Capturing your precious newborns - sydney newborn photographer - south west sydney

Celebrating NICU Awareness Month

I have had the pleasure of capturing many precious newborns and their loving families. It is a special sort of magic that you just want to bottle up and keep forever. There is pure joy within each household that I visit, filled with milk-drunk smiles, the best snuggles from big brothers and sisters, and the sweet, silent exchanges between parents saying "we did it". I didn't think I could love newborn photography any more than I already did, until I met Oscar in July and Amira in October. Two very special babies with two very different journeys, but both born into the NICU. These incredible little warriors and their beautiful parents fought so hard to leave the NICU and VERY lucky me had the privilege of capturing and celebrating their homecomings...

This month is NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) awareness month, celebrating and acknowledging the brave infants and their families in the Neonatal Intensive Care Units, acknowledging the challenges they face whilst also honoring the incredible work the nurses and doctors do each day within these wards. To raise awareness, the remarkable mothers of Oscar and Amira are sharing their stories with you.

Thank you Tiahne and Jessica for your raw honesty and bravery. I speak on behalf of everyone who takes the time to read this when I say you are the epitome of what it means to be a devoted mother, you deserve all the joy life has to offer and we wish both Oscar and Amira a lifetime of happiness and health.

Oscar's Story

Oscar was born on 28th March 2023, 11 weeks early before his due date. I went into threatened preterm labour due to dilating at just 24 weeks. I was transferred from Campbelltown Hospital to Liverpool Hospital, where I remained for the next 5 weeks.

We had many Doctors speak with my husband and I during those 5 weeks, including having a meeting with one of the NICU Doctors. He began to discuss the risks of having a baby between 24 weeks-35 weeks and our baby’s survival rate. If I hadn’t given birth by the time I hit 35 weeks, there was discussion of intervening at 35 weeks gestation. This is due to my cervix being open for too long and exposing the membrane, risking an infection and baby being in distress. I did end up developing an infection, but Oscar wasn’t showing any signs of distress, so they decided to just take it day by day, with me being closely monitored and on antibiotics.

This was the most harrowing time of our life. There were many times that I had broken down with fear of the unknown, but knew I had to remain strong for Oscar. I was in the right place and had an amazing medical team behind us.

At 28 weeks and 6 days gestation, our baby boy, Oscar decided he was ready to join the world. He was our tiny little baby, weighing only 1.5kgs. I really didn’t get to see what he looked like, as he was rushed straight up to the NICU. I could hear his soft little cries though and knew he made it into the world safely. But we had a long road ahead of us.

Even though we’d had all the conversations with the Doctors over the past 5 weeks on what to expect during our NICU journey, nothing could have ever really prepared us.

Oscar was hooked up to a CPAP, due to having chronic lung disease. He was also hooked up to a feeding tube as he was still too little to know how to suck and swallow at the same time. He was placed in an incubator that looked like a big fish tank, where it regulated his body temperature and was a safe space for him to do the rest of his developing on the outside of the womb.

On the first day, we were only able to look at Oscar through the glass of the incubator, as he was not strong enough to be held just yet. As the weeks went on, my husband and I took turns in who could hold and cuddle him for the day, as he could only be held once a day, until he became stronger.

It was extremely hard being in such a structured environment, where you couldn’t just pick your baby up whenever you wanted and cuddle him without being tangled up in all his leads that were attached to him. Everything had to be timed around his feed times and cares.

My husband and I went back and forth from the hospital every single day for 73 days. Those 73 days never got any easier in saying goodbye to him, as we went home

while Oscar remained in NICU. A life at home with him seemed so far away.

Our NICU journey was an emotional roller coaster, with lots of fear and set-backs, but it also came with lots of happy times and celebrations, as we watched Oscar achieve different milestones.

I remember crying happy tears the first time Oscar breathed on his own without any oxygen support. The moment he had his feeding tube removed and was drinking my milk from a bottle. When he had his first bath. When he’d gain weight each week and ultimately doubled his birth weight. When he graduated from Liverpool NICU and transferred back to Campbelltown SCN.

All these milestones were huge for us and Oscar and it also meant we were getting closer and closer to him coming home.

After 73 days apart from our baby boy, on 9th of June 2023, we heard the best news that we could possibly get. Oscar was finally ready to come home with us. 5 days before his original due date. We were so ready for him. Everything at home was prepared and waiting for him to use.

Life with Oscar at home has been absolutely amazing and we have been loving every minute of it. Oscar continues to show us what a little fighter he is, as he achieves different milestones. He has just learnt how to roll and has such a personality. He has gone from being our 1.5kg baby to now 8kgs. He is now 7 months old and is happy, healthy and thriving.

I still often think back to our NICU days and look through all the photos. It brings me a wave of emotions, as it was the most difficult and testing thing we’ve ever had to go through. A time that felt like there was no end in sight. But I can now look back at the photos and see just how far Oscar has come and I also feel proud of how strong my husband and I are. He is our little miracle baby.

As we celebrate NICU awareness month, I just want to thank all the NICU Nurses and Doctors for taking care of Oscar. He wouldn’t be where he is today without you. We are feeling extremely lucky. But also, thank you for taking care of me and my husband. For being so compassionate and being there as support when things got tough. For giving us some form of ‘normality’ as his parents by involving us in as much as possible. Teaching us how to change his nappy, doing his gravity feeds through his feeding tube, checking his temperature, helping me to learn how to breastfeed, capturing our first family photos and other milestones, teaching us how to swaddle, how to bath him, how to kangaroo cuddle. These are moments we will forever be grateful for.

To Angelina, you have also had a big impact in our journey, by being there to capture those special photos of Oscar’s beautiful face for the first time when he came home, without being hidden behind all his tubes. They are photos we will cherish forever.

Amira's Story

When Amira was born she came out screaming. Not long after, her screaming stopped and her oxygen levels dropped dangerously low. Akram, my husband, held her little hands and feet while she was being resuscitated by the neonatologists. Watching from a distance on the operating table, I was told that Amira would have to be taken straight to NICU as she couldn't breath on her own. We were able to get a photo as they wheeled her past my head and I gently touched her hand before she was taken.

We were aware that Amira could possibly have breathing problems when she came earthside. We had a high risk pregnancy due to some flagged potential congenital issues that were confirmed at her birth. Amira was born extraordinary with a very rare genetic syndrome. This is a very important part of her story, however we will share more details later on as her journey progresses. During the pregnancy, our care was referred to The Royal Hospital for Women's maternal fetal medicine unit. Here we planned the safest birth for Amira. The NICU at The Royal is a terrier NICU. It has the highest level of care available. This means for extremely premature or sick babies, they are often transferred to this NICU for the best chance of survival.

9 hours after Amira's birth, I was wheeled to the NICU where we were able to have our first cuddle. I cannot express the pain a mother feels when she has given birth but not able to hold and is separated from her baby. Over the next few weeks, it was a roller coaster of progress and regression, trying to get Amira to efficiently breath for herself.

During this time, Akram and I were absolutely humbled by the support and attention we received by allied services and charities. When I was no longer able to be an inpatient myself, the hospital's social worker advocated for us to be supplied accommodation nearby so we could stay close to Amira. We were given the opportunity to asses our mental well-being. The Royal Hospital for Women's foundation provided us with cooler bags to carry breastmilk and a little momento Koala bear for Amira. We were supplied toiletries, journals, and support networks by associated charities during our stay. The most stand-out is the dedicated nurses and doctors that do long shifts and provide the most attentive care to the babies. The nurses in particular were so accommodating with us, knowing us and Amira by name.

This experience changed our view on the world. The holistic support provided to us in the most vulnerable time in our lives is something we feel needs be highlighted in society more. Thousands of families go through the doors of NICUs every year, some months on end. Every parent that walks through those doors has a story. Most of the equipment that is used to keep the babies alive is made possible through donations.

The Royal Hospital for Women Foundation holds an annual giving day in the month of November. All donations in this month support women and babies who need it most during this period. This year, all donations - no matter how big or small - will be doubled. Donations can provide life changing support for families like mine.

These family photos feel more like a blessing than ever. We are in the comfort of our home now with our little girl and she is kicking goals. Though she does have a long road ahead, if it wasn't for the support we had at birth she wouldn't be here and I most likely wouldn't either. Everyday I we are grateful to have her in our lives and I love that I have a momento of our first few weeks at home with her. We will never get this time back and we want to celebrate every milestone she has. Watch this space, because at this rate Amira might conquer the world.