[Application of cognitive techniques in the nursing care of mothers of premature newborns in the neonatal ICU].

Introduction: In neonatal units, situations that cause pain and suffering to parents are common. One such situation occurs when a parent develops negative thoughts about the child. These thoughts, in turn, negatively affect the parent-child relationship. Normally, the expert nurse cares for these parents intuitively, based on her professional experience, but without a theoretical foundation such as cognitive theory. Cognitive theory postulates that an individual's emotional response to an event is determined not by the event itself, but by the conscious meaning that the individual gives it. Motivational interviewing and cognitive restructuring are two psychological techniques that allow us to identify, analyse and modify the interpretations and erroneous thoughts that people experience in certain situations.

Objective: To show how application of these techniques can be useful in caring for these parents and helping them to create a strong, safe bond to their children.

Methodology: We selected the mother of a premature newborn. The nurse had observed that this woman had many negative thoughts that interfered notably in the bonding process with her son. After establishing an empathic relationship with the mother, the nurse performed a motivational interview followed by a cognitive restructuring.

Conclusions: Both cognitive techniques are very useful in helping mothers of premature babies to change their feelings and attitudes towards their newborns, thus promoting a strong and happy bond.