“I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for MedImmune. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.”
On two weeks prior to 5/31/10, my water broke at 30 weeks. I was so scared because I knew that my little man was going to be born way too early. They were able to keep him in via bedrest at the hospital for two weeks. After that, I gained an infection and they had to go ahead and let me have him. 
 He was born 3lb 9 Oz and 17 1/4 inches. I was told that no one but my ex husband and I could see him because it was RSV Season.

RSV Season is typically November through March, however because Premature babies are more prone, we wanted to be more careful. Preemies are twice as likely to be hospitalized due to RSV! It is so scary to think about. Over 200 infant deaths and 125k hospitalizations occur due to RSV. Until I had had my preemie, I had never heard of this virus. Preemies are already so fragile. There is no treatment for RSV! Like most  sicknesses, RSV can be spread through touching, coughing and sneezing. This scary virus can live on the skin and surfaces for hours!  After hearing that, you can probably understand how paranoid I was at that time. 
If you notice any of these symptoms- PLEASE, PLEASE take your little one to their pediatrician IMMEDIATELY.
  • Persistent coughing or wheezing
  • Bluish color around the mouth or fingernails
  • Rapid, difficult, or gasping breaths
  • Fever (especially if it is over 100.4°F [rectal] in infants under 3 months of age)
There are also some ways that you can protect your baby, preemie or not- please take notes:
  • ALWAYS wash your hands and ask others to do the same. Personally, you should wash your hands before touching a baby anyway.
  • Keep toys, blankets and toys clean. Maybe keep a container of Clorox wipes around to clean the toys up!
  • Never let anyone smoke around your baby. As I always say "over my dead body". It is common sense as well. Second hand smoke isn't good for anyone, let alone a baby. {EW}
  • Avoid crowds during RSV season. I personally like to avoid crowds when my kids were babies because they can get sick easily anyway.
  • Lastly, stay away from people that are sick. This is another one of those common sense things that us as mothers should always do.
Be sure to visit www.RSVprotection.com for more information, including tips on talking to your pediatrician about your child’s risk factors, data about the RSV season in your area and also real stories of families’ experiences with RSV! I also wanted to share with you that World Prematurity Day is on November17,2014! Do you have a preemie story to share? I would like to hear about it. 
Know the facts about RSV and check out this awesome infographic below!
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  1. Thank you for sharing the symptoms of RSV and some suggestions for keeping newborns protected. My daughter was full term and I was never told about RSV, but I am happy to be a little more informed about it because I do plan to have another child in the future.

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  2. I understand all of this because I was in Iraq when my twins were born and sent home because they too, weighed just a bit over 3 lbs. Scary times and we went through this and we had to monitor them 24/7.

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