Autonomy
When a baby becomes a toddler, his main "job" in terms of his social and emotional development is to separate himself from his parents and gain more autonomy and independence. His parents can encourage this process by giving him a safe environment and the freedom to explore it.
If a toddler was born premature and perhaps had a medically trying time in the first months of life, it can be difficult for parents to achieve a balance between protecting him and encouraging him to take risks and explore the world around him. Parents may wish to take steps to find this balance. For example, if a child has seizures, it is important to make the home a seizure-friendly "safe zone" to minimize the chance of injury. This can be done by removing hard and sharp objects that may harm a child during the uncontrolled movements that often accompany a seizure. In this, and other ways, parents do not have to discourage a child’s curiosity and activity in order to avoid injury.
Overindulgence and overprotecting
Some parents, after having watched their premature baby go through so much in the NICU, are tempted to overprotect and overindulge their child. For the parents, this may not be a conscious decision; even though time has gone by and their child is fine, the image of their tiny and fragile newborn baby influences them to treat their child with extra care.
In some cases, parents steer their child away from challenges in an attempt to protect them. Unless there is a specific activity that health care professionals have said would put the child at risk, parents should avoid this strategy.
While the desire to protect and perhaps to indulge a child born prematurely is understandable, it is in fact detrimental to the child and can have profound and long lasting negative consequences.