Awareness Events & Other Upcoming Events

October is an important month for me.  Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness, as well as Domestic Violence Awareness are very personal to me.  Yesterday, October 15th, there were 2 big events that happened in remembrance of many, many babies that have gone too soon. 

My friend, mentor, and the founder of Stillbirthday, Heidi Faith, released hundreds of little floral seeded hearts (each had a beloved baby's name handwritten onto it), at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri.  I am honored that my baby's name was included on one of those tiny hearts.  There was also the international Wave of light.  People around the world lit a candle in remembrance of their (or a friend's/loved one's) baby (or babies) that they lost too soon.  My Facebook newsfeed was filled with beautiful candles!

Today I was able to take my daughters to a 'Take Back The Night' event.  We heard an amazing speaker talk about sexual assault that she's personally experienced, and the lasting effects that it has had on her.  We made signs, marched, and raised awareness in our community. 

Tonight, I am so proud of my actual community, as well as my Facebook community.  I'm honored to know many caring, selfless people!  I'm looking forward to the upcoming months!

Additionally, A Joyful Journey will be hosting a number of classes from now through December in our community!  This is a great opportunity for anyone interested to get to know our doulas better!

Here's what we have scheduled so far!   Each class is $10/person.

In addition to this, I will be hosting a Breastfeeding Basics class, as well as a Pregnancy and Infant Loss Support group soon.  Keep checking back in for updates! 

Warmly,

Andrea

Fundraisers

It's been a wild, crazy couple months at A Joyful Journey.  We have been busy with school, fundraisers, clients, and of course lots of beautiful babies.  Andrea and I have been super busy at Joliet Junior College and Midwives College of Utah.   Andrea is working tirelessly full time and making excellent grades.  I too have been enjoying immersing myself into school.  I'm proud to say that halfway through my first trimester and I've got straight A's! We are enjoying our studies and have been getting quite a few new, amazing clients.

We recently hosted our 2nd Annual Parenting Fair in New Lenox.  We were able to raise $1000 for Guardian Angels in Joliet!!  The money will go to Groundworks programs to help women and children who are victims of domestic violence.  This program is near and dear to our heart. Andrea herself, has benefited from these programs as a child.  Sadly, it was a rainy day on the day of our event but the limited amount of people who came out, really surprised us with their generosity.  We are so grateful to all the volunteers and participants who helped make this fundraiser a success!  A special shout out to my Mom, Donna who has volunteered many hours both years to help us.

In addition to our Guardian Angels fundraiser, I hosted an online fundraiser for the Coalition for Illinois Midwifery.  We had our "party" on Facebook and it was a HUGE success. I never realized how much fun an online party could be!  You can play hostess in your jammies, ooh and aah over fun clothes with friends, and raise a lot of money and awareness! We sold $2700 worth of LuLaRoe and our fun party was able to donate about $500.  I am so proud of this.  I could not have done it without all my wonderful friends and fellow birth professionals who shared the event, and bought some adorable leggings.  I even got my sister-in-law from Singapore to donate. (Love you Becky) In case you were wondering about how to donate or for more information:  The Coalition for Illinois Midwifery is an umbrella organization.  This includes the Illinois Friends of Midwives consumer group and the Illinois Council of Certified Professional Midwives. We are trying to raise funds/awareness for a Bill to be passed that would legalize Certified Professional Midwives in Illinois.

Check back on A Joyful Journey's blog in a couple days for more information about our Fall/Winter classes we will be offering!

New Seasons

There is a chill in the air, the newly fallen leaves crunch under my feet, and it smells like "fall" outside.  I used to hate fall.  The start of fall was always a reminder that a freezing cold Chicago winter was just a few shot months away (if the cold held out that long).  Shorter colder days, less sunshine... not a recipe for happiness in my eyes.


Fall was always my moms favorite season.  She loved the changing colors of the trees, the falling leaves, the chilly sweater weather, all of it.  After she passed away, fall always brought her back to me a little.  Her memory seems more alive during this season.  So as the years pass (this is the 6th fall without my momma) I look forward to and embrace the season that I once hated.

It seems so fitting that Domestic Violence Awareness month is in October.  I feel like it was made especially for her.  If only she were the only victim of domestic violence.  Unlike so many other women who have died at the hands of their abusers, my mom escaped my dads grasp, she survived.  At least physically, she survived.  The trauma that years of abuse caused my mom, stayed with her until she died of a drug and alcohol overdose in February 2010, just 2.5 years after my dad passed away.

It is our honor to be hosting our 2nd annual Parenting Fair to kick off Domestic Violence Awareness Month. All proceeds from the parenting fair will be donated to this program, to help families in Joliet and surrounding areas get out of abusive situations, overcome, and not just survive, but thrive!  I hope that many of you reading this can come out and help us support this amazing, life changing program!

Warmly,
Andrea

Amazing Things!!!

I'm so excited to be in the line of work that I'm in!  Being a birth and postpartum doula is an amazing job.  I may be biased, but I think we get the best clients EVER!  As Cathy begins midwifery school this fall, I'll be taking classes at my junior college to get the credits that I need to add IBCLC to the end of my name.  All the while, our main focus is to provide the best support possible to our pregnant, birthing, and postpartum clients.  As a CLS, who is not working under an IBCLC or in a hospital setting, my assistance to our breastfeeding clients can only go so far.  So, it only makes sense for me to continue my education to better serve our amazing clients!

In other news, 2 weekends ago I spent 3 days in beautiful Kearney, MO., with some of the most amazing women (and a few men) that I had ever met.  I'll spare you all the details here, but you can read about my experience on my personal blog, here: Andrea's Short Stories 

Being a birth & bereavement doula, I get tagged in Facebook posts semi-regularly, about a mom in the area, looking for support after suffering a loss.  I have several friends who have had losses, and I myself lost my very first baby, almost 14 years ago. It's something that happens all too often, more often than people think, because we don't talk about it.  But we don't forget, and it never goes away.  I feel this strong calling to start a loss support group that's not in a hospital setting.  A safe place for mothers and fathers to come to, to grieve, to share, to hope.  I truly hope to get a group up and running within the next few months.

Cathy also was able to spend a weekend recently, with some amazing midwives, learning all about midwifery type things. ;)  You'll have to ask her about.  I have no clue.  All I know is that she loved it.

Now, for the event of the year.....
Cathy and I are working hard to create a fundraiser event that is BIGGER AND BETTER than last year!  Last year we hosted a vendor fair and the proceeds were donated to Groudwork Domestic Violence Program.  We raised almost $800.  It was a ton of fun.  We had face painting and a bouncy house for the kids!  We had shopping!  We had food!  We had guest speakers!  However, we didn't get a ton of traffic.

How awesome would it be if we could double... or maybe even triple the amount that we raised last year!  Think about it.  This program is providing shelter to women escaping abusive relationships.  It's providing counseling, advocacy, legal resources, even basic necessities like food and toiletries. How amazing would it be to be a part of changing helping victims of domestic violence to become survivors!  But we can't do it on our own.  We need help.  We need vendors!  We need attendants!  We need volunteers!  We would like our vendor event to be focused on parenting resources this year, but we're having trouble finding vendors to fulfill those rolls.  We're thinking car seat safety techs, swim safety, speech therapy, family counseling, children's clubs, children's toys or clothing, and the likes.  We would love to hear any ideas!  For further info please email me at myers.andrea79@yahoo.com  Thanks for your help!

Warmly,
Andrea

A First of Many!!!

Last Saturday, October 17th 2015, something amazing happened at New Life Church in New Lenox, IL.  

Something that Cathy & I had been working tirelessly to organize and promote for the past 6 months.  Last Saturday, our very first fundraiser took place!  The fundraiser was for our local domestic violence program called Groundwork!

Even though we raised a decent amount  of money ($656.55 after expenses), so much more was raised besides funds that day!

You see, my mom was a victim of domestic violence...

my dad was her abuser...

and myself and my siblings were raised in a violent upbringing.

Last Saturday, we got to raise awareness and raise our voices.  

We know that silence hides violence, so we stood together and spoke out against domestic violence!

Our speakers consisted of myself, my brother Jake, the Groundwork Program Director Amirrah, Groundwork client Sarah and my friend Angelica.  We each had different stories to tell...

...I was able to tell the story of my traumatic birth, which my mom and I both nearly lost our lives, as a result of that day....

...My brother Jake talked about what it was like for him as a little boy, growing up seeing our dad beat our mom... and fearing for our lives.  He spoke about the struggles that he still faces today... and the importance of good male role models in our children's lives...

...Amirrah shared with us the importance of the Groundwork program in our community and her hopes that one day there won't be a need for such a program...

Sarah spoke about her experience with a boyfriend (who hit her for the first time by back handing her as he drove them someplace)... she said she was so stunned that she apologized to him and kept telling herself that they would be okay... however, the abuse continued and escalated for years before she finally left him for good.... and it seems like a miracle to me that she survived the things that he put her through...

... Angelica talked about a relationship that she got into when she was 15 or 16.  Her boyfriend was mean and controlling... but had never hit her... until he did.  Only, the first time that he hit her wasn't just a slap (whatever that means)... He brutally beat her... to the point where she was covered in blood and had to be hospitalized at 16 years old....

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE knows no class, race, age, etc.  

It can happen and it does happen everyday.

I felt so honored to have been in the presence of so many survivors of domestic violence..

knowing that there were so many more who haven't survived.

Aside from speakers, we made sure to have something to entertain the whole family!  It was a vendor fair, so we had shopping!  

We also had raffle prizes, a jumpy house for the kids, face painting & delicious brunch catered by my sister Jen.  

Everyone had a great time!  

Cathy & I can't wait to do it again (BIGGER & BETTER) next year!

Lots of Love,

Andrea

Celebrating 1 Year With A Bang! Giving Back To Our Community!

This month marks 1 year since Cathy & I became business partners!  To celebrate, we wanted to do something to give back to our community. We began brainstorming a few months ago... maybe we'd host a diaper drive, or a March of Dimes walk, or some type of 5k.  We wanted to do something that related to moms & babies.  

After a lot of planning, I'm so excited to announce that we will be having a vendor fair next month to benefit Groundwork Domestic Violence Program! October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, so we decided what better time to host such a special event?  Some people may wonder, what does domestic violence have to do with moms & babies?  The answer: domestic violence affects many, many mothers and therefore their babies & children.  Here are some statistics on who domestic violence hurts & how.

1. Facts About Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)

• Affects approximately 1.5 million women each year
• Affects as many as 324,000 pregnant women each year
• May be more common than conditions for which pregnant women are routinely screened
• Possibly associated with unintended pregnancy, delayed prenatal care, smoking, alcohol and drug abuse

2.The effects of domestic violence on pregnancy

Abuse is harmful not only to the woman being abused, but also to her baby, particularly if she takes blows to the abdomen. Such attacks can cause fetal fractures and cause injuries to or ruptures of the pregnant woman's uterus, liver, or spleen.

Studies have shown that during pregnancy, an abuser's attacks will generally focus on the breasts, abdomen, and genitals, resulting in serious consequences on the mother, fetus, and newborn and giving rise to maternal mortality and morbidity. It's linked to an increased risk of miscarriage, low birth weight, fetal injury, and fetal death.

Other complications may include:

• uterine prolapse
• antepartum hemorrhage
• premature rupture of membranes
• premature labor
• abruptio placenta
• vaginal infection from forced or unprotected sex with someone who has an infection
• increased first and second trimester bleeding
• headache
• irritable bowel syndrome
• chronic pelvic pain
• increased risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease or HIV/AIDS

3. Domestic Violence in America: General Statistics and Facts

• Women ages 18 to 34 are at greatest risk of becoming victims of domestic violence.
• More than 4 million women experience physical assault and rape by their partners.
• 1 in 3 female homicide victims are murdered by their current or former partner every year.

What are the Effects of Domestic Violence on Children?

• More than 3 million children witness domestic violence in their homes every year.
• Children who live in homes where there is domestic violence also suffer abuse or neglect at high rates (30% to 60%).
• Children exposed to domestic violence at home are more likely to have health problems, including becoming sick more often, having frequent headaches or stomachaches, and being more tired and lethargic.
• Children are more likely to intervene when they witness severe violence against a parent – which can place a child at great risk for injury or even death.

What are the Effects of Domestic Violence on Mental Health?

• Domestic violence victims face high rates of depression, sleep disturbances, anxiety, flashbacks, and other emotional distress.
• Domestic violence contributes to poor health for many survivors including chronic conditions such as heart disease or gastrointestinal disorders.
• Most women brought to emergency rooms due to domestic violence were socially isolated and had few social and financial resources.

What Happens if Domestic Violence Victims Do Not Receive Help?

• Without help, girls who witness domestic violence are more vulnerable to abuse as teens and adults.
• Without help, boys who witness domestic violence are far more likely to become abusers of their partners and/or children as adults, thus continuing the cycle of violence in the next generation.

#1 FACT: Most domestic violence incidents are never reported.

Help change the facts. Speak up, speak out, and make a difference for victims of domestic violence.

Groundwork Domestic Violence Program is a wonderful resource for local families.  I'm so happy that we're able to give back to them.  If you or someone you know is in an abusive relationship, get help by reaching out at: 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

24-HOUR HOTLINE: 

(815) 729-1228

To get involved in this fundraiser event, contact me at myers.andrea79@yahoo.com!

Read my birth story at http://andreasshortstories.weebly.com

Love & Light,

Andrea

1. http://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/violence/intimatepartnerviolence/sld001.htm#2

2. http://www.womensweb.ca/violence/dv/pregnancy.php

3. http://www.safehorizon.org/page/domestic-violence-statistics--facts-52.html