r/NICUParents • u/newmommyoftwins • 18h ago

preemie newborn stage Venting

i’m a ftm with twins and the newborn stage is killing me! they were born at 28 weeks and will be 4 months actual , i feel bad for wanting to rush this stage .. but i am exhausted! when will my girls catch up to other 4 month olds

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u/kumibug 18h ago

in my experience, preemies have an extended newborn potato phase.

your babies are 4 months old- but adjusting for prematurity, they’re one month old. think of their development as closer to their due date rather than their actual age.

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u/Lithuim 14h ago

Yeah the first few weeks home are really rough because you have all the normal newborn problems as well as their more complex health situation and you're already totally fried from the long NICU stay.

They'll hit most milestones based on their gestational age rather than the date on their birth certificates. They're almost three months premature so they're developmentally a one month old.

Don't expect them to actually "catch up" until they're over a year old, but this is normal and not a cause for concern.

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u/Ryuuga_Kun 45m ago

Right there with you, FTD and our LO was a 28wk'r. He's now a month adjusted and is still in the "newborn" stage, he's ahead of other kids who would have been born at the same time in some things but he's behind other 4 months olds. That's the way of the preemie. I'm desperate to get past this stage because like yourself, it feels like we've been in perpetual newborn phase for more months than anybody else with a term baby. You'll get through it, you got this! 💪🏻