Today’s post has a video that touches on premature babies and loss, so please skip this one if it’s a difficult subject for you.
We were really lucky that our twins stayed baking until a day short of 36 weeks. I felt relieved that we made it so far and that they were healthy weights for twins at 6lb 10oz for Maggie and 5lb 13oz for Grace. Their birth happened really fast and I barely had time to process that they were arriving. Maggie was born first with a true knot in her cord. All seemed well with her at birth in spite of that and she was able to stay with us right away.
But Grace didn’t cry. I remember yelling about why she wasn’t crying, and no one telling me. It felt like years but was probably only seconds. Finally she cried. She needed some extra help breathing so she spent the first couple of days in the NICU, but was able to come home with us when we left.
We were very lucky.
Both of them had colic and we spent a lot of time holding them. It was the only thing that would settle them. I spent most of the first year sleeping in the rocking chair holding at least one of them at night. They needed that touch.
Two years later when signs began to point to a diagnosis of autism for Maggie I remember declaring that it couldn’t be true because she is so affectionate and always climbing on me to be held. I was misinformed and thought that affection and autism didn’t go together. Boy was I wrong. At 9 years old now Maggie is still constantly wanting her back to be rubbed, nuzzling her face against mine, and climbing in my lap. We have challenges with verbal communication sometimes but she can always tell us what she needs with touch.
Research has revealed that routine touch and massage is critical to a baby’s growth and development, communication, and learning. The JOHNSON’S® Brand believes every baby can benefit from a loving touch.
Disclosure – I have been compensated to write this post. All opinions are mine.
Leave a Reply