There are a lot of good books on prematurity available. I had several, but there were 2 that I referred to again and again.
- Preemies: The Essential Guide for Parents of Premature Babies (by Dana Wechsler Linden, Emma Trenti Paroli, Mia Wechsler Doron M.D. )
This book was my “medical bible” when Aidan was in the NICU. I read it from cover to cover and referred to it often in his 15 weeks in the NICU. I also found myself referring to it several times in the first few months home. This has the most detailed (yet easy to understand) medical explanantions of most of the things your child may encounter in his/her NICU stay.
- Parenting Your Premature Baby and Child: The Emotional Journey (by Deborah L. Davis and Mara Tesler Stein)
This book was not as detailed, medically speaking as the one above, but it delved deeply into many of the emotional issues that may surface while your child is in the NICU and also when he/she comes home. It contains lots of interviews with other parents of preemies and it addresses a wide array of topics such as handling the one-step-forward-two-steps-back preemie dance, grief at the premature birth experience, anxieties about care, worries for the future, feelings about separation and having others taking care of your child, the emotional problems the experience may create in your marriage and your other relationships. This is a crucial book to have.