Ep.25/Breaking Taboos: Navigating Breastfeeding Myths and Realities for Women of Color with Lakshmi Natarajan
Ep.25/Breaking Taboos: Navigating Breastfeeding Myths and Realities for Women of Color with Lakshmi Natarajan
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Note: This transcription has been created with a help of an AI thus errors and mistranscriptions may be present.
Dr. Jill Baker: [00:00:00] Hello, Maternal Health 9 1 1. What's your emergency?
Hi, I'm Dr. Joe Baker. I'm a wife, a mother, a community health scholar, an executive director, and a fertility coach. More than 12 years ago, I was on my own infertility journey. Since then, I've made it my personal mission to help anyone who is on their own journey. to become a parent as well as shed light on infertility and maternal health experiences of BIPOC women and couples.
Now let's begin this week's episode of Maternal Health 9 1 1.
Greetings Maternal Health 9 1 1 listeners. This is your host, Dr. Jill Baker. I am [00:01:00] so thrilled and happy to be with you all today. I have a very special guest. I will say, this guest is a VIP. I say every guest is special, but this is a VIP for so many reasons. We're going to talk about, the state of maternal mortality in this country.
I just came from a birth equity conference on Friday in Philadelphia. And the fact still remains is that the numbers for Black women are getting worse. But Regarding maternal mortality in this country overall, about every 12 hours, just think about that every 12 hours, a woman dies from complications from pregnancy and the number last year used to be 70 percent were preventable and the [00:02:00] new data is showing it's 80 percent of these deaths are preventable.
So just think about that. Think about 10 of your friends. 10 of your sisters and 8 of them, their deaths could have been preventable. So stop and think about that for a second. And this should be an emergency. This should be talked about every single day on the news, and it's not. Those of us, who are in that work are saying, we don't want to be doing this work 20 years from now.
We don't want to do this work when our kids are having children. We want these changes to be made in this country so that women of color do not have to be afraid to have Children so that they can come home. And enjoy one of the best experiences of life, which is being a mother and being at home and alive and healthy with their [00:03:00] child and their partners.
And the reality is that this is not, it just doesn't happen for our black woman, for our sisters. And so the only person that I need to talk to about this is the one and only Shawnee Benton Gibson, who is here today, and I want to give her flowers. And let you all know all the things that she does and all the hats that she wears shawnee benton gibson is the ceo of spirit of a woman Leadership development institute and the co founder of the aria foundation She has over 32 years of administrative clinical and executive coaching experience and expertise in women's leadership youth development reproductive justice Racial equity, individual couples, family, group counseling, trauma, and bereavement.
These skills combined [00:04:00] with her spiritual and artistic gifts allow Shawnee to guide individuals as they navigate the various stages and phases of their lives. Shawnee employs a holistic cultural and spiritual approach to her work and utilizes a social justice lens. as a foundational principle for her service to community.
Her primary healing tools consist of spiritual counseling, vision coaching, psychodrama, sociometry, sacred rituals, energy work, performing arts, and storytelling as mediums to ignite transformation and initiate catharsis. Shawnee is the subject of the Emmy nominated documentary, This Phenomenal Film. And if you haven't seen it, you need to see it.
Everyone needs to see it. Follows her and her family as they fight for reproductive justice in the wake of the [00:05:00] tragic and preventable death of Shawnee's eldest daughter, Shamani Makiba Gibson, due to a birth related pulmonary embolism. According to Shawnee, activism is a labor of love and liberation. So without further ado, Shawnee, welcome to Maternal Health 9 1 1 for the first time.
Shawnee Benton: so much for having me. It's an absolute pleasure to co create this conversation. I'm excited and percolating over here because I know that as the conversation unfolds, Somebody is going to be blessed. And that includes two of us, the two of us, not because I'm so fantastic, but what I trust and believe is that when we're focused on living our purposes, when we are committed to being authentic, when we're telling the truth, even when it's painful or when it's scary or when folks will come at us that we'll be covered.
And that in those endeavors [00:06:00] and in that purpose work. So thank you for creating this platform for us to talk about this. And I know this conversation will save lives as people tune in and learn what they need to learn and do what they need to do. And
Dr. Jill Baker: thank you for supporting me on this, new platform, by myself.
And, you and I, talked a couple months ago and we haven't talked for a while. And it would just. So great to, get your feedback and support and just let me know that I'm needed in this space. And hearing that from you was everything. I had such a hard day that day. I don't know if you do that or not, might have.
And once I talked to you, I said my heart and my soul. So thank you for, pouring into me and giving me that at that moment. So the first question that I want to ask you is, this is the first question I asked to all the guests on [00:07:00] this show. And from your perspective and all of your hats and your lived experience, Why is maternal health an emergency
Shawnee Benton: in this country for me?
As we open up the way for the conversation is the lost mothers. I think about my own daughter, of course, Shamani and tomorrow's Thanksgiving. I will be with my grandchildren. An aria and Kari and what comes up always is that. My daughter's not here to celebrate this holiday with the family and to co create with us these moments.
I think about Tori Bowie. I think about Elena Boone. I think about Amber Isaac. I think about Shalon Irving and just all shy Asia Washington. And then there was a recent death on November 13th here in Brooklyn of Christine Fields. I think about their babies that didn't make it. Because some mothers transition with their babies [00:08:00] and then also the babies that did that.
Their lives are forever shifted because they don't have the energy and the presence of their mothers in them. So that makes it an emergency already. The ripple effect like we talked about in the aftershock documentary and why it's called aftershock is why this It's emergency. All the families and communities, all of the creative flow the purpose that they all had when they were living all of that being taken away and the impact that has on society because these moms are not present.
It also is an emergency because for me, it's an existential crisis, not safely. Give birth. If we have to worry about our lives being snuffed out or us being traumatized to such a degree, mentally, spiritually, emotionally and physically, that it makes us imbalanced in the way that we show up in life as traumas do then We're in trouble.
Folks are not going to be able to function like we need to function and the existence of [00:09:00] humanity will be snuffed out because birthing is the way that we get here. And I know they're trying to change that, the different because they always trying to innovate. And I'm doing air quotes over here.
Bottom line is that we come here by way of the womb. I'll say this last thing for this piece of the conversation that I share with people that if you have a womb, If you came from a womb, and if you know someone with a womb, you ought to be in this conversation, which encompasses everybody, right? And it's urgent.
As, what's the movie? This conversation is urgent like a mother. Was that Love
Dr. Jill Baker: Jones? Oh yeah, Love Jones. This love is urgent. Yeah. Yeah.
Shawnee Benton: So I have a love Jones as it relates to all things, working people black maternal health life survival just all of it that is about our existence.
Dr. Jill Baker: And the way you put, put it is that it's also it's a human rights issue. [00:10:00]
Shawnee Benton: Absolutely. So it's not
Dr. Jill Baker: just us over here saying. hEllo. We need help. We're dying. That should not be happening. That should not be happening in this country. And it is happening every single day. And as we talk, there's someone, a sister dying.
potentially a brown baby dying. And that death could have been preventable. And we just have, we have to be, I wanted to ask you, thank you so much for that answer. Because when I was thinking of what the name of this show should be, I was going between maternal health 411 and maternal health 911.
And I, people say, If I made it maternal health 9 1 1, it was too heavy, but I felt but it is heavy. I can only be real about what's happening [00:11:00] and it is an emergency. So I said, no, it has to be maternal health 9 1
Shawnee Benton: 1. It's an absolutely. It's absolutely a space where we need to be on high alert.
And I'm also cautious of that, right? Because I'm conscious of we're mothers. I'm conscious of the mothers to be, those who are choosing to have a baby. But I'm also conscious of the fact that you can want and not be able to manifest. So that's urgent. There's a crisis around fertility and being able to conceive in our community.
One of the things that I've been really sitting with a lot is how many leaders like ourselves are out in the world, black and brown women who are dealing with womb issues, particularly fibroids. Yeah. And how it's impacting their quality of life. That's an emergency that there are women in the boardroom, there are women in the bedroom, there are women who are cooking good food for their family tomorrow, and they're dealing with [00:12:00] hemorrhaging.
While they're navigating their daily lives. And I think about that term that comes from the Bible women with issues of blood, the woman with the issue of blood. We have an issue of blood in this society and we're bleeding out. I mentioned that in the TED talk. And we must, it's like for me, the literal bleeding out and the spiritual bleeding out the emotional bleeding out, like there's a toll on us that are melanated folk and womb holders in this space.
And it is an emergency. So I'm glad that you called it 9 1 1 because we need. The information, the support, we need folks to be a stand for our humanity and a stand for us to be able to co create if that is our choosing.
Dr. Jill Baker: I wanted to ask you and talk about, so in the, in your TED talk, which was just so just inspirational I don't, Everyone needs to watch it.
[00:13:00] Every single human being needs to watch your TED Talk. I want to make sure that we put a link to your TED Talk in the show notes so people can watch it. If they haven't watched it, I don't know why you're not watching it, but please watch it. And Arca, I Our conversation was going to go a little bit different.
Then I watched your TED talk yesterday and I was like, okay, no, I got to change what we're going to talk about today. So one, I wanted to ask you just give permission of whether you're comfortable with us going a little deeper into some of the things that, that you said. So I'm like typing to myself like, Oh my gosh, she said that.
Okay. We got to talk about, we got to talk about that. So you shared with the world and this Ted talk about Shamani passing and the whole experience. And I know we've talked about that before and what happened to her in the hospital [00:14:00] and her dying 11 days, correct? 13 days post delivery. You said that black girls in this society are automatically once you're born, you're looked at differently.
And you said, one of the things you said was, you're smart enough for a black girl. You're pretty enough for a black girl. What did you want people to, take away with, this is something that I talk to my daughter about all the time. And it's and it's challenging as a parent, right?
Because it's not like you don't want your children to feel, and especially your daughters, feel good about themselves. But it's also that us as parents of these Black children, we have to prepare them for how they're viewed in this society. And then it's the almost [00:15:00] taking away some pieces of their childhood, Yeah.
But it's also that we don't have the luxury to not educate them, right? So it's a very, it's a very difficult balance. And I've found that very challenging. And so when when you said that really just hit me hard. I hope that hit other people hard.
Yeah. So I just wanted to talk to you about that.
Shawnee Benton: Sure. I want to go back with how you entered into this conversation by asking permission and asking for my consent. I acknowledge you for that. Oh, Yeah, it was one of the things That happens with black and brown people. And I just think about women in particular is that we're not asked consent.
People just go in. Can I touch your hair? Can I make statements about who we are and how we're embodied? And just words. Yeah, this intrusiveness. We have to [00:16:00] deal with all the time. And for me, that makes life heavier. That adds a burden, an extra burden that our white counterparts don't have to deal with.
You sharing about raising a black girl, I raised two and From the time that Shamani and my daughter Jasmine were tweens they were in a right to passage program. Spirit of a Woman, my company, we started off doing rights of passage for girls between the ages of 12 to 16 and their families.
And I emphasize and their families because they needed to be immersed in the process too, because sometimes families without consciously knowing that they're doing it, they put a burden on black girls and a weight on black girls. I'm 55. And so I grew up when I got my period or started to menstruate.
One of the first messages I got was that I need to keep my panties up and my skirt down. Now that's like harsh, but I get my grandmother who raised me was like, I'm not trying to create. [00:17:00] The burden once again air quotes of you having a child before you're ready and that impacting your future because she had that experience.
My mother had the experience and other folks that came before her. So she meant well, but the idea that me menstruating meant that I was going to be sexual. The fact that me menstruating was like something that was almost criminal to be doing, even though it was a natural way for my body to respond, put a burden on my mind, body And on my womb that I carried into the space when I did conceive, when I was pregnant, when I did give birth and I had trauma either before not all three of my pregnancies, but before.
Sometimes during and then definitely afterwards, because I dealt with postpartum depression and for one of my births psychosis after I gave birth. And so we carry these stories, the projected energy, the fact that a black girl sometimes because of how we're embodied, [00:18:00] depending on, because we're not a monolith, we're all shaped differently.
show up differently. But, being in the street and being accosted by men and, receiving shade from other women because of skin color, hair texture. There's a heaviness that we carry that other groups don't think about. And I'm not saying that our white counterparts once again don't navigate.
peer pressure and energies around pregnancy and other things, but that compounded with being black and being in America and dealing with all the stuff that's projected onto our people makes it challenging and have us dealing with things that we should never have to deal with as human beings. And
Dr. Jill Baker: I try to think, I really try to think about what Burdens that I put on my daughter and remembering that she's 12, she's still, black and she naturally is very responsible and, but I try to say to her, you're 12, be [00:19:00] 12 right now because you're not always going to get to be, get to be 12, but she also understands, sometimes I talk about this work and I talk about stats, maternal mortality, probably every day.
And my kids and Jemma's Mom, can you give it I get it. I might, maybe I, if I have a child, I might die. And I'm like, yeah, you might. And she's but I get it. She's do we have to, do you have to, I said, yeah, I do. Yeah. And so she, so it's just sometimes she's Mom, it's too much.
And to my son too, and to Gavin too, but I'm like, you two need to know, like you need to know the reality of what can potentially happen to you. And what we're all trying to do in this work is prevent the next generations from having horrible disparities regarding getting pregnant with a [00:20:00] baby, wanting to be a parent.
And just wanting to have the same experience and the same protection as our white counterparts. anD one of the things that said also in the TED talk you said that racism, discrimination, microaggressions are leaving black women at high risk. And I don't know if that is still talked about enough.
So I'm so glad that you said that and that said those words in particular. Because people need to understand the relationship between experiences of racism, my daily microaggressions. and the impact that they have on a black woman to the point that once [00:21:00] we get pregnant the stress that we already have is then just transferred to our baby in the womb.
So this is why this is the connection between why our birth outcomes are the way that they are. So I'm so glad that you said, said that and really let people, think about that and pause on that, but why for you. Because your talk, is, I don't know how much time you have but what made you decide to make that point in
Shawnee Benton: your TED talk?
Sure. So I want to go back to something you said earlier about your baby girl, what's your daughter's name? Gemma. I heard Gavin. Gemma. Thank you for the name. Names are so powerful and important. I'm thinking about, maternal health 9 1 1, but the other process you were going [00:22:00] through by deliberating about what you should call it 4 1 1.
And one of the things that I want to say as we discuss the emergency, the state of emergency that we're in, we're also in a state of acknowledging the joy. That comes from us conceiving carrying new life in our bodies. And what a powerful vessels we are nurturing those that life while it's in the womb, our babies eating well, being joyful, giving birth in our homes or at birthing centers or in the hospital, because I'm an advocate for doing what works for you and your circumstances.
So I'm not anti hospital. I'm pro choice, right? As far as, the continuum of options for people and not denied them. So I wanted to talk about the 411, which is the joy and the gratitude that comes from it and the service that we have as women to pour into the life and our partners and whoever we're [00:23:00] creating with to do that.
Just thinking about Gemma, it's yeah, I want to hear about the stuff that is Of concern for us, like we need to know, and I love that she knows so early and your son, Gavin. But I'm also like thinking about the fact that because we're pummeled energetically with all these thoughts of doom and gloom around our blackness and what we need to worry about, just the balance of the joyful stories to and I'm probably you probably do that.
But this is for the listening audience that Yes, there's something to be concerned about. But there's also something to be incredibly joyful and proud about because we're a resilient, powerful, unstoppable people. Even in the face of all of it, we keep generating, creating. We're innovative. It's like amazing.
What our melanated skin produces and how we impact folks who don't look like us, even when they don't acknowledge it. So I wanted to say that and salute to you as a mom sharing with your young people. And I'm sure their friends get the ripple [00:24:00] effect and parents.
Dr. Jill Baker: Hello, maternal health 911 listeners. If you are enjoying this episode, and if you happen to be going through infertility or, someone who might be and who needs support, I want to announce To all of you that I am offering fertility and infertility coaching services, and I have a very limited amount of spots, but for those of you who are interested.
Please visit my website, www. drjoebaker. com, or you can email me at drjoebaker at gmail. com about your interest and we can figure out a time to [00:25:00] book a consult call. Would love to hear and help in any way that I can.
Shawnee Benton: And what I will say about the TED Talk and the privilege to do it because I had done Aftershock one of the producers saw the footage, the stuff that was seen and unseen. My God I need to connect her with one of the persons in Boston that I'm dear friends with that does this Ted talk, Ted X talks or creates the platform on a regular basis.
So I was invited to do the Ted talk. What was deep about it says is that it was Oh God, athletes unlimited. I think it was the name of the folks who hosted, okay. It was during the title nine 50th anniversary where women, we're acknowledged for being able to be in educational spaces, be athletes, like balance and equity for us.
So at first I was like, what [00:26:00] would I be doing? Doing a TEDx that is focused on Title IX and focused on women who are athletes, but it was perfectly suited for me because many of the women, especially the women who identified as black or brown, talked about as an athlete not being able to be honored.
Their menstrual cycle. Yes. Pregnant. Like the men, they can play ball and their partners are having a baby and they don't miss a beat. They might show up and go home when the baby is born and then come on back and be at the game the next day or, running the map once.
Dr. Jill Baker: No, if anyone hasn't watched King Richard and oh my God, what the Williams sister.
Shawnee Benton: Yes. So from how Saying yes is about me being my purpose. So I'll name what my purpose is. I do this with the adult rights of passage program that I lead and coach women through my purpose is to utilize the word in all [00:27:00] forms to ignite mind, body and spirit transformation across the planet.
That's a big undertaking, right? But anytime I'm invited to speak about our experience, I'm going to include it. as a black woman, racism, white supremacy, culture, patriarchy, misogyny, capitalism, all of those intersecting pieces that impact our well being on a daily basis that has that stat that every 12 hours a woman dies.
Yo, we need to be talking about it and I have to shout it from the rooftops. And so I'm unapologetic about using the words white supremacy culture. When George Floyd was snuffed, his life was snuffed out. For the entire planet. And when my daughter died, I was like, okay, I do D. E. I work. I've been doing that for years.
Diversity, equity and inclusion work. I talk about bias and all of that, but I'm like, no, my language now is white supremacy culture. It's choking us out on stage. I'm like, I have to talk about that [00:28:00] in real life
Dr. Jill Baker: in real time. And I have, yeah, I have to, yeah, I, the first time we had to tell. Yeah, Gavin and Gemma when George Floyd died, like that was the first time that we talked to them about police brutality in this country.
And that was very, they might have been nine at a time. And I know that I cried that day. I don't think I cried in front of them, but I cried later because I said, my nine year olds are now not regular nine year olds because we had to tell them. What can potentially happen to them as adults in this country at nine years.
Yeah, but now it was just, like you said, there, there was no way to [00:29:00] that point, not tell them. bUt again, those are, these are the differences in being a parent of a child of color, being a parent of a Brown child. Me. Just again, we don't have the luxury to, to hide them. All we can do is figure out, developmentally what when's the best time to tell it, but there really isn't.
And yeah, I mean that, yeah. So it's just these constant yeah. The things that we have to deal with in this country and regarding discrimination specifically. New data is showing that 46 percent of pregnancy related deaths are attributed to discrimination. Yeah, so it's not this is a real thing, you know that is happening and I [00:30:00] think those of us who've, who have been pregnant and always unsure of.
How are we going to be treated when we're at a doctor's appointment? How are we going to be treated when it's time to deliver a baby? Particularly if you decide to deliver at a hospital, then you know that there's a higher chance that you might die. And you may not die right away. You might die before it's coming home.
aNd a lot of people and one of the other things you said is that knowledge is
Shawnee Benton: not enough. No, it won't save you. I say it in the film. I don't remember saying it in the TED talk, but if I did, I mean that in at my core that we make the mistake when we think that being educated having a particular role in society that's going to save us this.
Yeah. Save and protect us. The system [00:31:00] has failed us. The system is much bigger than my knowledge. And or my daughter's knowledge. Like she was doing all the things to be healthy and whole and to come out on the other side. Clear. She knew the stats. I'm like, I'm her mama. I was in this work for a long time, doing the conference for so many years, the mother weight conference that we do annually.
So she was in the conversation. We talked about it when she was deciding to have her second child. We talked extensively about postpartum because of my experiences of trauma. I own, so I thought she was actually going to be dealing with postpartum depression because of how it runs in my family, which, needless to say, it was a shock that she transitioned the way that she did. And then I came out of the shock and was like, Shani, get a grip. We're dealing in this huge system that has been designed without us being in mind. And so why would you think that your daughter would be exempt because of the conversations and the articles [00:32:00] and the events.
And it saddens me. But yeah, like the system has to ship and meet us at our knowledge and co create with us and listen to us and let us lead. And that's not happening. That's why your stat about the discrimination is so high. And I'm hesitant, but I must being who I am say that if folks think that, oh, if my doctor is white, I'm more likely to experience discrimination because we've been indoctrinated by as black and brown people.
And because the system is medicalized and we've been trained and developed and conditioned consciously and unconsciously the way we have that you can die at the hands of people who look just like you. Yes. I
Dr. Jill Baker: think that's, I think that's a big myth. So people out there, if you think automatically that if you have a black doctor, that's It's going to automatically change your outcomes.
What you need to do is do the research, [00:33:00] take your time to find the right OBGYN. I would say be open to any race, ethnicity, you just need to do your research, talk to people and find out who could be, the best for delivering, helping you deliver your baby and stay alive in.
The other thing though that I wanted to talk to you about with that is, so I've had two pregnancies, both of my pregnancies were high risk. The first because of the twins. The second because of my age with Amari. My Amari, a MA , my Omar, your Amari . aNd when I was I had a black female ob, GYN who was amazing, but I got a referral from one of my sister friends.
Yeah. So once she said, oh, she's the best, she's this, that, I said, all right, that's it. So I was like, I, [00:34:00] so I talked to several of my friends and I got some recommendations and that was the best. She was amazing. I Ended up having a C section with Amari, but the thing is that what happened with Amari was that I had a scheduled C section.
He came early. So I went into actual labor two weeks before, maybe a week, 10 days before. I never had real labor pains because the Gabon and Gemma, I was induced. So I never felt my contractions, but this was the real deal. And I was having contractions every five minutes. So I went to, my husband took me to the hospital, drove to the hospital, 20 minutes away, worst pain ever.
And we get there and the staff, tells us you're not dilating. So we're going to put some fluids in you and send you home. And I'm like wait I'm having contractions every five minutes [00:35:00] and I didn't dilate because I'm not a natural diet. I just, my body doesn't dilate. When I was.
Delivering the twins 36 hours of Pitocin, every medication, 36 hours, I only dilated 2 centimeters. I did. I told the doctors, I said, I know my body, I'm not going to dilate. And they said Ms. Baker, yeah no, you're not in active labor, we're going to send you home. They sent me home. And I labored at home, maybe for 10, I don't know, I blacked out 10 hours or so.
And then they called me, said, Miss Baker, come back if you're still, yeah, I'm still having contractions. By the time I got to the hospital at that point, I might've, it would probably 1. 5 centimeters or something like that. So they didn't listen to me. They sent me home. And then one of my friends, one of my OBGYN sister friends [00:36:00] Dr.
Cherry said to me, Jill, you could have bled out at home. Like two years later, I said, I was like, are you serious? She was like, yes. She was like, they should not have sent you home. You could have hemorrhaged out at home. And I think I cried like a, I cried like a baby. Amari was two years old at that point, but it was still like, I went right back to that time.
And I said, maybe, did I do something wrong? Did I not advocate for myself enough? aNd I was supposed to know better, but I didn't make them, not send me home. And that's the problem is that we. We keep getting sent home.
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. Yeah. I there's so much that's coming up for me as I listen to you and just thank you for sharing your experience.
And I think about [00:37:00] Kimberly Seals Allers who has the earth. Oh, I love her. And just thinking about all of the bias, racial, class, socioeconomic sexual orientation or gender identification, like all the layers of marginalization, racialization, like all of the things, the othering that we experience.
And having that app for those who don't know, where you get an opportunity to read reviews, like you said, your good sister friend. Referred you to someone to support you during this rite of passage, which pregnancy and birthing and delivering is. So that comes to mind that we have a space where we can go where we can read about what folks are saying about these providers.
And what they're doing or not doing to support us on these sacred journeys. The other thing that I'm going to coin a phrase by Chanel Portia from ancient song doula services. She says, postpartum is forever. So two years later, five years later, 15 years later, there are things about my birthing experience.
I was invited [00:38:00] to tell two stories. It was a tale of two births for me when I had my daughter, Jasmine, who was preterm. Born in the seventh month, had a birth defect, needed surgery, had severe postpartum depression and psychosis with her. Nobody asked me a damn thing. They didn't know what was going on with me because one of the things we also say is that the mother is the rapper and the baby, or babies are the prize.
And once babies come through, right? Ain't nobody rubbing her feet, checking in regular basis. But she says postpartum is forever. And I did the storytelling around the traumatic, severely traumatic birth and the birth that I had with my midwife that my daughters were present for and their friends.
Like it was amazing to have these young people as my birth coach and my partner at the time, and my son came in. joyfully, peacefully. I can still feel the heat in the weight of his body on the left side of my body. As I [00:39:00] speak to you about it, that's how powerful it was that I can call it back to my remembrance.
And those two births And even though I chose to tell the story and the contrast, I was moved emotionally. It was like the trauma started to well up and how I was treated, and dismissed. I was a young mother. My former husband was in the military and it was just like another young black girl, military wife.
They didn't give a shit about, and it, me at 55 sharing the story. I was just like, welling up and tapping in and remembering things that I had not remembered before. This postpartum journey is a constant unfolding. And when we give ourselves permission to tell and retell the stories, then we're healing ourselves and rejoicing because some folks have phenomenal birthing experience.
And those stories need to be told to our children, to our community. It's a sacred process and we've lost [00:40:00] it. And we want to restore that the storytelling. So thank you for sharing your story and y'all check out the earth app. And check out ancient song, doula services, fine doulas in your area.
Dr. Jill Baker: In the, as well. So the other thing I wanted to share with you on, on the same line, and I think. The reality is that we don't forget these, we don't forget these birthing experiences. We don't forget what it was like to be pregnant. We don't forget what it was like to deliver our children.
We don't forget what it was like after. I think that, I don't know, I wanted to ask you about this. You talked about the fact that, when you were pregnant, the two times you were pregnant and No one asked you how you were feeling, and [00:41:00] it's this kind of belief that you are the vessel and we're focusing on the, the babies inside of us.
But that we push through. Push through. And that seems to be not, it seems to be it. That's a theme for black women of color. I watched another talk with a psychologist who talked about the detriment of the push pushing through police for black women and our mental health period. And that this is one of the reasons why we're still not getting the mental health support that we need because of this whole, we're supposed to be able to do all these things, we're supposed to be able to have a career, have a partnership, parent our kids, have another baby.
Move up your career, do all of these things and you're [00:42:00] strong because as black people, we are strong. We are resilient but with that, we don't get the permission to not be strong all the time. I think one and two, that people should be paying attention and asking, do you need help? Are you okay?
Is there something I could do, particularly when you are
Shawnee Benton: pregnant? YEah our journeys are sacred. I keep using that word. And they've just been our experiences have been sullied dismissed, dissed and we do it to ourselves too. But, once again, just coming from our anti racist lens and anti patriarchal lens, That we, the model out there is for us to keep plugging and plowing through.
[00:43:00] And in school, how we're taught to work and compete, we're taught to be individuals, my grades versus your grades, the pecking order, who's the highest. And who's the lowest achieving student who gets special attention, who gets ignored, who gets the scholarships who has to figure it out on their own.
So this is the formula, the soup that we're all floating around in. And we buy into it. We don't view ourselves as worthy. We don't give ourselves time to rest because we're on that hamster wheel. And it's I got to go back to work. And the system is set up here and other countries don't do this, but it's set up that you get.
Six weeks you get whatever right and you bring your butt back or you may not have a job, right? You gotta look it and be grateful and operate like you're Oswell Vessel that just gave birth. Some of us breastfeeding and, have multiple Children have a partner that we're trying to co, co create with all those [00:44:00] layers.
And we're just, it's no wonder we're experiencing high blood pressure, experiencing diabetes, like we're criminalized and, not literally, but we're made wrong about having these conditions. But folks don't think about the conditions under which we live. and work and barely play and experience pleasure.
So it's really important for us to look at all of the facets. And I would love to talk about this and I know you probably have other questions, but I want to say this really quickly. I think about the reproductive justice movement, but I think the fact that it calls for us to look at all of the overlapping movements that exist to Food deserts and food and land and I know I'm a
Dr. Jill Baker: public health nurse and you're speaking social determinants of health.
Yeah.
Shawnee Benton: All the stuff
Dr. Jill Baker: transportation. Oh my gosh. You're going to take two buses to go to the doctor. You're going to take [00:45:00] the Q train. No, you're not. No yet. Why should you have to
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. While pregnant, all the children, it's insane. And if we keep compartmentalizing or separating out these issues, these human rights violations and atrocities, and I call them an atrocity.
Like when you live in an area where there's the bus depot and there's the poison gas, cause you're black and brown and you don't have as much money. You, you live right by where the buses are emitting all this toxic or liquor
Dr. Jill Baker: stores, every McDonald's
Shawnee Benton: corner. It's terrible.
Dr. Jill Baker: Terrible. Yeah. Yeah. So what? Yeah. And then if let's say you decide you want to breastfeed, how are you going to breastfeed at your job? There's no lactation when I breastfed Amari and I worked at a university. I'm not going to say that university, I'm just glad I'm not there anymore. No lactation [00:46:00] rooms in the building, in an academic building.
So if those of us who, I often am like, if I don't have access to these things, Then what does the everyday sister have access to, or what support is she getting? If she's yeah, I want a breastfeed. Maybe my mother didn't breastfeed, but I want a breastfeed. What support is there that we know helps our baby, helps their, them to be, their immunity to be better, for them to thrive, and the connection between the mother and the baby?
Yeah. It's a it's a lot. It's a lot. And one of the, one of the things we've talked about before, and I've talked about on, on the show with me having a postpartum depression with Amari and I went back to work too soon. [00:47:00] And I knew, I just knew I said something was not right. And I just kept pushing through and kept going to work and coming home and then trying to have to nurse.
And I said, I'm not feeling, I was feeling off and then every day I would just wake up and say, Jill, are you going to feel like yourself? And six months went by and I didn't just go back to being myself.
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. Yeah. And the pressure to because, in this society, as we become more aware educated about what the benefits are, breastfeeding or home birth or, whatever the thing is that folks are pushing.
And it makes me sad that a lot of times it's like white folks is trending to do X, Y, and Z. And now it's Okay. For us to do it. Yeah. It's like, why are you breastfeeding? Use bottles. Why are you doing this home birth? Are you [00:48:00] crazy? And then when they decide that it's in, then everybody jumps on the bandwagon.
I'm like, we've been doing right. It's crazy. Yeah, that's so true. Shame women for not being on trend for not doing whatever the thing that is expected. I remember when I had my son and I was having a difficult time breastfeeding him. It was so painful. He wouldn't latch on properly. Remember, I shared that, In my family and my experience, I had postpartum, so I was already feeling low and then I had anemia because I released a lot of blood after I gave birth.
It was a very big and my partner at the time was judging me because I wasn't able to breastfeed and it was his ignorance. I get it because you aren't Conversation or weren't definitely during that time, 'cause that was 19 years ago. But I was just like, I felt so on, on top of everything that I was dealing with and recovering from giving birth and trying to enjoy this little one.
I felt sha [00:49:00] ashamed that I wasn't able to pull off breastfeeding. And just so wrong then having to go right back to work and leaving my baby with someone that I trusted, but I'm like, he was three months old. Exactly. So all the layers. The layers that there are, we don't get to talk about.
So I'm just grateful for once again, this platform and your willingness to go high and low and deep and wide and far to have these conversations that are an emergency happening on a regular basis and
Dr. Jill Baker: We have to keep talking and sharing our experiences until there's a real change. epidemic.
And if anything that we say helps anyone, I feel like we've done it. We've done our job. So I wanted to ask you I wanted to talk to you , the annual Mother WIC conference. And thank you for letting me Be there again this year. It was so [00:50:00] amazing and inspirational. What were maybe like the two or three, takeaways from this year's conference?
Shawnee Benton: Oh my goodness. It was a
Dr. Jill Baker: lot.
Shawnee Benton: Yeah, I'm so grateful that you brought it up. poSt conference, I want to say, because I want to be responsible and accountable. That I felt exhaustion. For myself. Yeah, that was a lot. Definitely a lot. But not just from the doing of the work because I my nickname for myself is worker beast, which I'm working on transforming that because once again being told and taught that I was a smart kid and gifted, it created this runaway train of producing educationally, professionally Ugh.
SO I'm just conscious of that. So I wanna name that in the space because we have a right to say I'm tired. This was exhausting. Yes. You have a
Dr. Jill Baker: right to say You're tired. [00:51:00]
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. And beautiful at the same time. But one of the things that I just loved was the second panel in the afternoon where we had an architect, a farmer, a midwife.
anD an activist and who was also part of in his day, the Black Panther Party and also a male doula. He he's an activist and a male doula. Having a conversation and I love that spirit gave me the idea about Afrofuturism. Usually that's it's a literacy. Yes. This case is connected to the future of birthing for black folk and it's like, how can we craft the world where we thrive?
I'm not focused on survival. I'm like where we thrive, where we have access to, Oh, I forgot one of the members of the panel. Was someone that is into crypto and wealth building because we need wealth. Yes, [00:52:00]
Dr. Jill Baker: you know So
Shawnee Benton: it was so I could have stayed with them all day the fact that we don't know because we think of architecture, they're just building buildings and it has nothing to do with birthing, but it has everything to do with our reproductive health, because how they build the hospitals, the colors they use, whether there's open space, whether they have plants, windows, the material they use, yes, so the Ibrahim, just talked about the fact that he is committed.
To decolonizing building and architecture and starting to do that. So I was just so happy that the ancestor says, make sure you talk about this. And I'm like, Afrofuturism, I'm so grateful. And that conversation is going to stay alive in me and outside of me. I loved because the focus was artivism, the rebirth of black humanity, that we had all of these [00:53:00] different manifestations of art and culture in the space in the form of food and Paintings.
And we had someone painting a live painting in the space. As we, he just generated a painting. And at the end someone won the painting. It was just so beautiful and multi dimensional and nourishing. And I'm just so grateful that I get to do work that I love and that's purposeful. And that the word is alive in my work.
Lots of takeaways and lots of awesome new relationships got forged from doing that work. Cause we're here to, Co create with one another,
Dr. Jill Baker: it has to be, we have to do this together. Or again, we have to do it together in order to make the real changes that need to be made in our own people and all the beauty and knowledge that, that we have.
And that's our culture. Yeah. Resilient, beautiful culture. [00:54:00] Okay. So we can't, I can't let you go without talking. For a few minutes about Aftershock, and the documentary with, your son in law my, my brother and friend, Amari Maynard. Again, we're going to put a link to the, we'll do a link to the Aftershock website in the show notes.
I wanted to ask you how did the project come into fruition
Shawnee Benton: spirit? All right. So I'll leave with that. They're like, if you don't, we'll get you because that's how it unfolded. So two months after Shamani transitioned, we hosted an event called aftershock. I'm very, I'm a very spiritual person. You probably hear it in this conversation.
It's come up many times. I listen to ancestral. nudging guidance. And however it comes through. So when [00:55:00] Shamani passed away because I had already been doing this work and Shamani's birthday was coming up two months after her birthday is December 19th. We were like, we want to teach community even though we were in the throes of our grief, we were like, we want to serve and have her birthday be an honoring of community opening up the way for this conversation to be alive because people don't know what's happening.
Sat and meditated and I thought about the ripple effect. I'm like Shamani's death was the tsunami or the earthquake. And the ripple effect after is what we're going to have to deal with. Like she died one day, but all the days after is what we in the community and her children are going to have to deal with.
As Kari comes of age, he's four recognizing that his birth. It's tethered to Shamani's death. That's a lot. That's happy. That's a huge ripple and not him. Not blaming himself is super important for our family to make sure it doesn't happen. So I was, I got a phone call, didn't recognize the number of the spirits that [00:56:00] pick up, picked up, cause
Dr. Jill Baker: I don't answer.
Shawnee Benton: Oh, I'm like, if I don't know the number, and I think I said that in detention, I was like, who it is? So I picked up, heard this white woman's voice. So it sounded like a white woman. And I'm like, who is this person? And she starts to speak and say that she's working on a documentary. She heard about Shamani's loss, how sorry she is, but she also knew about the aftershock doc event that we were doing and wanted to know if she could come and film and us for us to consider being a part of the documentary.
So my immediate, my, everything was rushing through me. It's yes. And yes, but Omari and Jasmine, my other daughter, they were like, nah, this is. They were like, no, they'll tell you I don't care what y'all do. I'm doing it. I'm like, yo, this opportunity to tell her story, the story to educate the community we must.
And she told me that I'm not the only one doing it. Cause my ears were. prepped for that. She said, I'm doing it with Don Porter, but it ended up being it unfolded that Tanya [00:57:00] Lewis Lee ended up being the co director, but originally it was going to be blonde Porter, who's also renowned director as well and documentarian.
And they came to Paula came to after Shakti event, filmed it and was like, deeply moved and blown away by what we created and was like, please, can y'all do this documentary? So I told the family I was gonna do it, and then they came along. It didn't take long. I was like, it's Shaman. So they were like, yes, we'll do it, and the rest is history.
And Wow. How it, that call ended up, the documentary ended up being called Aftershock was, they were like. We came together as a result of the original aftershock event and what you declared and the name you put on it is so potent and powerful. We want to call the documentary that and so they asked for my consent and I said yes.
So that's the story of it. Yeah. That's amazing.
Dr. Jill Baker: That is amazing. That is amazing. [00:58:00] So why do you think now being on the other side of it? Why do you think it was so successful?
Shawnee Benton: Ah, because of, I'm sounding like a broken record. No,
Dr. Jill Baker: you're not! You are not!
Shawnee Benton: I'm like, no! I'm like, the spirit was in
Dr. Jill Baker: it. No, that's, I don't know, that is evident.
That is
Shawnee Benton: evident. And also, Equity and inclusion was in it. And I don't mean that's the topic or the conversations in the film. Paula and Tanya recognizing that they couldn't do this film without consulting with us around what they put together about how we wanted to be seen in the film and heard in the film and experienced in the film how we wanted our commute.
Because I'm like, listen, I'm here because of community. I'm here because of the ancestors. I'm here because of, my calling, like all the ladies, because I'm an artist, to the bone. That's like a huge [00:59:00] part of who I am in my life. I'm here because I'm an activist advocate, like all of it.
And, And I'm like, it must in our family, my family, the same, and Shamani's story must be told in a very specific way. And so should Amber's. And so they were consulting with us, calling us in. We didn't know all the parts that they would end up using, because it was a lot of filming, and a lot of people involved, had to whittle it down to 90 minutes.
But the bottom line was that there was consulting, consent, part of it. And it wasn't always easy, but that was part of the journey. And Paula. Being willing to be checked around her whiteness because she's a white Jewish woman, so all of that played a part but the main thing is that the ancestors said that it would be and that's why it's a success and people Eat from all different angles the art chills It's a romance which people talk about a lot
Dr. Jill Baker: Amari and Bruce.
Yes So and they are going to be on the show [01:00:00] Soon. Yep and I've been, of course, Amari, I, that's my, my, my brother. I, anytime I get to talk to him and Bruce, I've been trying to talk to Bruce for a couple of years, but Bruce is actually from my neighborhood in the Bronx.
Shawnee Benton: That's why
Dr. Jill Baker: his Amber went to Montefiore hospital, which is where all my family members went for care.
Yes. Yeah. We're all connected.
Shawnee Benton: It's hard.
Dr. Jill Baker: Hard. Yeah. Cause I know exactly where she was at. Yeah.
Shawnee Benton: And could have been one of your people.
Dr. Jill Baker: Yeah. No. No, hell no. No. And then quick, quickly in addition to, so Dr. Shah, Dr. Neal Shah, shout out Dr. Neal Shah. I love you. He loved you. He was [01:01:00] on the show. Probably the first few episodes of the show.
I talked about after shot with him and he said, he said to me, he was like, I didn't even know if I should have been in it. I said, he set me up because he said, I didn't want to. I didn't want to take away from, the real authentic stories that, that needed to be told. He said that he was like, no, I had to be convinced to, to be in it.
And I said wow, yeah, I just loved that. I just love that scene that everyone for the most part knew that you all needed to be able to tell this story, these stories in your authentic way. And that just came out profoundly in the
Shawnee Benton: film. Yeah. I. [01:02:00] And I say this all the time.
My mantra for living is I expose myself to expand myself. So you're going to get who I am authentically. If you ask how I am, I'm going to tell you how I am. If you ask what I think, I'm going to tell you what I think. And just also modeling that. So other people will do the same. And not everybody joins me there.
They're like wait, TMI. I'm like, by whose standards, right? Who said so? Like I'm getting this stuff out of me. What you do with it after I share. All right. So and it's not to dump. It's just like this is my lived experience. And I will say if I didn't speak up, if I wasn't authentic, that now new ancestor, four year ancestor, my daughter would check me.
Oh, I love that. She does all the time. Like she comes through in many different ways. So I And I believe
Dr. Jill Baker: it. I believe it. When you said she told you what to wear and your earrings. I was like, ooh, let me wear some earrings. I was like, Travonnie probably would like
Shawnee Benton: these. No, I'm wearing a [01:03:00] pair of her earrings.
I try to walk with her when I'm doing stuff like this, have her be present to in a physical way. But yeah, it's, I don't know how folks survive being inauthentic and having layers and layers of persona blocking and stopping their authentic flow. But I also recognize that some of us don't know who we authentically are because we've been inundated with all of this other.
It's just super important to me to be able to have you experience the real me. And that's the document. And don't get me wrong. I was just like, I look crazy, for the document, it was during COVID, I'm like, yo, I
Dr. Jill Baker: can't wait. It was during, that's right. It was during COVID too.
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. So it was wild, but that's how it goes down in my life.
So I'm like, okay. This is what we doing. All right,
Dr. Jill Baker: but it was so needed. Everybody. Everybody needs to watch it. I think anyone who has any kind of D. E. I. Class [01:04:00] implicit bias class needs to watch it. Medical students, medical residents need to watch it. Because again, there needs to be multilayer places where this education is happening so that prevent.
He's a racist and discriminatory experiences in hospitals. So with all that you do and where we are in this crisis, I have two last questions for you. Okay. What steps do you think people as individuals can do to combat the black maternal
Shawnee Benton: health crisis? Yeah. I'll speak from a couple of different positions.
Who first and foremost, if anybody in this space who's listening is an educator is an [01:05:00] academic spaces. We have a responsibility. I think a huge responsibility to educate. And decolonize the way that we approach sharing information, how we view competence. That's a big thing for me right now.
Just competence and what we've been taught that word means. Like my grandmother, who never got beyond a high school education, was one of the most competent and powerful people that I know. My great grandmother was a midwife.
Dr. Jill Baker: Yeah.
Shawnee Benton: Yep. Yeah. So I'm just like, we have to rework that. So don't think because you don't have a formal education that you can't advocate for yourself or others that you can't be an activist.
Not everybody's called to this work. And I'm not saying that we all should be out marching and stuff. Do your part. So education providers. if you have been paying attention to everything, not just maternal health and the crisis here, but anything around the healthcare system and you're in it and you're not doing what you need to do to educate yourself about [01:06:00] racism and bias and checking yourself and one and asking yourself, why am I treating this patient this way?
If I'm spending enough time, am I asking enough questions and identifying my whiteness? If you're a white person, it's Your whiteness for some of us is big in the room. And when you don't name it, then I don't have permission to name it. That we need to be open to feedback from our, the patients that we serve.
I'm a psychotherapist. So being able to receive feedback about how I show up in my work is important growth and development. So if your white coat has you thinking that you're above reproach, you got a problem. Seek, go back. I don't know what they call it in the medical field post I don't know what you call it, but in my field, it's like post graduate work.
They can go back, have competency
Dr. Jill Baker: and then still have to do credentialing, education,
Shawnee Benton: beyond just the medical provider part, practitioner part, go back [01:07:00] and seek out information to grow you. Mind, body, spirit consciousness around racism, bias, because the system is tilted and you're a contributor to that if you're not educated women birthing people have someone advocate for you because I'm real.
Touchy about I'm pregnant. I'm going through all I'm going through and it might be a great pregnancy. I don't want to lump everybody together, but now I'm laboring. Now I got to advocate for myself and check the doctor and ask what I'm like, no, have someone where there's an official doula, your partner, your sister, your brother, your mama.
Dr. Jill Baker: That's going to be part of my coaching process. Oh yes. Coaching. Yeah. Yes,
Shawnee Benton: and it doesn't, it is, it's too much to expect us to be all the things while we're doing. We're already. No. And people want people like, Oh, you got to advocate for yourself. I'm like, no, you don't. You do. But really, others should be able [01:08:00] to do that.
And hold your partners accountable. However they identified to being able to go into the appointments, knowing what's going on, having the language, speaking up, holding space for you. And my last thing is Postpartum, as I said earlier, is forever, but definitely focus on the year after you give birth so that you are getting what you need.
Maternal maternal mental health issues are taking us out. They are. The dominant thing, being depressed. Engaging in self harm. Unaliving yourself. Like it's super important for us to be able to be honored that we're not well and everything is not perfect after we give birth and not judging ourselves for not feeling well and energized around giving birth or even liking being a mom with everybody that happened right away.
No, or at all. Like I'm right. Like some of us are just like, yo, this just happened and here I am. It's okay, that's
Dr. Jill Baker: good. No, no judgment.
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. So those are [01:09:00] my share. I love that. Yeah.
Dr. Jill Baker: I love that. That's just real. We have to have more real, authentic talk about what motherhood is.
Shawnee Benton: Yeah. And why.
Let's
Dr. Jill Baker: just stop lying. Let's just tell each other the truth. It's not always. rainbows. I know it's
Shawnee Benton: hard,
Dr. Jill Baker: but we're laughing and we can cry at the same time. Oh gosh, I love it. Okay. So last question. Is there anything you want to share with the listeners about, can we be hopeful about regarding maternal mortality and maternal illness in this country?
Shawnee Benton: Oh my goodness. Loads of things. That people are awake and aware. That the language of birthing is transforming, that it's inclusive, that folks who have wounds but [01:10:00] don't identify as women are also able to give birth and are acknowledged for what they are doing, that breastfeeding is back on the table for a larger number of people and you're being supported and being able to do that chocolate milk that they talk about that Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. We're telling our birthing stories that people are going back and asking their mamas or, their parents like what happened during my birth so that you know what your birth story is because I know mine. And that we keep passing down these stories that we're talking about racism and bias.
And even though a struggle that we're holding each other accountable in that way, that there are Yeah. Birthing centers, even though it's hard for some states that are cropping up, we need more new opportunities. That there's a rise in doulas in the space that people know what a doula is. Oh, yes.
There's a resurgence of midwifery and the sacredness of that and restoring that. Say we
Dr. Jill Baker: need to go back to that.
Shawnee Benton: Yes, absolutely. And there's not enough. There's not enough. There's [01:11:00] not enough. There's
Dr. Jill Baker: not enough
Shawnee Benton: that I even. Yeah, it is insane that white people, women particularly dominate in that space and they're doing harm to black and brown folks who want to pursue or who are already midwives.
So we're talking about the joy, the fact that's being named and talked about that white folks are picking up the mantle and saying that I need to be responsible for how I wield my power and co creating as co conspirators and disruptors with us. There's loads Thanks. To celebrate while we're speaking all the thousands of millions of black and brown babies that are being born well and mothers who are making it through or birthing people.
So I rejoice in that, and not just focus on the tragedies. Love it. Love
Dr. Jill Baker: it. Shawnee. Thank you so much. You can be here forever. You're welcome. But this is the first I hope the first time and we're going [01:12:00] to continue to have more conversations on this on my show. beCause we have a lot more to talk about and there's a lot more to talk about, a lot more that we have to be talking about.
Can you let the listeners know how they can find you and connect with you on social media?
Shawnee Benton: Absolutely. So I'm on I. G. Instagram as Shawnee, the healer. And I'm on facebook under my name, Shawnee Benton Gibson. We have a website, the Aria Foundation and Aria. You're gonna put it in the show notes.
So I know that they'll see the spelling of it. And Aria stands for the advancement of reproductive innovation through artistry and healing. And Yeah. And my contact information the email and all that other stuff, I'll share so that you all can have that and reach out if you so choose.
Yeah.
Dr. Jill Baker: So much. Thank you so much. The one and only Shawnee Benton Gibson, everybody.[01:13:00]
Thank you for listening to this episode of Maternal Health 911. Please follow the show on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Feel free to DM me with your questions and thoughts, or to share your infertility. Fertility and maternal health story. For more information on this podcast and your host, visit www.
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Join us in this enlightening episode as we explore the world of breastfeeding from multiple angles. As a breastfeeding champion, we delve into the myriad benefits that breastfeeding offers both mothers and infants, from bolstering immune systems to fostering maternal-infant bonding. Discover the essential steps to prepare for breastfeeding, including education, support networks, and creating a comfortable environment.
We debunk three prevalent myths surrounding breastfeeding, shedding light on misconceptions that may hinder mothers' breastfeeding journeys. From cultural influences to family traditions, we navigate the unique challenges faced by women of color in breastfeeding. Explore how societal norms, limited access to resources, and workplace policies intersect with cultural beliefs, impacting breastfeeding decisions and experiences.
Learn why social support is paramount for breastfeeding success and how employers can better support breastfeeding women in the workplace. Explore the reasons behind the decline in breastfeeding rates after the first 6 months and delve into the practicalities and benefits of pumping. Join us for an insightful discussion on breastfeeding that aims to empower and inform.
2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (Dietary Guidelines)1 and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)2 recommend that infants be exclusively breastfed for about the first 6 months, with continued breastfeeding alongside the introduction of complementary foods for at least 1 year (Dietary Guidelines)
infants born in 2019, most (83.2%) started out receiving some breast milk, and 78.6% were receiving any breast milk at 1 month.
At 6 months, 55.8% of infants received any breast milk and 24.9% received breast milk exclusively
Families can face many challenges when it comes to breastfeeding
breastfeeding disparities exist by race, ethnicity, and SES
Guest Bio:
Lakshmi Natarajan is an Indian- American executive, mompreneur, world traveler, and culture-cultivator. As an immigrant from India and raised in the United States, Lakshmi’s desire to see the world and learn about cultures stemmed from a young age. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania and over the course of 20 years, Lakshmi established her professional career across marketing, sales, strategy, transformation, and consulting for Fortune 500 companies and numerous clients across various industries. Within these experiences, Lakshmi held various global senior leadership positions across continents, which allowed her to travel and collaborate with diverse teams.
After two decades of her corporate career, Lakshmi didn't want to wonder “what if” for the next two decades. Thus, born from her strengths, experiences, and mission to "be the change she wished to see in the world" (quote from Mahatma Gandhi), Lakshmi founded two businesses. Excelador, a management consulting firm and Travel Plus ThemTM, a travel education and global learning company serving parents, educators, and children with a mission of “raising inclusive global citizens.” With her solo travels to over 65 countries and 35+ countries across 6 continents with her children with the goal of raising them with a global mindset and inspiring other parents on their journey.
Her insights on career, leadership, family travel, and raising global citizens have been featured on various award winning podcasts, global conferences, and prestigious publications such as Forbes, Medium, Boston Herald, and Savoteur. Lakshmi currently resides in Miami, Florida with her husband Kailash and her 2 daughters, Shyla and Shriya. Her mission continues to inspire others to believe in themselves, embark on their journeys, explore the world, and make a meaningful impact.
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