[Submitted Question]

. There were some complications during my son's birth and he had to be revived. He seems fine now but I can't help worrying that the lack of oxygen might have impacted his brain. The constant worry makes it difficult to enjoy my baby. Any advice would be appreciated.

Anne O., Tennessee

[WombToBloom]

I presume that you’ve talked to the pediatrician and the neurologists already? Have they indicated that he is fine or that you’ll have to wait and see if there are residual effects of the oxygen deprivation? If they’ve told you he is fine, maybe you need a second opinion to put your mind at ease. And that is totally fine. This is your baby’s life and health you’re talking about – do whatever is necessary to make sure he is taken care of appropriately. If they’ve told you that they won’t be able to ascertain the permanent effects until he is a bit older, you can still get a second opinion. And if the second opinion is similar, then I think I might talk to the pediatric neuro specialist about developmental milestones to watch for and whether or not there is anything you can do to encourage or assist in that development. Then, at least, you can feel like you’ve got some goals to look for and shoot for – because it’s my guess that the unknown nature of this all is causing you the anxiety. Once you know if there’s a problem, you can spring into action and regain some control of the situation. So, maybe until that time, do whatever you can to grasp a tiny bit of control back so that you can enjoy this precious time with your baby.