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Stephanie Roberson’s son Myles spent 87 days in a neonatal intensive care unit after being born at 25 weeks and six days. Roberson is sharing her experience through Motherly’s Mothering America column with the Chamber of Mothers, drawing attention to gaps in paid leave, insurance coverage and mental health care for NICU families.
Stephanie Roberson is using her experience as a NICU parent to call attention to the financial, workplace and mental health support families can lack after a premature birth. Her son, Myles, was born at 25 weeks and six days and spent 87 days in the neonatal intensive care unit, according to an account published by Motherly in partnership with the Chamber of Mothers.
Roberson said her pregnancy had appeared normal until her water broke while she was putting her two-year-old to bed. She was 24 weeks pregnant. Her doctor advised her to go to a hospital with a higher level of neonatal intensive care, where she stayed on bed rest for 13 days before going into labor. Myles was born soon after she reached the delivery room.
Roberson said Myles stopped breathing multiple times a day for 77 days, a complication of prematurity that was treated with caffeine and sometimes physical stimulation. He did not need surgery or intubation, she said. After 87 days in the NICU, he was discharged; by 12 months, Roberson said, he had caught up on all milestones and was ahead on some. She describes him as a thriving four-year-old.
The family’s experience also carried substantial costs. Roberson said the bill for Myles’ care approached $1.5 million, while her insurance left her responsible for $1,300 of her deductible. The article says that travel, parking, meals and childcare can add further expenses for families with a baby in intensive care.
The Support NICU Families Need
Roberson’s account points to how a medical crisis can also become a leave, insurance and household-finance crisis. Parents may need to spend long periods at a hospital while maintaining care for older children, meeting work obligations and handling costs beyond medical bills. Roberson said she had a supportive partner, a job and access to paid leave—advantages she recognized were not available to every family.
The policy figures cited in the Motherly report describe a patchwork of support in the United States. It says 14 states and Washington, D.C. have enacted paid family and medical leave policies, and about 27% of workers have access to paid family leave. The report also notes that eligible workers may receive up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, but parents can use much of that time while a baby is still hospitalized. These figures are presented as context for Roberson’s advocacy, not as details specific to her family.
The article also raises the mental health burden on parents witnessing medical uncertainty and emergencies. Roberson said she worked through her experience in therapy and developed post-traumatic stress disorder. Her story highlights a gap between the support some families can access and the resources others may need during and after a NICU stay.
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From Premature Birth to Advocacy
Roberson said the sudden onset of labor left her frightened and uncertain about whether a baby born so early could survive. At the hospital, a neonatologist discussed possible outcomes. She began reading about prematurity and its potential complications so she could better understand what doctors were telling her and advocate for her son.
During the NICU stay, Roberson also saw other families facing difficulties. She recalled mothers dealing with insurance denials and a parent who had to work out how to travel home, return to a job and care for an older child after an unexpected delivery away from home. The article presents these memories as Roberson’s observations, not as independently verified accounts of other families’ cases.
Motherly describes Mothering America as a recurring column produced with the Chamber of Mothers, sharing mothers’ stories as part of an effort to improve support and care for families in the United States. Roberson’s account places her family’s experience within that broader advocacy project.
“I was just trying to learn as much as I possibly could, to be the best advocate that I could for him.”
— Stephanie Roberson, as quoted by Motherly
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Gaps in the Available Details
The source account does not specify what policy changes Roberson is seeking, which organizations or lawmakers she is working with, or whether she has announced a campaign or legislative proposal. It also does not provide a publication date in the supplied material, making the timing of the column unclear.
The reported statistics on paid leave, medical costs and untreated perinatal mental health conditions are presented in the article, but the supplied text does not identify the underlying studies or their publication dates. The figures should be understood within the source’s stated contexts, not as a current independent assessment. Details about the other NICU families Roberson describes are also limited to her recollections.
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What Roberson’s Advocacy Seeks
The source establishes that Roberson is speaking publicly about the support NICU families need, but it does not report a specific next event, proposal or policy decision. Further developments to watch for include whether she or the Chamber of Mothers sets out concrete requests on paid family leave, insurance protections or access to mental health care, and whether policymakers or health systems respond.
For now, the reported development is the publication of Roberson’s story as part of Motherly and the Chamber of Mothers’ recurring column. The article does not say when additional advocacy steps will be announced.
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Key Questions
How long did Myles spend in the NICU?
According to his mother’s account in Motherly, Myles spent 87 days in the neonatal intensive care unit after his premature birth.
How early was Myles born?
Roberson said she went into labor at 25 weeks and six days of pregnancy. Her water had broken 13 days earlier, when she was 24 weeks pregnant.
What support gaps does Roberson’s story highlight?
The account describes challenges involving paid leave, insurance costs, travel and childcare expenses, and mental health care. Roberson said her own access to paid leave and family support helped her manage the experience.
Has Roberson announced a specific policy proposal?
Not in the supplied article. It describes her advocacy for mothers and babies but does not name a specific bill, campaign or policy request.
How is Myles doing now?
Roberson said Myles had caught up on all developmental milestones by 12 months and is now a thriving four-year-old.
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