Beyond the NICU

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Hand to Hold's Beyond the NICU is dedicated to the family’s journey after a NICU stay. The journey doesn’t always end when you go home. Premature birth impacts families well beyond the NICU. From therapies to feeding challenges to doctors’ appointments and managing the rest of your life, having a NI…

Hand to Hold


    • Feb 12, 2021 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 40m AVG DURATION
    • 45 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from Beyond the NICU

    Beyond the NICU Episode 14: The Risk of PPD for Black Mothers

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 12, 2021 52:21


    Nakeenya discusses her own traumatic birth experience and how that led to PTSD and PPD. She talks about how she got involved with Black Mamas ATX and the services the nonprofit offers. She also discusses the statistics surrounding black mothers and PPD. 

    Beyond the NICU Episode 13: The Risk of PPD After a NICU Stay

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 14, 2020 46:25


      Catherine discusses the experience of losing her first child and having a high-risk pregnancy with her second. She talks about her NICU experience and how that affected her emotionally. She also discusses the PPD symptoms she experienced and how she sought help.  

    Beyond the NICU Episode 12: All About RSV

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 6, 2020 33:11


    Kelli and Dr. Gonzalez discuss what RSV is and how to recognize its symptoms. They also talk about when to seek medical attention.  

    NICU Now Episode 30: All About RSV

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 29, 2020 33:10


    Kelli and Dr. Gonzalez discuss what RSV is and how to recognize its symptoms. They also talk about when to seek medical attention.

    NICU Now Episode 29: Preemies and Diaper Dermatitis

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 9, 2020 31:48


    Kelli and Media discuss what diaper dermatitis is and how it affects premature babies. They talk about the best practices to prevent it, including feeding and diaper changes.

    Beyond the NICU Episode 11: Self-Care and Postpartum Depression

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2020 37:12


    Shifra describes her own experience with postpartum depression. She discusses how this experience led her to begin Eim Leah and talks about what the organization offers to new moms. 

    Beyond the NICU Episode 10: Experiencing Postpartum Depression

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2020 35:39


    Rhiannon discusses her preeclampsia and how that led to the premature birth of her son. She describes her NICU experience and how that led to her postpartum depression diagnosis.

    Beyond the NICU Episode 9: The Importance of Mental Health

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2020 49:35


    Kelli and Lexi discuss why maternal mental health is an issue we need to pay attention to and how becoming a mother is a transition that deserves care and consideration. What are the symptoms of PPD and where do you go if you need help with those symptoms?

    Beyond the NICU Episode 8: NICU PTSD in the Time of Coronavirus

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 17, 2020 31:54


    Jessica discusses spending two weeks in the NICU after her newborn's TMI. She speaks about her eventual diagnosis of PTSD and what she did to seek help. She also speaks about her emotional response to COVID-19 and the recurrence of anxiety.

    NICU Now Episode 28: A Conversation with Sarah DiGregorio, Author of Early

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2020 52:32


    Sarah speaks about her NICU journey with her daughter and how that led her to write Early. Kelli and Sarah talk about a NICU parent's response to COVID-19.

    NICU Now Episode 27: Processing Emotions During COVID-19

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2020 42:56


    Kelli and Lexi discuss the emotions most commonly experienced in the NICU and wow to process them in a healthy way. They also talk about PPD and its symptoms, and how the COVID-19 crisis can bring many of these emotions back to the forefront.

    Beyond the NICU Episode 7: A Conversation with Sarah DiGregorio, Author of Early

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2020 52:48


    Sarah speaks about her NICU journey with her daughter and how it led her to write Early. She also discussed her response to COVID-19 as a NICU parent.   

    Beyond the NICU Episode 6: Processing Emotions During COVID-19

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2020 43:12


    Kelli and Lexi discuss the emotions most commonly experienced in the NICU and wow to process them in a healthy way. They also talk about PPD and its symptoms, and how the COVID-19 crisis can bring many of these emotions back to the forefront. 

    NICU Now Episode 26: Milk is Medicine

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2020 40:47


    Kelli and Melinda discuss the term "fetal development interrupted" and why nutrition so important for preemies. They talk about how milk can be medicine for newborn babies and how it can aid in a baby's developing gut.

    NICU Now Episode 25: Back to Work

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2020 40:55


    Mia discusses her own NICU experience and her emotions when she eventually went back to work. She talks about how to be transparent at work and in the NICU and the importance of self-care. She also discusses how the NICU trains you to be an advocate and leader.

    NICU Now Episode 24: The Risk of RSV

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 7, 2019 66:20


    What is RSV? What are its symptoms and when should you take your child to the hospital? Can RSV be prevented?

    Beyond the NICU Episode 5: Back to Work

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2019 41:12


    Mia discusses her own NICU experience and her emotions when she eventually went back to work. She talks about how to be transparent at work and in the NICU and the importance of self-care. She also discusses how the NICU trains you to be an advocate and leader.

    Beyond the NICU Episode 4: Live Big, Love Bigger

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 28, 2019 33:12


    Kathryn discusses her son’s premature birth and diagnosis with NEC. She talks about her son's feeding journey after leaving the NICU and how she turned her story into a book, Live Big, Love Bigger.

    Beyond the NICU Episode 3: The Risk of RSV

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 28, 2019 66:36


    What is RSV? What are its symptoms and when should you take your child to the hospital? Can RSV be prevented?

    Beyond the NICU Episode 2: Intentional Motherhood

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 28, 2019 35:04


    Lee discusses her diagnosis of PPROM and the premature birth of two of her daughters. She discusses how she handled bringing home her premature babies while having other children at home. She describes what she's coined as intentional motherhood and the importance of reading to NICU grads.

    Beyond the NICU Episode 1: Anxiety after the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 28, 2019 31:57


    Katrina talks to Kelli about her preterm birth with her son, Bryce. They discuss how the NICU can precipitate anxiety and how bringing home a medically fragile child can induce anxiety.     

    NICU Now Episode 23: Having a Late Pre-Term or Near-Term Baby

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 22, 2019 55:55


    Along with Sue Ludwig and Dr. Raylene Phillips, Kelli discusses the differences between early term and late pre-term babies. They talk about reasons these babies typically have to stay in the NICU, issues surrounding thermoregulation, sepsis, and jaundice. They also discuss the emotional impact of even a short NICU stay.

    NICU Now Episode 22: Finding Your Voice as a NICU Parent

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2018 56:44


    Brandon and Jessica discuss having their daughter in the NICU and learning about the different nutritional options available. They advocated for a human milk fortifier for their daughter, using their network and own research. 

    NICU Now Episode 21: Advocating for NICU Babies and Families

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2018 29:16


    Deb Discenza speaks about her NICU experience with her daughter and finding out her daughter was receiving a bovine-based fortifier in the NICU. She discusses how her NICU experience led her to start Preemie Magazine and Preemie World. 

    NICU Now Episode 20: Advancing Fortification for the Tiniest Babies

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2018 49:50


    Kelli speaks with the CEO of Prolacta Bioscience, Scott Elster, about the process used by Prolacta and who the company serves. Scott speaks about the nutritional needs of NICU babies and explains where Prolacta obtains the milk it uses and how women can donate their milk.

    ceo nicu prolacta bioscience prolacta
    NICU Now Episode 19: Understanding Necrotizing Entercolitis (NEC)

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2018 90:08


    Dr. Mitch Goldstein explains what NEC is, who it typically affects, its symptoms, and treatment. He also discusses what parents should ask about their baby's nutrition in the NICU. Kelli then speaks to Stephanie Vaughan whose son contracted NEC while in the NICU. Stephanie speaks about his journey back to health and how she eventually started The Morgan Leary Vaughan Fund to educate other parents about NEC.

    NICU Now Episode 18: Bed Rest with a High-Risk Pregnancy

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2018 73:36


    Kelli and Jennifer discuss Jennifer's high-risk fourth pregnancy with her daughter, Joy. Jennifer speaks about her experience on bed rest at home and at the hospital and how that led her to writing both of her books. She talks about the depression that can accompany bed rest and the challenges that arise when on bed rest with other kids at home.

    NICU Now Episode 17: Bed Rest with a Multiples Pregnancy

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2018 37:32


    Kelli and Crystal discuss Crystal's experience of giving birth to twins after being on bed rest. Crystal talks about how journaling and working with a musical therapist was helpful during her bed rest journey.

    NICU Now Episode 16: Bed Rest, The Basics

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2018 38:16


    Kelli and Darline discuss Darline's experience with bedrest during her first pregnancy and how that led her to founding Mamas on Bedrest & Beyond. Darline talks about common challenges women face on bed rest, helpful nutritional tips, and how doctors and nurses can better support women on bed rest.

    NICU Now Episode 15: Life Transformations after the NICU: Part II

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 30, 2017 23:24


    While on strict bedrest in 2010, Melissa Hinnant needed something to do to keep her mind and her hands occupied. She decided to crochet her daughter a blanket. Tragically Melissa lost the baby, but she continued to crochet. More than six years later, Melissa is now the mother of three children and is the founder of the multimillion-dollar women's apparel company, Grace and Lace. 

    NICU Now Episode 14: Life Transformations after the NICU: Part I

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 23:35


    Joining us is licensed family therapist Kara Whalin. Kara is uniquely qualified to address this issue because she knows the sorrow of the loss of a baby, the toll of a lengthy NICU stay and the joy of helping others who now walk in her shoes.

    NICU Now Episode 13: Love and Loss in the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 25:29


    In this episode, licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Kara Wahlin, mother of twin boys born at 26 weeks gestation, joins Hand to Hold for an intimate discussion about our worst fears, the loss of a child and how we find a way to cope and eventually heal.

    NICU Now Episode 12: Home Sweet Home

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 35:08


    Leaving the hospital after a NICU stay can feel like jumping off a cliff without a parachute. Parents no longer have the stability of doctors and nurses to rely on to meet our baby's medical needs and answer questions about developmental milestones.  Joining us for a honest discussion about the emotional and physical challenges of caring for a medically fragile child at home is Kara Whalin. As a licensed therapist, as well as a parent who has experienced preterm birth and loss, Kara understands the challenges of a NICU stay on a personal and professional level.

    NICU Now Episode 11: The Healing Power of Music in the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 26:28


    JJ Heller is a singer/songwriter from Nashville, TN. She writes songs for just about every season of life. Over the course of her nearly 14-year career, she has had two songs chart at number 13 on the billboard charts, Your Hands from her 2008 album Painted Red and What Love Really Means from her album When I'm with You. Her husband Dave co-writes, plays guitar, shoots and edits her videos, and manages her career. Together they are raising two beautiful little girls who often appear on her Instagram and Facebook feeds.   In 2014, JJ recorded I Dream of You, an album of lullabies and songs about motherhood. In 2016, JJ committed to donate one copy of the album for every album purchased. To date, JJ has donated almost 10,000 CDs and over 17,000 digital copies of I Dream of You to charity – including to Hand to Hold for NICU families. 

    NICU Now Episode 10: Understanding Developmental Care in the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 33:34


    Parenting in the NICU can be quite overwhelming. One of the first tasks parents face is to understand the role of the many different medical professionals treating our baby. To help us better understand the role of neonatal therapists in the NICU is Sue Ludwig. Sue is a licensed occupational therapist who has been practicing in the NICU at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center for over 20 years. She is passionate about improving quality of life for NICU babies.

    NICU Now Episode 9:The Father's Perspective

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 63:19


    During pregnancy, mothers have intimate, physical bonds with their baby. They are typically a little more excited about the purchase of maternity clothes, finding the softest baby blankets, and picking the best diaper bag. And they usually have sharper images and stronger expectations of the dream of a perfect birth. But fathers have dreams too, and their shattered expectations and inability to keep their wife and child safe during a traumatic birth may be very overwhelming. They may witness their child struggling for life at birth. They may find themselves faced with making critical medical decisions for their child while their wife is still in recovery. They often struggle to support their wives emotionally and find themselves exhausted as they try to balance life in the NICU, work and often other children at home.  

    NICU Now Episode 8: The Girl Who Lived

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 41:37


    In this episode, host Kelli Kelley discusses the benefits and experience of reading to your baby in the NICU with Tom French, NICU dad and c-author of Juniper, The Girl Who Was Born Too Soon.

    NICU Now Episode 7: Reading to Your Baby in the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 19:07


    Across the country, NICUs are now encouraging parents to read to their babies as it serves as an important first step in bonding -- especially when parents are unable to hold their baby in the first days and weeks of life. In this episode, we discuss the research behind reading to our medically fragile children and its tremendous benefits not only for the baby, but the parent.

    NICU Now Episode 6: Practicing Self Care in the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 29:39


    While it is easy to focus all of our attention on our fragile baby, we will be unable to care for them if we do not first take care of ourselves. Guests include Renee Trudeau, author of The Mother's Guide to Self-Renewal and Kelli Foulkrod, psychotherapist and yoga teacher in Austin, TX, specializing in pregnancy and postpartum mood disorders.    

    NICU Now Episode 5: Understanding Your Emotions in the NICU

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 31:17


    In this episode, we talk with licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and NICU parent, Kara Whalin, about risk factors and warning signs of postpartum depression, anxiety and PTSD during and after a NICU stay. 

    NICU Now Episode 4: Finding Your Footing as Parents in the Zero Zone

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 41:32


    Joining us to talk about finding your footing as parents in the Zero Zone is Kelley Benham French. Kelley is a professor of practice in journalism at Indiana University. A former reporter and editor for the Tampa Bay Times, she was a finalist for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for “Never Let Go,” a series about her Daughter Juniper's early birth at 23 weeks and six days. She is the co-author along with her husband of the book, Juniper, The Girl Who Was Born Too Soon, that chronicles their challenges with infertility, and the fear, sadness, exhaustion and joy of their daughter's 196 day NICU journey.  

    NICU Now Episode 3: The Importance of Bonding with Your Medically Fragile Child

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 21:39


    In this episode: Kelli discusses the difference between bonding with a newborn just after delivery and bonding with a medically fragile infant in the NICU. How bonding benefits both the baby and the parent. How parents who may be suffering from PPD may find it more difficult to bond with their baby, and how parents can process their emotions so they can start the bonding process. The benefits of parents being integrated into their baby's care in the NICU This episode is sponsored by Huggies. 

    NICU Now Episode 2: From Powerless to Empowered

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 28:50


    In this episode: How parents can avoid letting stress and anxiety take over and find their footing in the NICU. Advice for empowering yourself as a parent and becoming your baby's advocate. How to embrace your feelings of guilt and inadequacy, for they are normal, but to let go of the expectations you one had for your pregnancy/baby. Guilt about fears of caring for a disabled child. This episode is sponsored by Prolacta Bioscience. 

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    NICU Now Episode 1: You Are Not Alone

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 22:44


    In This Episode: Kelli's overwhelming emotions upon meeting her micropreemie son Jackson for the first time. What is anticipatory grief and what does it mean for NICU parents? What emotions can parents expect when faced with a NICU experience/meeting their baby for the first time? The different ways in which grief and shame manifest themselves in NICU parents. How moms and dads process guilt/grief differently. This episode is sponsored by Prolacta Bioscience. 

    nicu prolacta bioscience
    NICU Now: Prologue

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 25, 2017 6:17


    The NICU Now Audio Support Series is Hand to Hold's podcast for parents who are currently in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The Prologue introduces listeners to what they can expect with the series.

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