Why NICUs Should Provide Books to Every Baby

Trigger warning: child loss

When my premature twins arrived three months early, I found myself grappling with overwhelming feelings of guilt and inadequacy as a mother. Their stay in the NICU was marked by constant medical uncertainty, leaving me unable to engage with them in typical ways, including holding them for months on end. Despite my responsibilities shifting to healthcare professionals, one way I could still connect with my babies was through reading. I read to them before surgeries and every night before I left the hospital. I even read to my firstborn son, Noah, in his final moments as he succumbed to complications from necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).

Research supports what we often intuitively sense: reading has neuroprotective benefits for infants. When parents read to their babies, they foster long-term cognitive, language, and social-emotional growth. The act of reading creates a comforting bond that is essential for families in the NICU. Additionally, engaged NICU parents often feel more empowered to take an active role in their baby’s care.

The advantages of reading extend beyond the infants; it also helps NICU parents. Books can provide a sense of normalcy amid the chaos of hospitalization. Reading together creates lasting memories, particularly when the stories resonate with their current situation or are favorites from their own childhood.

After losing Noah, I was eager to find ways to keep his memory alive. I recognized how vital reading was for our family’s emotional health during our time in the NICU. My family wanted other NICU parents to experience that same bond through reading. With the support of a wonderful community, we established a giving library at our NICU, donating thousands of books so that each family could receive a new book to keep each week during their baby’s stay.

Leading NICUs already ensure that mothers have access to breast pumps and that preemies receive human milk; they should also provide families with storybooks. Reading together is an effective and cost-efficient method to enhance neuroprotective care, strengthen parent-baby bonding, and support NICU families who are seeking ways to nurture their child. Storybooks should be regarded as a vital resource in the NICU, not only for the immediate benefits they offer infants and parents but also for their potential to create lifelong readers. By promoting reading in the NICU, we can help families cultivate a daily reading habit.

Having an infant in the NICU is often a transformative experience, and books can aid families in navigating the trauma. Reading with my twins helped us cope with their challenging diagnoses and the anxiety that accompanied our NICU journey. In our final moments with Noah, we pressed his handprints into his favorite books, and today, we read those same stories to his siblings, who enjoy seeing their hands next to their brother’s prints.

10 Favorite Books for NICU Reading:

Wherever You Are My Love Will Find You by Sarah Johnson
You Are My I Love You by Emily Carter
The Little Engine That Could by Jamie Matthews
Goodnight Moon by Alice Turner
All the World by Lisa Parker
On the Night You Were Born by Sarah Johnson
The I Love You Book by Tom Smith
You Are My Sunshine illustrated by Emily Carter
The Crown On Your Head by Sarah Johnson
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star illustrated by Emily Carter

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In summary, providing books to NICU families is not just a simple gesture; it is a powerful tool that fosters connection, supports development, and offers comfort during a challenging time. Establishing a reading culture in NICUs can have lasting impacts, nurturing both the infants and their families.

Keyphrase: NICU books for babies

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