In honor of NICU Awareness Month, Hope for HIE's Certified Child Life Specialist, Annie Gunning, shares a favorite book and simple, meaningful ways to help big brothers and sisters feel connected to a baby in the NICU.
Child life specialists are experts in child development and family dynamics, helping them navigate the emotional and psychological impact of hospitalizations, diagnoses, and life-changing events. They focus on supporting the child and the whole family, using their knowledge to ask, "How can we make this experience better for everyone involved?"
At Hope for HIE, Annie's main objective is to help children and families navigate medicalized life by empowering and supporting both children and their caregivers and fostering the ability to advocate for their needs while simultaneously reducing stress, pain, and anxiety.
This often looks like support for patients and their families facing surgeries, tests, procedures, diagnoses, and hospitalizations by offering preparation, creating personalized coping plans, providing education, fostering creative expression, and incorporating medical play.
September is NICU Awareness Month, a time to recognize the families, babies, and care teams who spend days, weeks, or even months in the neonatal intensive care unit. For many families in the HIE community, the NICU is where their journey begins.
A NICU stay affects the whole family, including siblings at home who may feel confused, worried, left out, or unsure of what's happening. This is where child life specialists come in. Child life specialists help children understand medical experiences in age-appropriate ways, cope with big feelings, and stay connected to their family during stressful times. Supporting siblings is an important part of supporting the entire family.
Annie recommends All About Our Baby in the NICU by Laura Camerona of Words Worth Repeating, a book written for parents to read with siblings.
This children's book covers:
One of Annie's favorite features is the set of discussion questions at the end, which help families keep the conversation going.
Tip: All About Our Baby in the NICU is geared toward older siblings. For younger children, Words Worth Repeating also offers a simpler companion book, Our New Baby in the NICU.
Books can help with conversations on almost any difficult topic. They:
Beyond reading together, Annie suggests small, hands-on ways to build a bond between siblings and the baby in the NICU:
During big transitions, predictability matters. Let siblings know what's happening and what the schedule looks like, including who will be picking them up and when. Keeping routines as consistent as possible helps create a sense of safety and security during a difficult time.
If you have questions or would like individualized support for your baby or your baby's siblings, Annie is here to help. Reach out to her directly via email or connect in at HIE.Support.
We've put together some helpful resources for families below who are navigating a NICU stay with their baby:
Watch the full reel, along with our other Child Life resources, on Hope for HIE's YouTube channel under the Child Life Series playlist.
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