Intro :)

Hello!

I was on the TTCAL board and stumbled upon this board and feel at home....even though my preemie will be 14 on Sunday.  My story: My DS was born via emergencey c-section at 32 weeks exactly due to severe pre-e and partial placenta abruption.  He weighed 3 lbs, 3 oz and was 16 inches long.  He had to have a blood transfusion when he was born, was under an oxygen hood for 8 hours, and stayed in the NICU for 25 days.  He couldn't figure out how to suck, swallow, and breathe and had a feeding tube for the 21 out of the 25 days he was there. 

For the first few years it seemed like he was always sick with something.  He had constant ear infections and pnemonia.  He had severe speech delays..which we later found out was caused by hearing loss in both ears.  Other than the speech delay he excelled in everything else.  Today he is a straight A student and plays football.  All those early years that he was sick must have really built up his immune system because he is hardly ever sick with anything now.  And he is small no more.  He is about 5'3-5'4 and weighs 130 lbs.  He is growing up way too fast and is still the strong fighter that he was when he was born 14 years ago....

You may wonder why I would be on this board since my preemie is a teenager and not a baby.  Preemies and their parents have a special place in my heart.  Once a preemie parent always a preemie parent.  And I hope that since my preemie is older I can offer a little insight, hope and advice to whoever needs it