As a first time mom I’ve become recently, I’m still catch myself sometimes floating in the clouds of happy pregnancy memories! 🙂 My son was a totally unexpected blessing, but I’ve enjoyed every day carrying him for the full term 40 weeks. To tell you the truth, finding out was scary as heck — for years I’ve heard from everywhere how hard it is to be pregnant and how much changes you have to face and that experience is so far from perfect, etc. Lucky me, I never threw up even once during my whole term, didn’t have cravings or serious pains, gained like only 15 lbs altogether, including the baby, and lost them almost at once. I had a pretty fast natural delivery, on time and without any complications and was rewarded with a happy and healthy baby boy. My postpartum recovery was normal also. As I’ve said before, I was blessed and I only have happy memories of myself being pregnant.. even miss it a little bit sometimes! LOL 🙂
But as I’ve mentioned, at the beginning of the road I was scared as heck, questions racing in my mind just never seemed to stop and I was constantly panicking trying to find the answers to my fears…
- OMG, how the heck am I gonna afford the medical service and delivery?
- my relationship is like very new, what if I will end up being a single mom?
- my income is very low, will I be able afford all the baby stuff?
- I know nothing, I mean totally NOTHING about the babies, how will I handle having one?
- I don’t have any family around at all, what if I need help?
- again, I have an ABSOLUTE ZERO knowledge about the babies, how will I take care of my newborn?
- how will I know if my baby is growing and developing OK?
- what are my risks to die when giving birth?
And so on, and so forth. Almost every woman with an unstable financial and personal situation faces those fears, now I know… 🙂 Most of the time they remain just fears and later on you’re recalling those scary questions with a smile. But at that time I was nowhere near smiling — I had to face all those reality checks with a cool mind and rapid action. Luckily, I wasn’t afraid to search for help and information.
OK, you’re pregnant. Now what?
FIRST AND FOREMOST, do not be afraid to seek help!!! There are plenty of helpful people and organizations out there, more than you can imagine! They are free or covered by your qualifying County Services. And YES, they do give a damn about you and your unborn baby and NO, they are not trying to rip you off, exploit you or your kid in any way neither now nor in future and they have NO INTENTION to take your baby away for adoption or else (pardon my French, I’ve just heard so many ridiculously absurd opinions that I simply had to put it in this particular wording for the sake of clarity and simplicity of understanding). Start with getting a health insurance (get some easy steps here). Hopefully you have a residence and food (if not — seek help here immediately). After that, here are some local places you are most welcome — and you totally should! — visit if you’re pregnant and need ANY help:
1) Women’s Care Center
103 E 1st St
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 623-7100
Without a doubt, the best place in Duluth to get help and information when pregnant. Their professional staff — of counselors, social workers, nurses and ultrasound technicians — has assisted thousands of pregnant women totally free of charge. They understand the importance of confidentiality and won’d judge you and they can really help and find answers to your questions. Please visit www.womenscarecenter.org for more information. Services provided:
- Free pregnancy tests (medical-grade)
- Options counseling
- Free ultrasounds to verify pregnancy viability and dates
- Referrals to medical and social services
- Pregnancy verification
- Prenatal and parenting education
- Infant and children supplies
I PERSONALLY RECOMMEND this place for getting any help or possible directions and referrals when pregnant!!! I will only provide some general info, as for my own experience with this awesome organization, please click here to read more.
2) Bethany Christian Services
3025 Harbor Lane N, Suite #316
Plymouth MN
Phone: (763) 553-0344
Line: 1-800-BETHANY
www.bethany.org
Text “impregnant” to #77054
3) AABC Strong Start
Morning Star Birth Center
1730 E Superior St
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 722-2700
Strong Start, supported from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, for you to have a healthy baby, can help you with:
- Prenatal Care
- Support
- Managing Stress
- Eating Right
- Having a Healthier, Smarter Baby
- Helpful Resources
4) Nurse-Family Partnership
St. Louis County Health and Human Services
Coordinator Sarah Lehrke, PHN
Phone office: (218) 725-5275
Phone cell: (218) 390-5843
Toll Free: 1-800-450-9777, ext. 5210
Nurse-Family Partnership is a program for women who are having their first baby. If you enroll, a registered nurse will visit you in your home throughout pregnancy and continue to visit until your baby is 2 years old. This Program is FREE to all eligible women. Please visit www.nursefamilypartnership.org for more information or call the numbers provided. You are encouraged to enroll as early as possible in your pregnancy. Your nurse will help you:
- Have a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby
- Become a better parent
- Build a strong network of support for you and your baby
- Make your home a safe place for your baby to live and play
- Get referrals for healthcare, childcare, job training and other support services available in your community
- Find ways to continue your education and develop job skills
- Set goals for your family’s future and find ways to help you reach them
5) The Teen Parent Program
St. Louis County
Public Health&Human Services
Government Services Center
320 West 2nd Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 733-2717
If you are under 18, pregnant or expecting there are free services available for you; The Teen Parent Program provides services to teenage mothers&fathers by assisting soon to be or already parenting teens in making appropriate plans for themselves and their children. The following are some of the things you can be assisted with:
- talking to your parent(s)
- completing a school/work plan
- financial/medical assistance information
- housing arrangements
- child care assistance information
- the paternity process, child support and co-parenting
- information/education about parenting
- referrals to community resources
- health&well being information/referral
- adoptive placement/information referrals
6) Women Infants and Children (WIC)
St. Louis County
Public Health and Human Services
Government Service Center – Room 108
320 West 2nd Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 725-5211
WIC provides nutrition education, support for breastfeeding, and healthy foods to pregnant and breastfeeding women, and to infants and children up to age five. To receive benefits, applicants must have a nutritional and/or health need and meet certain income guidelines. Many working families are eligible for WIC. Foods provided include fruits & vegetables, milk, cheese, cereal, eggs, juice, beans/peanut butter, whole grains, and formula for infants who are not breastfed.
Automatically Eligible: To be automatically income eligible for WIC, applicants must present documentation that they are enrolled in one of the following programs: MA, MNCare, TEFRA, MFIP, Food Stamps, SSI, Free/Reduced Price School Lunch, Head Start, Fuel Assistance. Eligible Under Income Guidelines: Others are eligible pending completion of the eligibility determination process by having income within the Income Guidelines
Visit the Minnesota Department of Health WIC page to help determine if you are eligible for WIC.
For the story of my personal experience with WIC click here
7) Superior Babies
St. Louis County&Arrowhead Center Partnership
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 725-5210
Superior Babies Program goal is to promote sobriety for those women struggling with addiction to drugs and alcohol. This program aims to decrease the adverse effects of prenatal exposure to drugs and the incidence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. This is a voluntary and confidential program offered free of charge to participants. Your Team will help with the following:
- Antepartum and postpartum health
- Chemical use
- Mental health
- Relationship health
- Child growth and development
- Parenting
- Living skills
- Employment
- Legal issues
- Community resources connections
- Assist in building a sober support network through Superior Babies Events
And just in case, even though I hope you will never need the following information… But life is life, we don’t always get what we expect and sometimes things turn out to be far from happy. At those moments we all need a special type of support from that little circle of sympathetic people who know exactly how we feel and can understand us and help us obtain courage and hope.
Courageous Hearts
Sarah Winandy
Phone: (715) 969-4506
Courageous Hearts offers a ministry which provides comprehensive support to couples experiencing a poor prenatal diagnosis and carrying to term. Peer ministers and volunteers are invited to come and be a part of this important ministry.
I just had a baby! Now what?
Congratulations on having your bundle of joy!!! You have so much awesome unique experience ahead, this will totally add up something new to your life and hopefully will improve it a lot! 🙂 Of course behind those joyful moment there will be many days and nights of hard work, sleepless hours and a lot of responsibility demands — well, that’s a part of a job, we, the people on a low income, cannot afford a crowd of housekeeping and baby-caring staff to only enjoy the happy and easy moments with our babies… 🙂 Nonetheless, we still might hope for some help and good advice to rely on when parenting and taking care of our precious newborn peanuts. 🙂
Before I start with the list of helpful programs and resources, I’d like to remind you that we still have the organizations mentioned above for pregnancy referrals, who provide help after you have a baby also!!! Those are:
Babies actually grow fast… well, generally speaking cause sometimes a day with our little cubs seem longer than a year and sometimes a month looks more like a minute! 🙂 I’m looking at my baby boy and still can’t believe it’s been almost half a year since I had him, seems just like it was yesterday!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 Time flies… And we don’t, so I suppose we all are hardly managing to get everything accomplished on our to-do list at the same time trying to be a good active parent and still remain alive. 🙂 Here are some referrals to help you out with the rapidly growing babies and their needs:
1) TLC: The Lactation Club
Essentia Health-Lakewalk Clinic
Conference room inside front lobby
1502 London Road, Suite 102
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 786-3333
Tuesdays from 1-3 pm
This Club is facilitated by board certified lactation consultants and is open to any moms and their infants who sre breastfeeding or thinking about breastfeeding. There is no cost or registration, so feel free to drop-in with your baby. They offer a relaxed atmosphere to speak with a Lactation Consultant or to visit with the other breastfeeding moms. They have light refreshments and an infant scale available too. It might just be the support you need!
2) Child&Teen Checkups
St. Louis County
Public Health&Human Services
Government Services Center
320 West 2nd Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 471-7600
C&TC are extremely important because regular checkups help keep children healthy; health problems can be found and treated early; children can get tested for anemia and exposure to lead or tuberculosis and other diseases; parents and children can get information about healthy lifestyles; children and teens can get regular checkups at the dentist.
3) Follow Along Program
St. Louis County
Public Health&Human Services
Government Services Center
320 West 2nd Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 725-5270
Babies and young children grow and learn at their own rate. Follow Along Program helps you know if your child is playing, talking, growing, moving and acting like other children. Questionnaires are sent to you every 4-6 months. You fill them out and send them back to the Program. They will send you your results back and if there’s any concerns, someone will get in touch with you. Also when you return your questionnaires you will get some information about fun activities for you and your child to do together. The Program is free of charge. Please visit www.health.state.mn.us/mnfap/ to apply and for more information.
4) Help Me Grow
St. Louis County
Public Health&Human Services
Government Services Center
320 West 2nd Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 336-8744
Some babies and young children need extra help to learn and grow. While all, the kids grow and change at their own rate, some children experience delays in their development. Special health conditions may affect children’s development too. Within this Program, early childhood specialists with eligible children and families (regardless of income and immigrant status) to plan the services and supports they need. These may include:
- Special instructions and other services, including speech, physical and occupational therapy
- Ways that a family can support their child’s development in everyday activities
- Connections to community services and programs
For more information please visit www.MNParentsKnow.info
5) Circle of Security
Essentia Health
Polinsky Medical
Rehabilitation Center
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 786-5360
The Circle of Security is a user-friendly group sessions based on a map of child behavior. Using this map helps parents answer the question “Why does my child behave that way?” “What does s/he need?” and “How can I best help Her/him grow up?” The Circle of Security can help caregivers find the key and unlock the mystery of difficult child behaviors, giving parents renewed feeling of success and confidence. There is no cost to participate, but you must call to register.
No matter how fearsome your motherhood can seem to you at first, this will most certainly be an experience you will never forget until the end of your life — both good and sad moments will stay with you forever… 🙂 I hope you will enjoy being a mom and raising a baby regardless of your low income and feel blessed in spite of all hardships, just like I do every given day! 🙂 Good luck.
