Job advert for volunteer to cuddle babies in NICU

[columbosscruffycoat]

My local health authority has just advertised for volunteers to go and work in the nicu cuddling babies. It’s not a joke, it’s a genuine advert. I can’t imagine any parent would want some random person cuddling their poorly baby. I can’t believe the nhs has come to this. Just wondered what people think about this and whether it’s happening anywhere else in the uk. I’m in the northwest uk.

Parents are actually very grateful for this. We often get asked to cuddle their babies, sing to their babies, read to their babies etc if they can not be there.
We try but it is not always possible to achieve it in the way or to the level that it should be.

I haven't RTFT yet, but my dd (adopted) spent her first weeks in hospital detoxing from heroin, with no visitors. Her mum turned up once but couldnt be let in for reasons.

I'm sure the nurses did their best, but they couldn't cover the need for newborns to have near-constant loving contact, let alone when in pain. Those first weeks are vital and I believe that she is still carrying the scars, 15 years on.

I always thought that if I ever had the time and energy to set up a charity, it would be for volunteer newborn-cuddlers. Of COURSE they're not allocated to babies with loving, actively involved parents. It might shock you how many babies can't have that.

I actually feel quite tearful posting this. It kind of kills me that in our developed society, my baby went through that alone.

@columbosscruffycoat when my nephews were born and in the nicu, my sister was in icu, unable to see, let alone cuddle, her babies. The warmth of a human and the interaction has been proved to increase positive outcomes for poorly babies. Many babies are in nicu because they have been born early and both their health and the mother’s are threatened, leaving many mums unable to be with their baby all the time. This is nothing to do with the ‘state of the nhs’. These types of volunteers have always been used!

Oh love. Sending both you and your daughter a cuddle x

My sister did this as a training social worker when a premature baby was removed from its mother and he had no one else

I would love to do this and I think it’s a good thing. They will vet the volunteers. It’s not randoms off the street and the babies need it

26 years ago I was in for four nights with my 11-month-old, who had pneumonia. He was our only child back then and we were able to ensure that with my parents’ help, he was never left alone. It was heartbreaking to hear babies and toddlers crying and the nurses too busy to go to them. The mothers had other children at home so couldn’t be there all the time. My retired HV/nurse mother said at the time they should recruit volunteers like her, a baby-lover, to be on wards to do the fill-in holding and rocking and singing to these babies and toddlers.

My grandchild lives in another country. I’d gladly be a stand in granny to cuddle a poorly baby - even give a hug to the parents, make a cuppa.

any of these volunteering slots in Surrey?

Why not suggest it to your nearest NICU?

Super sensitive autistic 21 year old here. I have anxiety, depression, OCD and experience chronic stress and derealisation and have multiple disabilities including endometriosis and fibromyalgia, and so many other things that are just too long to list 😩. As you can imagine, this makes my life quite difficult a lot of the time, and it's not always easy because I spend most of my time, extremely stressed 🫠. And despite this, honestly, I spend 75% of my time wishing I had a little baby to hold and nurture 🫠

Logically, I'm very aware of the fact that I won't be ready to have children for a long time yet, but I can only hope that one day, I'll be an amazing mother to my own children 🥹 I have a big extended family, so being around children and babies feels so natural to me, and from the age of 7, we had 3 ittle baby girls bought into the family (who are my cousins and are now somehow 14 and 15?! 🥲🫠).

I can't put into words just how beneficial I think it would be for me, and of course, for the little babies, being a baby cuddling volunteer, especially for the baby's development, and for my mental health too (especially with happy hormones being shared between both when baby is being held).

I often feel motherly instincts (even though I'm not a mother myself of course 😅) and have strong urges to nurture and look after something small and squishy (be it animals or children) 🫠🥹. Sometimes, when the baby fever hits hard, my chest or arms start to feel kind of weirdly empty because it feels like there should be that weight of a baby there (my ex's sister had babies a few years ago and not too long after I held them on my chest, they would fall asleep 😭🫠🥹). It was so wonderful, calm and relaxing and I really miss it 🥺

In reply to your concern though, I completely understand why it may feel weird or wrong for a stranger to hold your baby (I've always thought if I had a baby myself that I would be anxious about letting someone hold my baby unless I knew them first and trusted them). But I also get what other people are saying in the comments about the benefits for both parents, babies, nurses and volunteers.
It's one of them things where if you know the person is safe and trustworthy, it's such a beautiful, wholesome, human experience.

So yeah, I'm thinking of enquiring about volunteering as a baby cuddler somewhere local if possible. My university does let students volunteer at the nursery we have on campus (which I've done a couple of times before and it's so lovely! 🥹🥰), but they don't have many younger babies, and due to my physical disabilities and autism etc, I often get overwhelmed/can't keep up with the pace that older babies play at when they're running around bless them! 🫠😅🥲🥹

I'm always based in the Midlands as both home and uni are in different parts of the Midlands, but I'm really hoping to look into this because I absolutely love volunteering when I have the energy to 🥹🫶🏻

Just thought it might be worth offering a unique perspective ❤️‍🩹

This has been a thing for years! I applied to do it when I was in my early twenties but didnt get through. Babies need all the touch they can get and of course a parent wants to be the one to do it but sometimes they cant .