After so many months of expecting that you are going to have a healthy baby, realizing that something might be wrong can be difficult. You will sometimes have some warning — for instance, if a problem was detected on a prenatal sonogram, or if your partner's OB/GYN predicted that she wouldn't be able to carry your baby to term — but most other times it is a complete surprise.

Witnessing all of the things that happen to a normal baby can be confusing for many new parents, but watching the doctors and nurses surrounding your sick baby can be really overwhelming. X-rays, blood tests, ventilators, and IVs all are things you might see if your baby is sick.

The NICU

If your baby is just a few weeks early or isn't very sick, she might be able to stay in a regular nursery. Sicker babies or preemies born before thirty-five weeks gestation will likely need to be transferred to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). If there is an NICU in the hospital where your baby was born, the transfer will be easy, but it is possible that the baby will have to be transferred to a larger hospital with more advanced facilities.

A transfer can be especially hard because the mother won't be able to see her baby until she is discharged herself. She should be able to see her baby briefly before the transfer, though, and will get frequent updates over the phone or from you after you visit the NICU.

Premature Babies

Although it's common to hear of full-term babies being born at thirty-eight to forty-two weeks, only babies born before thirty-five weeks are usually considered to be premature. Older preemies, also called near-term babies, like those born between thirty-five and thirty-seven weeks, usually do just as well in the nursery as those born full-term.

Your premature baby will likely need to spend some time in an NICU. The length of the stay depends mostly on how early your baby was and what complications she has. A good rule of thumb is that your baby probably will be discharged from the NICU close to her expected due date. So your thirty-four-week preemie might spend just a few weeks in the NICU, while a baby born at twenty-five weeks is likely to be in the hospital for at least three months.

Sick Babies

Being “sick” typically means that your baby is having difficulty breathing or is showing some other signs of an infection. It is standard procedure in situations like this for your pediatrician to examine your baby, order a blood count and blood cultures to look for an infection, and start intravenous fluids and antibiotics for a few days. If all testing is normal and your child quickly recovers, the antibiotics are often stopped after forty-eight hours. Other testing might include a chest x-ray to look for pneumonia or other lung problems, and blood sugar monitoring.

Babies who still aren't breathing after the normal resuscitation procedure described above will need help to breathe with a respiratory bag and a mask placed over the mouth. In many cases, babies respond to fifteen or thirty seconds of “bagging,” but if your child doesn't and she has a low heart rate, chest compressions may be necessary to get the baby's heart beating. Lastly, your baby might be intubated, or have a tube placed in her mouth and down to her lungs to help her breathe. In extreme cases, your baby will have to be given medications to help with the resuscitation.

Birth Defects

Babies born with birth defects might also need specialty care in an NICU, especially for congenital heart defects and conditions like spina bifida. Other common birth defects include hypospadias (a defect in the position in the opening of the urethra on a boy's penis), Down syndrome, club foot, and cleft lip and palate. These conditions can often be managed by your pediatrician in the nursery, with later specialty care after discharge. If you are having trouble coping with the fact that your baby has a birth defect, talk to your pediatrician or look for a local support group for more help. Your baby doesn't have to be “physically perfect” to be perfect.