Women Upholding and Supporting Women: Peer-to-Peer Mentoring for At-Risk Birthing Women

“Our stories didn’t begin with suffering, and therefore, they will not end in the same way.” -Lucia Soraya DosSantos, founder, Sacred Birthing Village 

We acknowledge and honor the struggles, sacrifices, and necessities our ancestors had to engage in to make the continuation of our lives possible. Centering our joy and liberation, we intentionally choose to understand the complexities of our life history and experiences but to see and honor the many passages we have had and continue to traverse to save our lives and set us and one another free. In the realm of maternal health, we are not a crisis. We lay claim as the daughters of the earth, soil and sun, the creation of a majestic and reverent designer; we have been equipped with the finest. We are rich in the elements that have created and built nations.

Our birthing mothers (Little Sisters) are joined with a SisterFriend, who supports the mother and child formally until the child's first birthday. However, this bond is a community bond, for our birthing sister is held up in her time of need and then will hold others in their time of need. By supporting the mother and child, we are supporting the entire family, which then is able to support itself, grow stronger and support others. We are growing roots, which spread into root systems to nurture and grow the entire community.

Little Sisters are our BIPOC pregnant participants residing in the South Coast region. Some are newly immigrated. All are subjected to the fabric of racism woven into our region and society as a whole. Our region bears the scars of the centuries past and present, how systemic and structural racism have shaped the inequalities of our ancestors and our present-day families. Our Little Sisters are dealing with the stressors and overall toxicity of poverty and everything that brings while trying to bring a new life into this world, into our world, into our community.

In Massachusetts, our BIPOC mothers experience a rate of severe maternal morbidity (SMM) that is twice as high as caucasians. This rate has risen 25% over the last decade. Through community, community partners and learning opportunities we are ensuring healthy outcomes for mother and baby, as well as driving out the toxicity, to let in the joy of birth and Re-birth, the joy of freedom.