Having a baby who is born prematurely, or who has health problems at birth and requires a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) or Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) admission can be hugely traumatic for parents to cope with.

Often I hear from parents who’s babies were on a NICU or PICU that during the admission they were in ‘survival mode’; they didn’t really have time to process their own emotions because the focus was on their baby.

Perhaps you’re reading this thinking that you just went through the motions, and got through it - survived it - but now you are out of the hospital you feel overwhelmed. Perhaps you feel like you’re constantly on ‘high alert’, or very tearful? If so you’re not alone. Studies have indicated that around 15% of parents who have had a baby on a NICU experience Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and much higher percentages report a negative impact on their mental health.

I support parents whose babies have had NICU or PICU admissions. I offer a supportive and safe space to share your experiences and process the emotions you had and still have. You also might consider Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing as a way to process the distress and start to feel better.