For Olympic gold medalist Dawn Harper-Nelson, knowing her body was essential to becoming one of the best hurdlers in the world. Years later, during pregnancy and childbirth, she realized the stakes were much higher.
“When you want to win the Olympics, you have to know your body,” Harper-Nelson said. “I dedicated 24 years at the time to chasing Olympic gold. And so when I won, it was because I knew my body inside and out.”
“That was a blessing for me because again, a gold medal was on the line — this one is a life, my child’s or mine.”
Harper-Nelson, a mother of two who endured 49 hours of labor and survived a severe postpartum emergency, shared her experience during a recent maternal health discussion at Urban League headquarters in St. Louis.
Hosted by Save Our Sisters during the Urban League Expo, the event brought together mothers, expectant mothers, health care professionals and maternal care advocates to discuss pregnancy, childbirth and what happens after mothers bring their babies home.
Much of the discussion centered on a message that Harper-Nelson said her years as an elite athlete had already taught her: Women need to know their bodies, speak up when something does not feel right and expect their concerns to be taken seriously.
“I think it’s so important that you advocate for yourself within understanding that when you speak, it’s valid,” Harper-Nelson said. “It makes sense. It’s not ridiculous. We just don’t know that we have a choice.”
For Unique Lumsdon, a Chicago native preparing for the birth of her first child, finding people to help her navigate motherhood has been particularly important.
“Being a first-time mom, I don’t really have a large village in St. Louis,” Lumsdon said. “So I’m glad that I was able to find so many different events with communities that can help me get prepared. It has been a huge help for me.”
The discussion, moderated by Jade Harrell, included Dr. Candice Woolfolk of Washington University’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; Monique Gill of Washington University’s Department of Psychiatry; Ebony Hooper-Boateng of Birthing You Doula Services; and Ronke Faleti, founder of Korede House.
Panelists discussed the roles different maternal health professionals can play during pregnancy and after childbirth. Hooper-Boateng explained that midwives can serve as primary medical providers, while doulas provide emotional and physical support to mothers.
Panelists also discussed access to doula care through MO HealthNet, Missouri’s Medicaid program. A new state law that took effect Aug. 28 requires coverage of doula services for eligible participants, including support sessions before and after childbirth, attendance at a birth, lactation support and help connecting families with community resources.
But several speakers stressed that the need for support does not end with delivery.
“While birth is a big event, it is during the postpartum period that women suffer in silence,” Faleti said. “It takes a village to raise a child, but who is holding the mother?”
Faleti said every mother deserves “100 days of postpartum care.” Her organization helps mothers navigate the transition through specialists, peer support groups, in-home assistance and clinical support.
Mental health can be an important part of that transition. Gill said one in five women experiences perinatal depression or anxiety and said symptoms may not always be recognized as a mental health problem.
“In Black women, perinatal mood disorders often manifest as physiological symptoms — headaches, stomach aches, exhaustion,” Gill said. “You do not have to suffer in silence; treatment is proven to work and recovery is possible.”
Jasmyn Alexander knows how easily those symptoms can go unrecognized.
Alexander, a mother of six who is expecting her seventh child, works with patients as a perinatal peer support specialist for WashU Medicine. She said becoming a specialist helped her understand experiences from her own pregnancies that she had not recognized at the time.
“Becoming a specialist, already being a mother, I learned so much,” Alexander said. “Like, I didn’t know that I was going through postpartum until I became a counselor.”
Speakers also pushed back against expectations that women should quickly return to their pre-pregnancy bodies and routines.
“The bounce back culture is toxic. Your body takes time to heal,” Hooper-Boateng said. “You are not chasing getting back to who you were; you are moving forward into a new piece of your identity.”
Harper-Nelson also spoke about the importance of having Black health care providers who understand the experiences and concerns of their patients.
“I don’t think there’s enough of us in the position to help us — OB/GYNs, doctors. I need to see more of me,” Harper-Nelson said. “I feel safe with us. I feel more heard.”
That was part of her reason for seeking out a Black OB/GYN, she said.
“I just knew that there would be some things that I will say that she will understand, that I didn’t have to explain or feel like I need to convince her to say that this concern I have is valid.”
For Alexander, discussions like this one can help women recognize problems and find help before they reach a crisis.
“These things are really helping the community — for them to come out and listen to,” Alexander said. “And they should have them more often, honestly, to help women.”