Infants in Crisis

Book excerpt: The emotional impact of having a newborn hospitalized in an intensive care unit is immense. The parents' perceptions of the child's fragility and of their role in the vulnerable child's life represent important facts of the crisis in which the infant and the parents are involved. Such early stress marks the child's later development which may include chronic ailments and learning disabilities. This book explores a whole spectrum of psychological questions raised by the birth of medically fragile infants, from the parents' ability to restore a sense of meaning and mastery in the face of the profound challenges confronting them, to the importance of social support and coping strategies, and finally, to the crisis of newborn intensive care in the context of the marital relationship.