More and more preemie parents are discovering how powerful a tool blogging can be for both giving and getting support after premature birth. These are not born writers, but rather moms and dads like you and me who found that opening up in a blog was one way to cut through the isolation that is all too often a part of having a preemie baby. In the beginning of your prematurity journey, the idea of keeping a blog about your experiences can feel like adding another to-do to your already overloaded plate. But as you settle into the rhythm of the NICU, you may find that blogging gives you an opportunity to reflect on what being a preemie parent means and to get support after premature birth from a community. Intrigued? Here are four more reasons that parents of premature infants and seasoned preemie parents blog:
A Premature Birth Blog Can Be an Outlet
There are sometimes things that parents coping with prematurity feel they can’t say to the people closest to them. They may have fears they’re uncomfortable sharing or hopes they’d rather not jinx. They may simple feel overwhelmed by their loved ones’ tendencies to focus on medical diagnoses when what they’d rather talk about is how beautiful their babies are. A blog is a preemie parent’s place to speak their mind without reservation – particularly if they’re blogging anonymously. It often happens that what a person can’t say, they can write.
Blogging Can Mean Answering Questions Once
One of the most difficult aspects of prematurity parents must deal with is the barrage of questions from well-meaning family and friends. They want to know so much… what such and such medical terms mean, how your little one is doing today, what a new week will bring, the consequences of a prognosis, and so on. Of course, parents of preemies want to answer these questions and more, but having to answer the same questions from multiple people or field constant requests for new information can be utterly exhausting. A blog written by the parents of a preemie can take some of the pressure off because updates, pictures, and answers are posted as they become available.
A Blog about Your Premature Baby Can Be Your Sacred Space
Many parents of preemies make their blogs public, so anyone can read them, but there are also quite a few who keep their premature birth blogs private (via password protection or invitation-only functionality). Others keep their blogs anonymous and don’t share them with their loved ones because they want a space where they can communicate freely. A blog about the prematurity journey doesn’t have to be a public project – many parents of preemies create blogs that are essentially private venues for their innermost thoughts. That way, they can get support after premature birth from the people who they care about.
Blogging about Prematurity Can Help You Connect
For those parents of preemies who do want to connect with others facing the same challenges, a blog is an amazing way to find other parents coping with prematurity. All it takes is a few comments – or an emailed invitation to exchange links in a blogroll. Many parents of preemies are amazed to find that there are so many others like themselves who are documenting the same trials and joys, halfway across the country or even the world.
If you’re considering whether a prematurity blog is something you’d like to create, remember that you don’t have any responsibility to an audience. Trying to stick to a posting schedule when you’re dealing with an uncertain future and day-to-day ups and downs can take the pleasure out of blogging. Just write when you have something to write and don’t worry if your blog sits fallow for a few days or weeks. Your prematurity blog should be therapeutic and maybe even fun, not just another hassle.
Do you blog about your prematurity journey? How has it helped you? (Please share a link to your blog in the comments so we can add it to our blogroll.)
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