advice and information.

Rating:
Summary: This book is too rigid and contains misleading information.
Review: When I had my son three months early, I would have loved to have this book. The only book I could find was The Premature Baby Book, and it was ten years out of date. This book provides much more information about medical procedures and conditions and is very clear and concise on that matter. But I'm glad the NICU where my baby was treated isn't as uptight and rigid as the ones he describes in this book. I was able to do kangaroo care (which this book barely mentions) very early, while my son was still on the respirator. This author doesn't seem to encourage parents to question authority at all. Overall, I was VERY DISAPPOINTED in this book, especially the information--or misinformation--about breastfeeding. The author claims that in the long run, breastfed babies don't fare better than formula fed ones. This is simply untrue. If he is attempting to avoid making formula feeding moms feel guilty, he should find some other way to do it. Breastmilk is the best, and often the only safe, choice for premature infants. Later, in the section on what to do when you get your baby home, he suggests that babies should be fed every three hours and that parents shouldn't get "in the habit" of feeding them in between times. This is downright dangerous with a weak, premature, breastfeeding infant, who may need to nurse much more frequently. He also insists that babies may need to continue with bottles, since they might not be strong enough to suckle at the breast, but ALL major research shows that babies do NOT use more energy breastfeeding than bottlefeeding. I hope parents who read this book will contact LLL, as the author suggests, since he gives such bad advice and information.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad, for a reference book
Review: When my ten week early preemie came back to the hospital of his birth, the nurses loaned me this book, as well as one on Kangaroo Care. This is a good REFERENCE book, meaning that it gives clear information on different things to expect from infants born within certain gestational periods, but does not seem to have a supportive emotional tone. Frankly, I am glad I read the loaner on Kangaroo Care first. It was informative as well as comforting during this very stressful time. I am thankful that my hospital not only loaned both books, but strongly advocates Kangaroo Care. I would recommend this reference book be used in ADDITION to an emotionally uplifting book, which would cover all the bases for parents.