BALTIMORE — Dr. Marilyn Berchie-Gialamas has spent her entire career in maternal health. She's a nurse practitioner, teaches other nurses about maternal care and does research on the topic.
But it wasn't until she had her first child, she says, that she really noticed the gaps in maternal care.
"Being a black mother, even though I was in the maternal child field, I'm a nurse practitioner, there were many spaces where I felt like I wasn't being heard," she said.
So she created a space through her non-profit Trinity Maternal Wellness and within that, a support group called The Mommas Circle.
"It is a holistic wellness class so we talk about the mind, body, spiritual, nutritional, social wellness of the mom" she said.
The Mommas Circle is broken up into cohorts, offered in the spring, summer and fall. Its free to sign up and Berchie-Gialamas said they also provide free childcare and meals to both mom and child.
Right now, the cohorts are offered in Baltimore City and Howard County, and Berchie-Gialamas said they are looking to expand to Baltimore and Anne Arundel counties.
In the cohorts, they offer activities like yoga, sound baths, educational seminars, and Zumba. Each session is tailored to the interests of the moms.
"Then part of the class we just have our circle time where we get to talk with each other, decrease isolation, create friendships, feel seen and heard," she said.
Shanee Gaters had her second baby and gleaned advice from other moms in the group about what it's like to have two kids. She said it also gave her an opportunity to be social and recharge.
"It reminded me of different things I could do, like get time to myself and give back to myself," Gaters said. "We do yoga, we did Zumba, we did writing in our journal."
"I have done those things before but after you have a kid, sometimes you just lose yourself and forget about the stuff that you did to ground yourself," Gaters said.
This summer, Berchie-Gialamas added another service to her non-profit, a free baby food and supply bank.
"Many of the moms that we see don't qualify for some of the aid that is out there. Especially in the current economy, there's a lot of families living paycheck to paycheck and there's a big gap there," she said.
She may not be able to fill every gap for every mom, but Berchie-Gialamas is willing to try. In her circle, moms can build their tribe and thrive.
"It really warms my heart every time I see a mom with a smile on her face, just feeling supported and getting everything that she needs," she said. "I love moms. I love families. I love children and I just wanna see them, everyone succeed. I wanna see everyone feel like they have the community and the village that they need for everything."
They will be collecting donations for moms and infants on Saturday January 17 from 3-4 p.m. at the Elkridge Branch Library on Washington Boulevard. The items they need include diapers, breastfeeding supplies, formula and bottles, wipes and maternity clothes.
