Parents at the intensive care unit
Out of ordinary madness
The birth of your child is one of the most important experiences of your life. The transition to parenthood is a major challenge, even with a normal birth. However, if the birth was accompanied by worries and a life-threatening situation for the mother or the child, parents are often overwhelmed with their worries and fears.
No parent is prepared for a premature birth, a congenital heart defect, another illness, or to visit the baby on the intensive care unit. The ups and downs during the stay on the intensive care unit, the worries about survival and the lack of closeness to the newborn leave their mark on the parents.
Sometimes you hardly recognize yourself and maybe you hear from friends or colleagues: "You have changed, I'm worried about you!" This mood is a normal reaction of your psyche to your experiences. Studies show that after a stressful birth and time in the intensive care unit, about 77% of the mothers develop post-traumatic stress disorder. This can be still felt up to four years after birth.
After the intensive treatment
After intensive care, parents often report...
- ... that they often feel unconcentrated, exhausted and tired
- ..that they have changed since their child was admitted in intensive care and sometimes do not recognize themselves.
- ...that the experiences after the birth and the stay at intensive care unit often go through their mind without control
- … that the visits to the pediatrician or follow-up consultation are very emotional.
- ... that they go through phases of loss of appetite or sleeping difficulties
- …. that sometimes they have the impulse to cry, but no tears come.
- …. that even on small occasions, tears come to their eyes without them being able to control it.
- …. that they feel weak and empty.
Crisis Intervention: Hope for the Parents
Parents who have to deal with a birth crisis and the intensive care phase do not need classic psychotherapy in the narrower sense, but rather crisis intervention.
The difference its easy to describe. Psychotherapy is about working through past experiences that are currently causing you problems, such as childhood conflicts that lead to couple conflicts for example.
Crisis intervention is about a current crisis that has thrown you off track on your life path. In this form of psychological support, we give you a secure framework in which we can classify your experiences with you so that you can find balance and a stable ground in your life again.
We offer you support at a time when your ground is disappearing from under your feet. With us you will find a quiet atmosphere that you need to relax and leave the noise and hustle of the intensive care unit behind.
Since we have been following children who have spent their first months of life in an intensive care unit for 20 years, we know about the situation of your child. The situation during intensive care units and even after discharge are not easy to deal. Crisis intervention has proven to be effective on these situations.
Through early and targeted interventions, the trauma rate in mothers could be significantly reduced, the well-being improved and psychological health promoted. If you are currently reaching your limits, do not hesitate to contact us.
Photo by zaya odeesho on Unsplash
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