Empowering NICU Parents Podcast Optimizing Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in NICU Patients with Occupational Therapy – Part II

If you are a current or former NICU parent, you will want to listen to this episode. There are so many pieces of information you receive as a NICU parent while your baby is in the NICU and it continues once you bring your baby home. Tune in to hear great recommendations on how to best advocate and help your child while they are in the NICU and especially once they are home to optimize their neurodevelopmental outcomes!

For our 17th podcast episode, I continued my discussion with Tracey Kondrasuk-Branker a certified Neonatal Occupational Therapist who has over 22 years of experience with children from birth to 3 years.

In this episode, Tracey explains why she started her early developmental online consulting company. We discuss the importance of providing parents with resources and trying to bridge the common gap for NICU families between their time in the NICU and their transition to home.

For NICU patients, their follow-up appointments are vital to their long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes. Appropriate follow-ups also help NICU infants achieve all of their developmental milestones.

We also discuss the importance of finding appropriate support groups as well as other local, state and national programs that will ensure children receive the best care possible and that all parents feel supported. We provide names of some of the trustworthy NICU support groups currently available that will help parents with the common parental feelings of fear, anxiety, and loneliness that occur once they bring their NICU infants home.

We also review how imperative it is that if a parent feels that there is an issues that is not being addressed properly, to never stop advocating for them as well as steps you can take to get the help they need!

Empowering NICU Parents Show Notes: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/episode17/

Empowering NICU Parents Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/empoweringnicuparents/

Empowering NICU Parents FB Group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/empoweringnicuparents

Website Link: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/episode17/

Empowering NICU Parents Podcast

A podcast specifically meant to educate and empower NICU parents as they endure their baby’s NICU journey. We provide you with tangible tips and support from my unique perspective as a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner (NNP) and a proud preemie Mama! Along with sharing answers to the NICU medical questions you have, Nicole will address and support you through the incredibly difficult emotional struggles that only a NICU parent can understand. Tune in and subscribe today!

To start 2024 out, our first episode focuses on marijuana use, its impact on pregnancy, the growing fetus and the child’s future development, as well as the implications of its use during breastfeeding.

Who would have thought that in 2024, we would be living in a time where marijuana use is so prominent and that it would be legal in 24 states as of January of 2024?!?

But, nonetheless, here we are! Because marijuana has been legalized in so many states, there are now false evolving perceptions on its general safety as well as its implications on the developing fetus and infant who are exposed to it either in utero or through breastmilk. In general, the perception of harm from marijuana is decreasing while the potency of marijuana is scarily increasing. Marijuana is the most widely used illegal drug during pregnancy in the United States. And, its use in gaining speed amongst all adult age groups, in both sexes, and in pregnant women.

For our 56th episode, I reviewed the most up-to-date literature and will share the findings from several studies that reveal both short and long-term negative effects on the pregnant mother and developing fetus if used during pregnancy, and its future implications on the growing infant, child, and their transition into the teenage years, and as an adult after prenatal exposure. I will also point out the general concentration of marijuana in breast milk if used by a nursing mother, as well as how long it stays in the breast milk, and how it may impact the exposed infant.

This episode is packed full of useful information and will be ideal for any healthcare worker or for family members and friends who care about a pregnant woman or nursing mother who is currently using marijuana and want to ensure that she is fully educated on the implications of its use on her growing fetus or infant. And last, but actually, the most important, I encourage ALL women who are either considering becoming pregnant or who are currently pregnant and use marijuana on a regular basis, to listen.

Although marijuana use is so prevelant, it is so crucial that we fully understand its potential impact on the fetus and the child’s future development if used during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.
You will not want to miss this one!

Dr. Brown’s Medical: https://www.drbrownsmedical.com

Our NICU Roadmap: A Comprehensive NICU Journal: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/nicujournal/

NICU Mama Hats: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/hats/

NICU Milestone Cards: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/nicuproducts/

Newborn Holiday Cards: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/shop/

Empowering NICU Parents Show Notes: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/shownotes/

Episode 56 Show Notes: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/episode56

Empowering NICU Parents Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/empoweringnicuparents/

Empowering NICU Parents FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/empoweringnicuparents

Pinterest Page: https://pin.it/36MJjmH