A Letter To Our Darling Son | Letter 2: A Family’s NICU Story

<p>In the second letter of The Letterbox Podcast’s seven-part NICU Awareness Month series, Katherine writes to her firstborn son.</p><p>He was just two and a half when his baby sister was born and unexpectedly became seriously ill. Instead of the arrival they had carefully planned, Katherine and her husband found themselves spending weeks in hospital, while their little boy was cared for at home, mostly by his grandparents.</p><p>This is a letter about the siblings who are sometimes left on the outside when a baby needs intensive medical care. About the guilt of missing milestone moments, the worry that he might feel forgotten, and the impossible reality of trying to be in two places at once.</p><p>But most of all, it is a letter to make sure her son knows that he was never second.</p><p>Katherine reflects on the eight weeks she missed of his childhood, including one seemingly ordinary afternoon splashing in puddles — and how much that ordinary half hour meant after being away from him for so long.</p><p>Written by Katherine — @drkatherinewrites</p><p>This is the second of seven letters sharing one family’s experience of NICU and serious childhood illness. </p><p><br></p><p>Follow The Letterbox Podcast to hear the next letter.</p>