Jaxson Harris – son of Jenisa and Nathan Harris (Contributed photo)

With a crash of thunder she awoke to her water breaking and it was time to go to the hospital to deliver her son, five weeks earlier than his due date. New mom Jenisa Harris gave birth to her son Jaxson early and he was quickly transported to the NICU with Dad, Nathan Harris, closely following. September is NICU – Neonatal Intensive Care Awareness Month to honor the families who have a loved one in the NICU and the health care professionals who work to help those babies.

Harris shares Jaxson was born at Mercy Hospital and stayed there for nearly a week, before being transported to the University of Iowa for continued care for about 20 days to allow his lungs more time to develop. She shares what it was like the day he got to come home to Washington for the first time, “So it was a normal Tuesday, we had checked in at the University and we were waiting for doctors to [do] rounds. And our nurse practitioner came and said, ‘I think you’re going home today.’ And I was like, ‘What? We’re going home today?’ I think I told her, ‘Shut up, no way!’ It was a complete shock, he’d been off of oxygen only one day. I thought he probably needed to be there a couple of days just to prove himself. And at rounds they said, ‘If he passes his carseat test you can take him home.’ So he had to be in his carseat hooked up to his monitors for 90 minutes stable and he did great, he slept through it. And that afternoon we were able to take him home. It was scary, exciting. I think I teared up leaving the hospital just because he felt very safe and we were so excited to have him home.”

Harris says at times it was stressful and scary to have a baby in the NICU, but advises others with similar experiences to lean on family and friends for help and support, “You will get out. It feels very long and lonely. And it is stressful, just cling to your friends and family, and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Encourage people to bring you meals, and just any way they can, come visit you because it does feel lonely. And it does feel like you do the same thing everyday. And there is end in sight and you’ll get to bring your sweet baby home. Just be thankful that we have such amazing hospitals so close, the University is known for its NICU care so we just felt like we were getting the best care for our son.” She also encourages people who know people in the NICU to offer help by either preparing meals or assisting with gas gift cards for the trips back and forth from the hospital, or simply a message can brighten a day.

The little boy who was a bit blue and five pounds 12 ounces at birth is now over eight pounds, and last week went with his mom to visit the staff who helped care for him in the NICU. Listen to Jaxson’s full story below.