E5 Show Notes

Joya Lewis:  And it was time for me to come out of the tub and get dressed. And she washed my feet for me. 

[MUSIC: Stems from Clear View – Okaya]

Joya Lewis: She sat there with the rag, washing my legs and my feet, helping me get dressed. She was like, “My mother did it for me.” So it literally almost made me cry. I was like, “Oh, my God. I’ve never had this type of care before.”

 

KF: This is Joya Lewis, our mom in Los Angeles. 

At 41 weeks and one day, Joya and her husband said hello to their baby boy, in a birthing room at Kindred Space LA. 

And her birth assistant stepped in to care for Joya, as soon as their baby was born. 

 

Joya Lewis:  And I’m a super self-sufficient person. Like I could have all my legs and arms taken off and still try to walk on my own. And that was the most beautiful thing that anybody has ever done for me. Like I didn’t expect it. 

 

This moment, and all the days after birth, are what we know as postpartum. 

 

Joya Lewis: So that was a part of my postpartum care. I wanted to make sure that I mentioned it, [laughter] how loving they are.

[MUSIC Stems from Clear View – Okaya reverb out]

[SHOW ID]

Show ID: I’m Kaytura Felix and you’re listening to Deep Care. 

A podcast about the Black community midwives transforming Black families and futures.

[SHOW ID out]

 

KF: Life after birth. The fourth trimester.  The postpartum period. 

 

Postpartum is hard to define in one sentence. It’s complicated because it is so much more than a labelled period of time. 

[MUSIC: Catching the Light – Vince Gabriel]

 

Here in the U.S., until recently doctors defined postpartum as the first six weeks after birth. 

That time is important, because it’s typically when the birthing person is most vulnerable to medical complications. 

In those first few days postpartum, medical issues like infections, hemorrhage, and high blood pressure can emerge. 

And research shows that the stressors of racism tend to make these complications more common and severe for Black women.

In the weeks and months that follow, there is so much change going on in the body.

Like, the womb returning to its pre-pregnancy size, shape, and position…. 

The abdominal muscles, hips, and pelvis healing from all the intense stretching over the last nine months… 

And the body trying to produce enough milk for the newborn.

But the physical changes alone don’t account for everything. 

 

People think that once the baby is safely delivered and out of the womb, the hardest part of the job is over. 

That the work is done. But that’s not true. The work gets even harder, especially because support systems tend to disappear in postpartum.

[SFX: Dominica soundscape fades in]

 

Growing up in Dominica, the women in my village, who were cared for by midwives, would enter a confinement period after birth. Family members and neighbors would take over the birthing person’s regular duties.  So, no carrying of water. No washing of clothes. No, going to the farm. 

The new mother’s main job was to rest, and care for the baby. 

[MUSIC: Catching the Light fades out]

[SFX: Dominica soundscape fades out]

 

Black midwives in the U.S and around the world understand what kind of support people need after they give birth. And as long as they’ve been practicing, they’ve known that postpartum lasts longer than those prescribed 6 weeks. 

Doctors are finally catching up. They now recognize that postpartum can last for up to a year. 

I know from my own birth experience, a year still doesn’t even begin to capture it. 

[MUSIC: Stems from Dance with the Gods – Mystic Flute]

 

For Joya, postpartum has been a time of tenderness, sweetness, and yes, rest and support. This was true from the moment she gave birth. 

 

Joya Lewis: The midwives, after I had my baby, they let me take my time and bond with my son. Like I got to feed him, and we got to just be in each other’s essence and just come together with me and my husband. They even let us rest a little bit before they came in and continued with the test.

 

Those first couple of hours having skin to skin contact with her new baby? 

Those are the golden hours. The midwives knew that Joya needed this time. 

 

Joya Lewis: And it just was very wholesome, like more spiritual care. And it just made me feel like a part of a community.

 

All the Black midwives I met bring what I call practical ceremony to the time right after birth. 

They make sure the baby and parents are bonding, that the baby is latching, and that the whole family is fed. 

After the baby arrives, the placenta, sometimes called the “afterbirth,” follows. 

It’s a blood-filled organ with vessels branching across it like the tree of life. It connects the baby to the womb for nourishment. 

One of my favorite memories was attending a birth in Philly. I remember the mom delivered her baby squatting on a birthing stool. 

Afterwards, her midwife had me warm up her leftovers. It was rice and chicken.

I watched in amazement as this mom ate the meal with her baby on her bare chest, the placenta next to her, and her husband by her side. 

The scene was so intimate, so raw, so full of love.

[MUSIC: Stems from Dance with the Gods – Mystic Flute reverb out]

 

Black community midwives know how important the moments and days immediately after birth are. 

How their clients become increasingly vulnerable to physical and mental health complications. But their care extends beyond this tender time of transition. 

 

Joya Lewis: it sets you up as a great start into your parenthood journey. And if you need support moving forward, it’s not like it ends there like at all your doctor’s appointments. Once you have your baby, “Okay, good luck.” But with Kindred Space, it continues moving forward. Excuse me.. He needs to eat anyway. So just pass him to me. It’s fine. Hi, papa. [laughs]

Joya: This is the little bundle of joy they helped me deliver, so. [laughter] He’s nice and healthy and strong. [laughter]

[MUSIC: Quick echo from Dance with the Gods then out]

 

KF: Listening to Joya takes me back to my own birth story. I often think about the first few weeks after my pregnancy. 

I gave birth by C-section in April 1999. 

And two days later, I was discharged from the hospital. In the late afternoon. In a wheelchair. 

[MUSIC: Imagined Reality – Paul Lawler]

 

That first night home with the baby was rough. I thought I was going to lose my mind when I tried to nurse my baby girl, Camara. 

She wouldn’t latch, and I was determined to breastfeed. I didn’t want the formula the hospital sent me home with. 

I remember frantically calling the hospital for help, and receiving a sharp response. Give her the formula, they said. 

It was only later that I learned that babies mostly sleep the first couple of days. If they’re peeing and gaining weight, then they’re probably okay. 

I had no one nearby to call for guidance or comfort.  My then-husband was back to work, and my seventy-year-old father was not of much help.

 

Over the next couple of days, I was up and about. I was moving slowly because of the pain from my surgery, but moving anyway. 

I was taking care of myself, my baby, and everyone else in the house. 

With all that moving around my C-section wound started to leak. 

A few days later, it re-opened. When I went to see my OB, he looked it over, restappled the wound, and told me to take it easy. 

But how was I to take it easy when I wasn’t getting the help I needed?! 

[MUSIC: Imagined Reality – Paul Lawler ends]

 

WD: I don’t think people pay as much attention to postpartum as they should. Because I’m usually a really happy person. And I had support. I told you I had my husband. He was paying my bills, all that. But just that hormone change, that postpartum kicked my ass. 

 

That’s WD, our mom from Missouri. 

Even with the support she had, her postpartum was brutal. 

Drops in pregnancy hormone levels can affect your mood and lead to what is called, baby blues. This is a general feeling of sadness or overwhelm after birth. 

 

WD: ‘Cause that’s the saddest I have ever been. And I think it really impacted, in the beginning, my relationship with my daughter because of the stigma and the pressure.

 

WD struggled, even with the strong support of her family. 

But for new parents who don’t have that? When you add the stress of an unsupportive family, physical recovery, little sleep, or financial pressure, those baby blues can turn into postpartum depression. 

[MUSIC: Change of Light – Andy Quin]

 

More than half of Black pregnant and postpartum people have signs of depression or anxiety. 

This might show up as intense sadness, disinterest in everyday activities or hobbies, getting easily irritated or difficulty bonding with your baby, or withdrawal from family and friends. 

Research shows that Black birthing people’s increased stress levels before, during, and after pregnancy puts more pressure on their mental health. 

And if that isn’t enough, racial bias makes it difficult for us to be diagnosed on time and to receive needed care. 

This is a very confusing and vulnerable time for new parents. 

These emotional changes, on top of the physical ones, are a lot for a person to go through. 

And things can take a turn for the worse if no one is paying attention.

And the weeks, and months after the baby comes can get real quiet as friends and family go back to their lives, and the birthing person is left to fend for themselves.

[MUSIC: Change of Light – Andy Quin ends]

 

I remember WD’s midwife, Kim Onile, describing how the system fails women during this time.

 

Kim Onile: The statistics that we’re told you know, about the number of Black women who die, they’re not invalid because there are people dying, but they’re dying in systems where they’re not being supported. And sometimes, it’s prenatally. Sometimes, it’s in the hospital or in the birth setting. And sometimes, it’s in the postpartum period. The supports disintegrate, and then the mom’s body fails, or the mom’s body is stressed, and complications arise. 

 

I learned a staggering fact while working on this project. Sixty-three percent of pregnancy-related deaths happen during postpartum. 

The deep care that midwives are pouring into families is not just a nice-to-have. 

[MUSIC – Pitched percussion stem from Fog – Dor Ben Lulu]

 

Their eyes on postpartum save lives and stabilize families. 

 

WD: Black midwives literally are the intervention. They are that starting point. 

WD: Kim was there even through my breastfeeding journey. Not only was she just a midwife, she was a lactation consultant. She helped me with pediatricians for my baby that she knew respected home births and stuff like that. So she really helped me navigate through the beginning months of motherhood. Kim was patient with me. Kim taught me. Kim treated me as an individual and not like she was going through a checklist.

[MUSIC – Pitched percussion stem from Fog – Dor Ben Lulu fades under and out]

 

KF: Even as a doctor, no one I knew was talking about how critical postpartum is. We were bragging about rushing back to work and getting back to our pre-pregnancy bodies. 

Today, people are still talking about snapping back after pregnancy. And honestly, without job benefits, many have to. 

[MUSIC: Paul Lawler – Abstract Understanding]

 

One in five women go back to work within 10 days of giving birth.

Almost all states have Medicaid postpartum coverage for up to a year, which is great. 

But only thirteen states and the District of Columbia offer 12 weeks of paid parental leave. 

The U.S. hasn’t standardized this. 

Only 19 percent of workers receive this benefit from their employers. 

And more than half of Black women on maternity leave do so, without pay. 

[MUSIC: Paul Lawler – Abstract Understanding ends]

 

WD lives in a state without parental leave. Instead, her husband saved up two months of pay so he could be right by her side after the baby was born.

 

WD: So he supported my decision. He never was hesitant. He said, “This is what you want. This is what we’re going to do.” He literally was my anchor.

 

KF: WD could lean on her husband during her pregnancy, and after birth he supported her in what she needed. Time for rest. 

[MUSIC: Stems from Sundrops – Megks]

 

I learned midwives coach their clients to follow a 5-5-5 protocol for after birth.

Five days in bed, another five days ‘round the bed, meaning minimal walking. And the next five days around the home.

The protocol  calls for slowness and communal care, good food, and no working. 

It can be hard for new parents to find time to breathe and connect among the many changes that a new baby brings. 

But this is the exact purpose of the 555 protocol. 

It’s a time for the birthing person and family to reset, reconnect, and replenish their energies.

[MUSIC: Stems from Sundrops – Megks ends]

 

KF: Joya, our mom from the top of the episode, was able to follow her midwife Kimberly Durdin’s guidance.

 

Joya Lewis: She gave me an extra postpartum visit because I told them, I was like, “I’m not ready.” I was like, “I’m not ready for this to end.” She was like, “Well, do you want to “come for one more?” I was like, “I can do that?” She’s like, “Yeah, we’ll schedule you for one more,” and she was like, “before you start going to the mom’s group.” 

 

She spent the first couple of weeks in bed bonding with her baby boy and husband. Then she returned to Kindred Space for her weekly postpartum group visits. 

[MUSIC: Stems from Dance with the Gods]

 

Joya Lewis: You get to talk with other postpartum moms and dads.

 and you get to relate on different things. And you realize that you’re not in this alone because whatever you may be thinking, somebody else is also thinking the same thing or feeling the same thing. So it helps continuously build that community there. And Kimberly is awesome with helping others connect and breaking the ice between us, because sometimes we can get a little shy and be scared to talk to each other, but she’s great at helping us all come together.

 

KF: Typically, in the first six weeks postpartum, most parents get only one visit with their OB. 

From there, most of their appointments are with doctors who focus on the baby. But with midwives, these visits are always for the client and the baby. 

And Black midwives see their clients 4-7 times within those six weeks of care. 

 

Joya Lewis: But that was like what my postpartum experience looked like for me, like a tremendous amount of love and care.

[MUSIC: Stems from Dance with the Gods end]

 

Joya’s experience of community after birth was very different from mine. 

While she had other postpartum friends, I was even more alone…when my father left me at 4 weeks postpartum. 

That is, until my baby sister showed up at my door a couple months later, with her suitcase in one hand and her toddler in the other. 

[MUSIC: Andy Quin – New Elements]

 

It was my first time seeing her since our mother’s funeral in Dominica. 

[SFX: Dominica scape]

My sister stayed for a month. That month felt like daybreak. 

She rolled up her sleeves, watched the baby, cleaned our apartment, and fed me. 

[SFX: Dominica Soundscape transitions to Caribbean Ocean]

 

I loved her stewed chicken, rice and peas, and plantains. But her fish broth, chock full of vegetables and dumplings, was the best. 

We would dress baby Camara in her cutest outfits, and go for walks, chatting and laughing together along the way. 

I felt at home in her company, like somebody finally had my back. 

[MUSIC: New Elements – Andy Quin fades out]

 

Twenty-six years later, I’m still grateful that my sister did not leave me alone.

Her care for me bonded us for life. 

[SFX: Ocean fades out]

 

Midwives believe postpartum can be life changing.  And it was for me. 

The possibility of that transformation is what feeds Kim Onile’s soul.

 

Kim Onile: I’ve seen women take a different direction in their life because of the experience they had. // Like, there was a mom, her second baby was born with me. And during her postpartum appointments, they turned into kind of like business planning sessions 

 

KF: Kim’s client is a trained dancer and musician. She had a vision for a community arts program for kids.

 

Kim Onile: And she had been holding off on these ideas. Like she would talk about it during her prenatals. And then once the baby was born, it’s like those ideas came back to the forefront. And I was like, “Okay. This is what’s occupying her mind. So this is what we’re going to talk about / And I kind of helped her like put them down on paper. Like What would that look like? What would be the first step? //  And I saw recently on Facebook that she’s now taking steps to make those things happen.

[SFX: Chimes in wind, then fade down under music]

[MUSIC: Stems from Riverside – Aves]

 

KF: The midwives see birth as a portal. 

Not just for the baby but for the birthing person’s dreams and desires. 

This doorway to deep care is shaped and sustained by active relationship-building. 

It requires all of us — with or without children –to step up with love, attention, and urgency. 

Nine months ago? Joya and other postpartum moms were learning about parenting, while leaning on each other for company and support.

Today, having walked through that door, Joya is keeping it open for other moms by leading a support group at Kindred Space.

 [MUSIC: Stems from Riverside – Aves out]

 

Joya Lewis: So to have that coming out of postpartum, an entire village behind me, on top of the people that I have already was extremely amazing that Kindred Space creates community for all of the people that they care for. It’s not over after your postpartum visits. Now, you can still reach out to them as well after you’ve been seen. If I have any questions about Jeremiah, I can call Kimberly right now if I had a problem and she would pick up and she would help. That’s such a beautiful thing. 

[MUSIC: Fine Detail – Paul Lawler]

 

Joya Lewis: The care never ends. That’s the biggest takeaway for me.

Black community midwives showed me that birthing people are forever postpartum. 

I am forever post-partum. And I see my story connected to Joya, to WD, to all the parents and midwives we spoke to. 

I did the best I could to have what I thought was a “good birth.” And through this research project, I’ve learned what is truly possible when we invest in deep care . I want that for other people. 

 

And part of me wishes I’d had it for myself.  

I have to be honest, I’ve been reflecting a lot on my past in this project. And now I want to look to the future. I asked Kim Homer, our midwife from Florida, about what she wants to see for Black birth. 

 

Kim Homer: That it’s brought back to the community. where people don’t feel like, “Oh, I’m just going to birth by myself,” when you don’t have to. “Oh, I’m in this pregnancy by myself.” “You’re not. Your neighbor on the next block is pregnant too. Go meet them.” That’s what I would love to see. 

 

KF: And, I’m left wondering, what other dreams, what other possibilities can deep care reveal? Tune into our final episode for more. 

[MUSIC: Fine Detail – Paul Lawler]

[MUSIC: Show ID gentle theme]

 

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