By: Deborah Johnson Wood
A new baby brings much happiness to a family. But that little bundle of joy also brings fatigue, confusion and, in some moms, extreme postpartum depression.
MomsBloom.org, a web-based nonprofit in Belmont, aims to help Kent County parents of infants from newborn to three months old get the support they need to be successful parents.
“We train volunteers who are passionate about the bond between mother and baby—grandmas, moms, empty nesters, social workers. They provide non-judgmental support to parents of infants,” says Sara Binkley-Tow, president. “We're the extended family for the 21st Century.”
The volunteers provide services at any time of day or night, including emotional and physical recovery from birth, lactation consultation, teaching baby soothing skills for screaming infants or infants with colic, meal preparation and light housework.
The group helps families connect to community resources that can include finding a postpartum depression support group or getting help with addictions.
“Our goal is to reduce child abuse, such as shaken baby syndrome, by reducing the postpartum depression and the fatigue,” says Binkley-Tow, 36.
Binkley-Tow, a certified Happiest Baby Educator, infant massage instructor, and certified postpartum doula, began providing services for parents about a year ago as All In The Touch, the forerunner to MomsBloom. That’s when she spent time caring for an infant who slept all day and was awake all night.
“I went in to their home and cared for the baby during the night so the parents could sleep,” she says. “This is not something parents can prepare for. Many parents are worn out.”
She founded MomsBloom with Angie Walters and Alice Christensen last July. The group received its nonprofit status in February, and begins accepting clients mid-April.
MomsBloom’s services will be provided free to families of any income level. Volunteer training begins in March.
Source: Sara Binkley-Tow, MomsBloom.org
Deborah Johnson Wood is the development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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