Meet Brook. Brook’s journey with Healthier Moms and Babies began when she was 17 weeks pregnant, she had just relocated and had limited support. As a first-time mom, she enrolled in the Nurse Family Partnership program, where she received consistent guidance and care throughout her pregnancy. Her nurse helped monitor her health, provided education on pregnancy risks, safe sleep education and offered emotional support, making Brook feel confident in caring for herself and her baby. After giving birth to a healthy baby boy, Brook faced additional life challenges, including adjusting to motherhood away from family, managing a health diagnosis, and coping with past trauma. Recognizing her struggles, her nurse referred her to Healthier Moms and Babies’s maternal mental health therapist, marking the start of her emotional healing journey.
Through therapy, Brook learned to manage her emotional
well-being, which had been deeply impacted by childhood trauma. She faced challenges in expressing her feelings and struggled with self-esteem, but over time, therapy helped her gain confidence, set boundaries, and embrace self-care. Brook’s growth not only improved her ability to navigate motherhood but allowed her to express herself through art and music. With Healthier Moms and Babies’s support, Brook developed a strong foundation for both herself and her child, understanding the importance of mental health during motherhood. Her story underscores the importance of accessible support systems for mothers, proving that when women are given the tools to heal, they not only transform their own lives but also create a stronger, healthier foundation for their children’s future.
Her story emphasizes the significance of emotional healing and support for mothers, demonstrating how self-care, therapy, and community can empower them to become more confident and grounded parents.
Meet Damilola. Damilola, a 41-year-old mother, found herself unexpectedly pregnant after a decade, leaving her with concerns about her health, her baby’s well-being, and the financial strain of raising a new child. Despite her previous experience as a mother, the 10-year gap left her feeling overwhelmed. During a visit to WIC, she expressed her mental health struggles and anxieties about starting over, which led the staff to connect her with the Healthier Moms and Babies diaper distribution program. This connection brought her a sense of relief she hadn’t anticipated, as she was worried about the financial strain of diapers in addition to other newborn expenses.
Through the Healthier Moms and Babies mobile diaper unit and Hopper Events, Damilola received 50 diapers per month, a critical support that helped to alleviate some of the financial strain. Thanks to this assistance, she was able to care for her baby without the constant stress of diaper costs, ensuring her child grew up with a clean and comfortable start. Damilola expressed deep gratitude for the program, stating, “My baby has never had to go without a diaper, and there has been no nappy rash. It’s been such a relief, and I can’t thank Healthier Moms and Babies enough.” More than just receiving aid, she found a supportive community in the Healthier Moms and Babies team, which gave her the confidence to pursue her long-term goals, including returning to school. The Healthier Moms and Babies diaper program became a lifeline, allowing Damilola to focus on her family and health, while easing the financial strain and enabling her to cherish the joys of motherhood.
Meet Maya. Maya, a young mother facing numerous hardships, found vital support through Healthier Moms & Babies (HMB) services. As she navigated pregnancy and early motherhood, she struggled with grief from losing her mother, legal issues, food insecurity, and limited social support. Enrolling in the Nurse Family Partnership (NFP) program while pregnant with her first son, Maya received crucial education on prenatal care, safe sleep, and car seat safety. Her nurse provided essential guidance, particularly when her newborn had a brief NICU stay due to heart arrhythmia. Through the program, Maya was connected to resources such as WIC, SNAP, and mental health services, helping her address both immediate and long-term needs. Maya’s determination to overcome the challenges she faced was supported every step of the way by HMB services, from the prenatal phase through her postpartum period.
November is Prematurity Awareness Month, a time to focus global attention on the critical challenges of maternal and infant health—challenges that are especially pressing in our community. In Allen County, 1 in 10 babies are born prematurely each year. This statistic stresses the urgent need for awareness, intervention, and systemic change to protect the health of mothers and their babies.
It’s been 30 years since the American Academy of Pediatrics released new recommendations calling for a change in infant sleep practice. Discovering that infants sleep safest when alone, on their back, on a firm sleep surface (crib), the “ABCs” of safe sleep became a shining model of a successful public health campaign as infant sleep deaths declined for 10 straight years to record lows
We are Life-Long Learners. When we decided to become physicians we made an unspoken promise to continue to learn—to do otherwise is to fail our patients. Every time we step into a patient’s exam room we silently promise that we are providing them with the best knowledge we have.
