Parent's experiences of Positive Touch

Cherry Bond

Positive Touch Specialist
Neonatal Nurse

Parent's experiences of Positive Touch
SAM’S STORY Sam was born at 10.12 am on the 29th September 2006 by Emergency Cesarian-Section. He weighed 1.2 kg and had a large number of complications including Jaundice, a heart problem called Patent Ductus Ateriosus, and a very serious lung problem called Pulmonary Interstitial Emphysema. Sam was placed in an incubator and was ventilated for several very anxious and unstable weeks.
	It was two long weeks later that I had a phone call from the Winnicott to say that I could finally take Sam out and hold him. His little head was no bigger than the length of my thumb and I was scared to hold him in case I hurt him with all the equipment attached. We both benefited a great deal from the kangaroo care- it was so important for Sam to have some positive touch at that time and to know we were there for him. Sam didn't like to be changed or handled and was getting really upset but I was shown by Cherry Bond how to massage Samuel’s feet and this positive touch made all the difference in calming him and gaining confidence for kangaroo care.
The day finally came when Sam was taken off the ventilator. I managed to take a quick photo of him before he was placed onto CPAP.
	Samuel was making great progress, putting on weight, and was on CPAP. We were then told he had Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (Chronic Lung Disease) and would need to go home on oxygen. He didn't like being on CPAP as it is very noisy, and he kept pulling it off his nose. Slowly Sam became more confident with being touched and we continued to give positive touch, including a little massage and mouth care; he now really loves to be cuddled and is very sociable.
Finally, we were moved to the High Dependency Unit after eleven weeks in Intensive Care. Sam was put onto low flow oxygen and was doing very well with his breast feeding.
	At long last in January it was time to go home. Sam was discharged on low-flow oxygen and a saturation monitor.
At home Sam made great progress and was off his oxygen by February. After being on the ventilator and CPAP for so long the positive touch definitely helped so much. We encouraged him to play with his food and make a big mess so that food was fun. We gave him a wide range of foods to taste and now he eats just about everything from Avocados to Spaghetti Bolognese. At 9 months he weighs well over 8kg, has two lower front teeth, is a lively and chatty little boy who said 'Dada' this week!
CLICK HERE FOR SAMEERA'S STORY	Many thanks for all your help and kind support- it meant a great deal to us. Best wishes Esther, Gary & Sam

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