Finding Light in the Uncertain

Being pregnant neonatologists creates a paradox: We have dedicated our lives to providing care that we hope our own babies will never need. As 2 neonatology fellows experiencing pregnancy together, we contemplate stories from our daily lives that reveal the breadth of pain and heartbreak that can haunt infancy. Faced with others’ suffering, we instinctively list reasons why we will not face the same plight: First, most babies are born healthy; second, only a minuscule fraction die soon after birth; and third, our perceptions are skewed by caring for the sickest newborns. Together we wonder, how can we acknowledge the risks we know exist while welcoming parenthood at the same time? How can we maintain our own hopes without distancing ourselves from our patients? Oddly, the pandemic seems an answer to our questions (while raising many others). As coronavirus encompasses the world, uncertainty surrounds everyone. The pandemic might have divided us physically, but the opposite feels more powerful—the crisis unites us in spirit. This is an unprecedented event, and here we are, all in it together. No place, person, parent, or pregnancy is without new questions. We are unified by life’s fragility but also by our ability to find meaning and hope even in suffering and death

Distancing · Pandemic · Psychotherapist · Social distance · Sociology · Wonder · Ethics and Legal Issues in Pediatric Healthcare · Medicine · Psychology · Social Psychology

• Contributions and Sacrifices of Medical Students and Health Care Workers With Family Responsibilities Deserve Our Attention and Respect

  Laura Weiss Roberts•Academic Medicine•2021

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