I had never heard of World Prematurity Day and had no idea that 1 in 13 babies in the UK are prem requiring NICU care. The last 6 years I have chosen a different charity each year to raise funds for and raise awareness of prematurity.
In October 2019 Buddy was born, our tiny miracle weighing 845g born at 25 weeks. I honestly thought have a second baby would be different but even after intervention by the incredible St Thomas’s team, Luna-Skye was born at 27 weeks weighing 880g in 2024.
We are so very lucky, we have 2 thriving healthy babies! I often hear the comment 'oh wow, you would never know they were Premature'….But we know and I will always remember.
After a combined 6 months in hospital I will never forget everything we went through for these miracles; the bleeping of hospital machines 24/7, expressing 8 times a day, spending 12 hours a day in hospital often alone, tiny baby cannulas, feeding through a tube, multiple blood transfusions for both babies and ventilated breathing support right up until discharge! All day, every day was a rollercoaster in hospital and you never know exactly when it's going to end.
According to a Bliss charity survey, 96% of parents say having a baby in a neonatal unit impacts their mental health, which is huge.
Dr Frankie Harrison from 'MiraclemoonUK' dedicates her time to support other families with babies in NICU and created 'The NICU Space' app so no parents have to face NICU alone.
As part of World Prematurity month fundraising, for every funded membership (£149) raised, Frankie is opening up 2 additional spaces for parents who need it and yet can't afford it. This is incredible support for someone navigating NICU - I would have loved to have this specialist based community during and after NICU when Buddy was born.
I want Buddy and Luna-Skye to grow up knowing how amazing they are, and helping other premature babies families. Last year we walked round London, this year we are baking so please eat lots and lots of cake to help us raise vital funds that will help support the families of premature and sick babies to give them the best start in life like my babies had!
Thank you X
**All money raised will be split between The NICU Space and Bliss**