Info for Mothers and Family

PREMATURE AND/OR SICK BABIES

Information for Mothers and family

Most mothers agree that having a premature child is the most devastating and traumatic experience in their lives.  I know it was true for me.  I had severe pre-eclamsia and to save my life my son had to be born.   He inspired me to create a device that I would call “The Zaky” and it is proven to help premature babies feel calmer and moms feel as they are leaving a part of them with her babies.

Everything about having a premature baby was the most unnatural experience for me:

• I expected the day of the birth of my son to be the happiest of my life, and instead I was scared, ill, and full of guilt and impotence. It did not matter how many times the doctors and nurses said “it is not your fault” – my heart and soul broke in pieces knowing that my baby was hurting, and I could see him full of monitors, needles, and so tiny that he could fit in my hands.
• I expected to be the primary caregiver of the baby I was carrying, and suddenly I became just “a visitor” of my fragile baby and I had to ask for permission to touch, to hold, to change a diaper, to feed, and even that many times it was denied.
• I expected to hold my baby and when I saw him I was scared to touch him and hurt him more. He was so tiny. Then I realized that I had to finish my pregnancy with him being outside of me, and touching/holding him not only helped him but it helped me tremendously.
• I was supposed to be the one to keep him safe and protect him, and instead I witnessed his pain, his struggle to survive and I could not do anything
• I expected to bring home my baby after giving birth, instead, we came home alone for 5 months, knowing that our baby was struggling to survive.
• I expected to hear my baby cry and be able to console him by holding him, and instead, he was intubated and I could not hear him cry or his precious voice for months, and I could only hold him and feel his skin for a couple of hours a day.
• I expected to learn about how to breastfeed, how to change a diaper, and how to help the baby go to sleep, and instead, I had to learn about lung development, infections, monitors, ventilators, feeding pumps, blood transfusions, surgeries, how to help him survive without life-support machines, and everything I could that would help me help him.
• I expected to show my baby to our family member, our colleagues, and friends, and instead, only few people could meet him in person at the hospital or even at home because we had to keep him from getting sick again for one year.
• I also expected my son to touch and change my life and the life of many, and I did imagine that one little baby now touches the lives of thousands of babies and mothers around the globe!

The Zaky allows mothers to actually do something for their babies, and it helps with the baby’s sense of security and protection.  When moms are pregnant, babies get oxygenation, warmth, nutrition, and protection from the womb, and if the baby cannot breath, get warm or eat on their own then the machines would help them (otherwise they will die), but until the Zaky there were no machines or devices to help a baby with the sense of protection - the protection should be given my the parents, and when you are not there touching your child, then the Zaky has your scent and warmth to help your baby feel protected and calm.

It is important that babies move. In the third trimester of pregnancy is when the baby kicks, moves, and stretches and these develops the muscles and joints to prepare him/her to move in gravity.  When a baby is born early, not only the muscles and joints are not ready for gravity, but he/she tends to associate movement with stress - if he moves there is no womb to bring him back to the fetal position, so he gets stressed – monitors start sounding showing an increase in heart rate, they desat, etc. With the Zaky, the baby uses precious calories to grow while the baby can move calmly. 

The Zaky also helps reduce the association of touch with pain. I noticed that babies desat not when the needle is inserted but when they are touched. With the Zaky, the baby feels a soothing touch that is not followed by pain.

With the Zaky, nurses can provide the boundaries and proper positioning to each baby even when she is attending many patients simultaneously and even when mothers cannot stay with the babies 24/7 to provide this needed protection.

Unfortunately, some mothers are recovering themselves after the birth and cannot visit or see their babies for days, so they  “swap” Zakys with their babies – she scents a Zaky for the baby and she uses a Zaky that has been used on her baby.  This way both feel better as they get closer to each other.

I promised to help babies if mine survived, so I am thrilled to have the opportunity to help your family on my child's behalf.

Feel free to contact me!

Sincerely,

Yamile Jackson, PhD, PE, PMP
President and Founder
Zakeez, Inc.