Tagged With "Rural Docs Help Moms Fight Addiction"
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Maternal Mental Health Awareness
Please see the link below for the MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH infographic for social media ACEs Intern/Volunteer, Elizabeth Najmabadi MPH, and myself developed to bring awareness to Perinatal Mental Health. Thank you to all who gave us support and feedback as well as the Perinatal Mental Health Partnership community partners for allowing me to post organizational logos on the flyer to show where maternal mental health services are available for mothers in Sonoma County. Please share with your...
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Maternal Mental Health (CA) 2019 Legislation [2020mom.org]
2020 Mom Sponsors .... We are a sponsor of the following MMH bills: AB 845: CA Medical Board: Optional Obstetric Provider Mental Health Training – View fact sheet AB 1676: Telepsychiatry Consultation for Obstetricians, PCPs and Pediatricians – View fact sheet We support the following MMH bill: AB 577: Extends MediCal coverage to 12 Months for Moms Diagnosed with an MMH Disorder We support the following Mental Health bills: SB 66: FQHCs- Payment for Mental Health Services when Medical...
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May is Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month [CDPH MCAH]
There is #NoShame in dealing with maternal depression. Asking for help is a sign of #strength. Want to learn more? Visit our resource page to watch videos, download stress relief coloring sheets and find help for women and their families. www.cdph.ca.gov/MaternalMentalHealth #MaternalMentalHealth #maternalmentalhealthCA To learn more click HERE
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Mental Health Care Could Get Easier for New Moms Under New California Rules (Capital Public Radio)
Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP Photo
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Milwaukee doulas ask for the community's help to lower black maternal and infant mortality [Journal Sentinel]
Vanessa Johnson is a Milwaukee doula and registered nurse. She provides doula services — prenatal, and labor and delivery support for expectant mothers — to her clients through A Miracle Happened Birth Services . ... A few months ago, Johnson said, she was talking with some of her colleagues about the same things their conversations always come back to. How the infant and maternal mortality rates are unacceptably high in Wisconsin. And how they're even higher in the African-American...
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Mom's Behavior Affects Bonding Hormone Oxytocin in Babies [psychcentral.com]
By Traci Pederson, PsychCentral, November 1, 2019 Research has shown that a new mom’s oxytocin levels can influence her behavior, and as a result, the bond she makes with her baby. Now a new epigenetic study suggests that a mom’s behavior can also have a substantial impact on her child’s developing oxytocin system. Oxytocin is a vital hormone involved in social interaction and bonding in humans. It strengthens trust and closeness in relationships and can be triggered by eye contact, empathy...
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Mom's Candid Post About Returning to Work from Maternity Leave Will Crush All Your Doubts [Working Mother]
Lindsay Mitchell at home with her daughter Sloan during her maternity leave.
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Mom's Mental Health and the ACEs she brings...the past matters.
May is Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month and this Sunday is Mother's Day. The day is somewhat bittersweet when I think about it...shouldn't every day be Mothers' Day, just minus the fanfare? How can we promote better mental health for moms during...
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Mommy Mentors Help Fight The Stigma Of Postpartum Mood Disorder (npr.org)
Becoming a mother is often portrayed as a magical and glorious life event. But many women don't feel joyful after giving birth. In fact, according to the American Psychological Association , almost 15 percent of moms suffer from a postpartum mood disorder like anxiety or depression, making maternal mental health concerns the most common complication of childbirth in the U.S. And even though these mental illnesses affect millions of women each year, new research shows 20 percent of mothers...
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More Clinicians Need to Address Postpartum Depression and other Postpartum or Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders
“It’s okay to tell me that you’re not okay.” Postpartum depression (PPD) and postpartum or perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) are the most common medical concerns for women after childbirth. Yet few medical and mental health professionals really know how prevalent and serious PPD and PMADs are. There is a great need for better screening to identify women struggling with postpartum disorders. Likewise, more therapists and mental health providers need to know about treatment...
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My son was hospitalized and now he has PTSD
“Grant, do you remember when you were in the hospital?” “Yes… they came to take the blood and I turned into a werewolf.” Original Post It happened quickly. A year ago my three year old had a collarbone fracture, it became infected and within 24 hours the situation was emergent. A week long hospital stay, one month with a PICC line and two months on oral antibiotics. Finally, the labs finally came back normal. The X-Ray was clean. Gillette Children’s Hospital closed our case. But the healing...
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Need 45 Trauma-Informed Practitioners or Clinicians For Study on Using a Brain Regulation Headband-Bellabee Designed To Help Trauma Survivors Regulate Their Brains.
Need 45 Trauma-Informed Practitioners or Clinicians For Study on Using a Brain Regulation Headband-Bellabee Designed To Help Trauma Survivors Regulate Their Brains. All trauma informed practitioners who are suffering with or who work with adults or children suffering with C-PTSD, PTSD, Developmental Trauma, Depression, Anxiety, ADHD & Sleep Disorders are welcome to apply to be considered for this study. We currently have 41 applicants, and applicantions are approved on a first come first...
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New Postpartum Depression Drug Could Be Hard To Access For Moms Most In Need [NPR]
One in nine women in the United States suffer from depression after childbirth. For some women, postpartum depression is so bad that they struggle to care for their children and may even consider or attempt suicide. This week, the Food and Drug Administration approved a new drug that can help, the first drug approved specifically for postpartum depression. While researchers and clinicians are excited about the drug's potential, some foresee obstacles to making it available to women who need...
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No ACEs, low resilience worse than high ACE and resilience scores, study finds
What does measuring resilience tell us about pregnant women who have experienced ACEs? For one thing, it affirms that understanding how a mom-to-be weathers difficult experiences gives greater meaning to her ACE score and what it might mean for her children. That was one of the takeaways from a recent study in the Journal of Women’s Health entitled “ Adverse Childhood Experiences and Mental and Behavioral Health Conditions During Pregnancy: The Role of Resilience ,” says Dr. Carey Watson,...
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NPPC shares lessons learned and results from ACEs screening pilot sites
For Dr. Mercie Digangi, a pediatrician at Kaiser Southern California in Downey, CA, ACEs screening provided a crystal clear before-and-after in how she changed treatment plans for her pediatric patients, she explained to attendees of a December 2 webinar organized by the National Pediatric Practice Community on ACEs (NPPC) and cosponsored by ACEs Connection. Dr. Mercie Digangi One case that turned ACEs screening into a never-go-back moment for her was a three-year-old who was speech-delayed.
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Nurturing Children During Times of Stress: A Guide to Help Children Bloom by Yolo CAPC and YCCA
The Yolo County Child Abuse Prevention Council (CAPC) and Yolo County Children’s Alliance (YCCA) are excited to share Nurturing Children During Times of Stress: A Guide to Help Children Bloom. This guide for parents and caregivers, which we are launching during Child Abuse Prevention Month, contains tips and resources that parents and caregivers can use to promote resilience in their children and themselves. Nurturing Children During Times of Stress explains the effects of intense stress or...
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Opioid exposed Newborns - are we missing the mark and forgetting about MOM?
A recent NPR interview (All Things Considered) with Dr. Joshua Sharfstein , a pediatrician and professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health sheds some light on the impacts of the perinatal opioid epidemic. Yes, babies are born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome and these newborns are struggling, but one must wonder if we have missed the mark on where else to focus efforts? Did we forget about the mother/infant dyad and that prevention and early intervention efforts might...
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Opioid-Dependent Newborns Get New Treatment: Mom Instead of Morphine [CHCF]
Aug 1, 2019, Dana G. Smith, for CHCF When babies are born dependent on opioids, typically they are whisked away from their mothers, put into the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), dosed with morphine to get them through withdrawal, and gradually weaned off the drug—a process that can take weeks. Research now suggests that this long-established standard of care may be the worst way to care for a newborn with opioid dependency, or neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). The NICU is busy, noisy,...
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Our future mothers...
In keeping with the spirit of what 2020MOM launched last week at their Spring Forum in LA...let's begin to make the connection between how Adverse Childhood Events impact our future mothers in terms of mental health. If we want our kids to be okay,...
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Parental Depression and Its Impact on Child and Family Well-Being [CANTASD]
Parental Depression and Its Impact on Child and Family Well-Being On March 9, 2018, The National Child Abuse and Neglect Technical Assistance and Strategic Dissemination Center ( CANTASD ) hosted a Digital Dialogue with Jessica Dym Bartlett, the Deputy Program Area Director for Early Childhood Development & Child Welfare at Child Trends . The conversation focused on the impact of parental depression on child and family well-being . This [ ARTICLE ] document summarizes the conversation...
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Parenting, Menopause & ACEs After-the-Chat Summary: Carey Sipp
Have you talked with friends, siblings or co-workers about Parenting with ACEs while going through the change? Do you have any fascinating facts to share about how your OBGYN prepared or supported you when thrown by midlife, hormonal shifts and emotional residue from traumatic stress? Me either. And it's a shame. A lot of people parent, go through menopause, and have survived a bunch of ACEs. Conversations and information shouldn't be so hard to find. But they are. T hat's the reason we...
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Parenting, PTSD & ACES / Live Chat Event from Parenting with ACEs Series
Our next online chat event is fast approaching. All are welcome. Date: Tuesday, June 13th, 2017 (10 AM PST / 1 PM EST) Topic: Parenting, PTSD & ACEs. Guests: Dawn Daum & Joyelle Brandt are parents, writers, advocates and trauma survivors. Together, they edited the forthcoming Parenting with PTSD anthology and created an online community for parents recovering from childhood abuse. They educate mental health, human service and other professionals about the challenges and lived...
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Parenting with PTSD One Liners & Parenting with ACEs Chat Reminder
Parents with PTSD from ACEs sharing what's hard about parenting while post-traumatically stressed: "Managing the terror around the possibility of everyone being a perp." "How to talk to children about why they won't meet X relative." “There was a point when I would feel completely overwhelmed by something as simple as having to make breakfast and school lunches at the same time.” "I didn't understand that not all parents reacted or were triggered the way I was." "was stone set on not...
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Peer Program Uses Writing as a Tool for Trauma Recovery
For the past several years, a small yet dedicated group of writers has gathered at Pathway’s Peer Support Program in Ashland, Ohio to explore ways to use writing for overcoming life’s challenges, healing from trauma and adversity and building social connections with others. Tapestry of Our Lives is the result of their hard work. The writings in this anthology are rooted in adverse life experiences and childhood trauma, such as physical, sexual or psychological abuse or severe neglect.
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Petaluma Health Center leads effort to link women to services
Sonoma County was one of six sites selected nationally to participate in a CityMatCH practice collaborative to prevent substance exposed pregnancies. In 2012 Rebecca Munger CNM, PHN the Sonoma County Maternal, Child, Adolescent Health Coordinator lead a broad coalition of reproductive health champions who worked across sectors and settings to develop a trio of strategies to reduce substance exposed pregnancies. The first strategy developed with CDC and WHO technical support was a bundled...
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Please stop saying parenting is hard for everyone & read Parenting with PTSD instead
Sometimes, we feel anxious, intrusive, or afraid when changing or bathing or own babies. Sometimes, we feel sick to our stomachs and worried while potty training, nurturing, or disciplining our toddlers. Sometimes, we feel shame-filled and ill-equipped when talking about puberty, body parts, or sexuality because of how and where we were compromised by caregivers as children as in our bodies, homes, and families. P arenting is brutally hard for some. If affection, attention and intimacy have...
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Positive Relationships Can Buffer Childhood Trauma and Toxic Stress, Researchers Say [bostonglobe.com]
By Kay Lazar, The Boston Globe, October 15, 2019 Traumatic events and toxic relationships during childhood can cast long shadows, often damaging mental health well into adulthood. But a growing body of research suggests sustained, positive relationships with caring adults can help mitigate the harmful effects of childhood trauma. And specialists say pediatricians, social workers, and others who work with kids should take steps to monitor and encourage those healthy relationships — just as...
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Harvard study - Postpartum Depression symptoms - not a secret to keep to yourself
Importance of universal screening! The worst kept secret for some women because they are filled with shame or simply don't know things can and will be better! For some it's the shame they're afraid of.....this Harvard study explains why it should not be a secret. Time to get it out in the open. Sometimes just asking a mom gives permission to talk! http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/postpartum-depression-worst-kept-secret-2017020811008
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Postpartum Rage Is The Brutal Symptom Of Depression And Anxiety No One Talks About [HUFFPOST]
By Natalie Stechyson, July 5, 2019 HUFFPOST Many moms are suffering alone. I’ll always remember the terrified looks on the faces of my colleagues as I screamed full-force at an empty bottle and writhed around in a puddle of spilled milk while sobbing. “Trust me,” I said while catching my breath after we finished filming the scene for “ Life After Birth ,” our video series on the brutal realities of new-mom life. “Moms will get it.” [ Please click here to read the full article. ]
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Prenatal Strategies to Support Families in Iowa
How can we build a sturdy foundation for children from the start? This updated white paper from the Iowa ACEs 360 Coalition examines the stress expecting mothers in Iowa are experiencing and prenatal strategies to create the best outcomes for the whole family.
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Preventable trauma in childhood costs north America and Europe US$ 1.3 trillion a year [WHO]
By World Health Organization (photo by WHO/Malin Bring) The findings of a new study on the life-course health consequences and associated annual costs of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) show that preventable trauma in childhood costs north America and the European Region US$ 1.3 trillion a year. The article, published in the Lancet and co-authored by Dinesh Sethi and Jonathon Passmore, Programme Manager, Violence and Injury Prevention, WHO/Europe, looks at the legacy of ACEs and their...
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Prevention: Bringing Baby Home Training of Facilitators
A friend of mine recently referred her grandchild and his pregnant wife to a Bringing Baby Home class, because she noticed that the wife had a horrible background of abuse and at times had difficulty functioning. What the grandmother noticed with this couple was a change in the family dynamics. the couple knows how to get along, the father is engaged in parenting, and the baby thriving. This is really starting at the root of the problem. 20 years ago, Drs. John and Julie Gottman worked with...
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What Is Postpartum Depression? Recognizing The Signs And Getting Help [npr.org]
By Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR, January 28, 2020. Shortly after she gave birth to her son last May, Meghan Reddick, 36, began to struggle with depression. "The second I had a chance where I wasn't holding [my son], I would go to my room and cry," says Reddick, who lives with her son and husband. "And I probably couldn't count how many hours a day I cried." Reddick is among the many women who suffer from depression during pregnancy and after childbirth . "There's this kind of myth that women...
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What We Can Learn From Postpartum Confinement Traditions (Romper)
By Jamie Kenney, March 31, 2020, Romper The idea of staying home after birth, doing little but caring for your baby and healing while others tend to your wellbeing may sound like an unimaginable dream. But postpartum confinement traditions can be found around the world. While the specific rules about confinement vary from culture to culture, the fundamental premise is largely the same: female family members swoop in to care for a new mother, her home, and, when necessary, her baby. Mom is...
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What You and Your Family Need to Know About Maternal Depression [nytimes.com]
For the first time, a national health panel has recommended a way to prevent depression during and after pregnanc y. This condition, known as perinatal depression, affects up to one in seven women and is considered the most common complication of pregnancy. The panel, the United States Preventive Services Task Force, said two types of counseling can help keep symptoms at bay. Its recommendation means that under the Affordable Care Act, such counseling must be covered by insurance with no...
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When Doctors Downplay Women’s Health Concerns [nytimes.com]
“Well, you look like you’re doing great,” my primary care physician cheerfully informed me. I stared at her from the examination table in disbelief. I had just told her that I wasn’t enjoying being with my children and was having trouble doing what needed to be done at work and at home. As a health journalist, I had interviewed dozens of physicians and psychologists. I knew that being unable to live one’s life was the big red flag signaling it was time to get help. I was asking for help. But...
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When getting mom and baby to the right hospital is a matter of life or death [centerforhealthjournalism.org]
The U.S. has some of the best perinatal care on earth, but kids die before the age of 1 here at a higher rate than the most of the developed world. A big part of the problem is that high-risk pregnant women and newborns aren't getting the right care during their time of need. That's a problem lawmakers across the country are increasingly trying to address. Indiana, for instance, recently passed a law establishing a system that rates hospitals on the complexity of neonatal and maternal care...
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When Parents Fear "It's All My Fault"
Many of my colleagues in the field of early childhood mental health work with what are termed "high risk" populations. Children of drug addicted parents, victims of child abuse, and families in abject poverty. While the challenges these families face are daunting, I find myself feeling some envy for my colleagues whose clients are in such obvious distress that the need for intensive treatment of parent and infant is not in question. In my rural, small-town population things are not so clear.
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When Your Kid is Too Good for Brené Brown
Childhood, like literature, lasts." Lance Woolaver, paraphrased from his book, Maud Lewis: The Heart at the Door. Even in the midst of conflict, I have known moments of maternal bliss. I had one just recently when my daughter and I hit a snag. It wasn't one of the ugly, awful or prolonged kinds. That's not due to me though. That's mostly because my kid has a practical, logical and rational nature which does not clash with my more emotional, reactive and fearful one. We are alike enough to...
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Whole People Series & Study Guide (www.pbs.org)
There's a fantastic five-part series, Whole People , done by PBS, " spotlighting the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) through personal and community stories. It explores the long-term costs to personal well-being and our society. While much work needs to be done, there are many innovative developments to prevent and treat ACES. We all play a role in becoming a whole people." It's amazing. The five topics covered are as follows: Childhood Trauma Healing Communities A New...
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Why I'm Passionate About ACEs Awareness
When I was 42, I landed on my butt so hard I couldn’t imagine how it had happened. I found out that the beliefs and relationships I had built my life on and around were all lies, and my world and worldview came crashing down around me. From that place of desolation, at what was rock bottom for me, I had to figure out what was true and not true, what was right and wrong for me, who I was – not who I had become to be acceptable to others. I needed to figure out who was with me and to what...
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Why Intentionally Building Empathy Is More Important Now Than Ever (kqed.org)
Those in helping professions like teaching, social work, or medicine can buffer themselves from burnout and “compassion fatigue” with self-care strategies, including meditation and social support . A study of nurses in acute mental health settings found staff support groups helped buffer the nurses, but only if they were structured to minimize negative communication and focused on talking about challenges in constructive ways. English Professor Cris Beam also studies empathy and wrote a book...
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Why Treating Postpartum Depression As Trauma is Key to Good Care
Most health professionals understand postpartum depression (PPD) and other mood disorders are a serious mental health concern. Raising awareness of postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) is so important for two reasons. First, professionals need to be more proactive with evaluation and diagnosis. Women very often hide their struggle with overwhelming anxiety, worry and depression. Just because a new mom arrives for a checkup, nicely dressed and with her makeup on, it’s not safe to...
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Why We Suck (at Self-Soothing & Self-Care): Dr. Dawn O'Malley
Without yoga and coffee, I'm kind of a jerk. These are my personal "puppy uppers and doggie downers" and prevent me from being cranky, quick to cry, and ready for conflict. Coffee and calming make life more manageable. Humans even seem tolerable. Without them I might veer into hating humans for being so needy which is not a great trait for a parent, partner or a professional. Or a self. My partner says coffee and exercise are acts of kindness, service as promote public safety. In other...
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World Premiere: Stress & Resilience: How Toxic Stress Affects Us, and What We Can Do About It [developingchild.harvard.edu]
By Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University, November 13, 2019 When the stress in your life just doesn’t let up, and it feels like you have no support to get through the day—let alone do everything you need to do to be the best parent you can be—it can seem like there’s nothing that can make it better. But there are resources that can help, and this kind of stress—known as “toxic stress”—doesn’t have to define your life. In this video, learn more about what toxic stress is, how it...
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Yolo Crisis Nursery: The power of partnership [davisenterprise.com]
Sara is a young, pregnant, single mom who didn’t know where to start. There were so many wolves at the door and she had no clue as to which one to take on first, or even if any of them could be driven away. Her toddler son had just been removed from another child-care center due to behavioral challenges. Without child care, Sara was on the brink of losing her job, which meant the family would be evicted from their apartment and forced to live on the streets. It seemed she had nowhere to...
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BBC News: Third of mothers' experience mental health issues
More than a third of mothers have experienced mental health issues related to parenthood, according to an online survey of 1,800 British parents by the BBC Radio 5 live and YouGov. The study revealed that, in comparison, 17% of fathers had experienced similar issues. More than two-thirds of the affected mothers sought professional help - suffering from conditions such as acute stress, severe anxiety and postpartum depression. 'All mums feel like that' Lauren Doyle experienced post-traumatic...
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Beyond Mom: Postpartum depression can impact a partner’s well-being, too [WashingtonPost.com]
Like any expecting couple, Brett Pipitone and his wife, Laura, knew that having a child would upend their daily routine. But no research or planning prepared them for their biggest challenge: postpartum depression. “It was an incredibly stressful situation,” Brett said. After giving birth to their daughter in 2014, Laura found herself “wanting to disappear” and completely disengaged from her surroundings. She’d call Brett at work in tears, and he’d rush home to help. He wound up taking much...
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Busy moms, Busy parents - engage your senses - a meditation aid?
Many of us forget that emotions are one of our sensory systems. Like smell, pressure, sight and hearing, it can go offline and need help to reset. When you are tired, hurting, thirsty, hot, your emotions get disregulated too. A reset (or regulating your senses) can help throughout the day. I just stumbled on the concept of meditation aids. If you're a busy mom or dad, consider an app that prompts you to stop and check in. Close your eyes and listen to a bell ring until it disappears. Those...
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CA announces robust perinatal depression prevention for Medi-Cal recipients
Melinda Coates experienced a tumultuous pregnancy. “I was really mentally upset literally from day one (of the pregnancy),” she says. (Melinda Coates is a pseudonym. To protect her and her children’s privacy and safety, we are not using her real name.) Coates had hoped to get counseling last October, when she was seven months pregnant. That’s when she enrolled in the state’s Medi-Cal program, shortly after she and her abusive husband moved to California, “but nobody was able to get me in...