placenta for mom in foster care - without her baby!

raeben · 08-16-2009, 08:32 PM

so i just got a call from a young mother who is currently in the foster care system. the PBi specialist in my area referred her to me because the placenta would need to be prepared somewhere besides the mothers (foster) home. we talked about her needs and the benefits of placenta encapsulation, including avoiding PPD and she says "yeah, i could really use that since they took my baby away - i'm pretty sad." since she is in foster care, her baby is automatically taken from her and put into separate foster care! omg, i almost started crying on the phone - i knew our foster system was messed up but this just seemed awful. this girl seems like she is really sweet and was trying to be a good mother - she pumps every 3 hours to keep up her supply in case she gets her baby back and nurses her during her supervised visits.

her court date is monday to see if she can get her baby back - please send her good vibes! i'm sure i don't know the whole story but i used to volunteer at a rehab home for addicted moms to go through recovery while keeping their babies and kids - if those ladies could keep their kids through such a tough time then i don't see why foster kids (with some extra support) shouldn't be able to keep their babies.

this will be the 6th or 7th placenta i've prepared in the past month and a half (you know you're too busy when you've lost track of how many) but i would like to support this mama this way so i told her i could do it pro-bono. she is trying really hard to take good care of herself and her baby - to the degree that she can - so hopefully it is extra beneficial for her postpartum recovery.

Nicole E · 08-16-2009, 10:09 PM

How sad for that poor girl. Good for you for doing what you can to help her.

DoulaMegz · 08-16-2009, 10:55 PM

Raeben, what a wonderful thing you are doing. That poor woman! (Yeah, woman, cuz once you have a baby...) I really hope she gets her baby back. You'll have to let us all know.

Hypnomomma · 08-17-2009, 12:23 AM

That is so heartbreaking! If that baby was removed from mom just because she is in foster care then that is criminal!

Cherylkind · 08-17-2009, 11:03 AM

wow... has she looked into getting emancipated?

raeben · 08-17-2009, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cherylkind

wow... has she looked into getting emancipated?

i don't know. i'm not super familiar with our state's foster care system so i don't even know what a person's options would be. i forgot to ask how old she is too.

there is a part of me that wants to do a bunch of research and advocate for her and another part of me is saying "geeze raeben, you can't save the world or burn yourself out again on too much volunteerism."

i'll ask her a bit about her options when she brings me her placenta. if you do happen to have any good suggestions for her situation, let me know.

Comfy · 08-17-2009, 04:16 PM

That is very sad. Wonderful of you to give her your support!

Beth · 08-17-2009, 05:07 PM

Thank you for doing your part to help this mom. I'm sure that your kindness is appreciated by her...I'm sure that this mom could use all the positive energy she can get.

Beth

DoulaMorgan · 08-20-2009, 03:13 PM

Did you ever get her figured out? I feel terribly for her, and I'm sure your extra dose of kindness will go a long way!

raeben · 08-20-2009, 06:09 PM

i just met her this afternoon when she gave me her placenta. we didn't get to talk much since her and her friend hadn't eaten lunch yet but she seemed really sweet and able to be way more upbeat than i would have been. i didn't get details but it sounds like her court date for custody got pushed back to mid september so she won't know till then. *sigh*

her friend had been at the birth with her for support (way to go friend!) and seemed like she was helping her out with errands and supportive-type stuff.

Tomechet_Leida · 08-20-2009, 06:37 PM

How sad for that Mother and baby.

I have a relative who works for child protection and she told me about a recent case with a young Mom and she was arguing with her coworkers that the Mother should be placed WITH her baby. Why is this a novel idea?

I'm glad to hear that she has someone on her side, raeben.

Falling Leaves · 08-23-2009, 02:30 PM

yes, can she ask (and insist!) to be placed WITH her baby until september? my father is working for an organisation who places people in difficult situations into families, and they had young moms/couples with their newborn to actually SEE whether they were able to take care of the baby! there must be something similar in the us. this would be much more intelligent, imho! praying hard for this new little family! it is so sad when baby and mum are separated!!!

Falling Leaves · 08-23-2009, 02:34 PM

and there are even prisons with mum-baby-units, so why should it not be possible to place a mum in foster care WITH her baby (and eventually the baby's daddy)?
i'm ssorry, this makes me sooo angry, i just had to vent... all the best for them!

helpinghands · 08-23-2009, 10:08 PM

there are no words for the depth of my heartache for this momma.

scarlett7308 · 09-11-2009, 06:10 PM

Have you heard anything else about this mama? I'm hoping her custody hearing is coming up soon and she'll be reunited with her baby.