A Tribute to Labor and Delivery and NICU Nurses

You may not remember my name, but I remember yours. I remember a lot, despite the drugs they gave me during labor and the emergency C-section that followed. I remember the confusion, the anger, the fear. So many doctors, neonatologists, specialists, respiratory therapists, and best of all, you.

I knew the signs of pre-eclampsia, and I knew 34 weeks was too early for my son. I came in scared and very sick. The room was full of doctors, but I watched you stay calm, and I trusted you. You held my hand when they told me they had to take my baby because neither of us was healthy.

You used numbing spray before my IV and told me I would be okay, and I held onto that. You kept my flavored ice chips coming and found me extra pillows. You made sure the best nurses had me for the next shift.

When the pain got bad, you explained each procedure twice because I wasn't thinking clearly. You worked me through every contraction and repositioned my pillows at least 40 times. You kept the ice packs coming when I couldn't stand the heat of the mag drip. You did not leave my side through 30 hours of labor or my C-section.

You helped my son take his first breath and started his IV when his blood sugar dropped too low. You kept him warm when I wouldn't wake up after surgery. You fed him when I couldn't. You made us an Easter card with his footprints, and you watched over him around the clock in the NICU until he was ready to go home.

You came to see us after delivery just to be sure we were okay, and you told me we would be. I believed you, because you were right the first time. Not everyone can do this work. It is a gift. You may not remember my name, but I will never forget yours.

Thank you, L&D and NICU nurses.