Support system
by Nina Greenplate
No earthly love is as powerful as the love of a mother for her children, the depth of which is difficult, if not impossible, to quantify.
This mighty and nurturing spirit helped launch a new forum, entitled “Discovering Your Village.”
Held every Tuesday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Bluffton Library’s large meeting room (120 Palmetto Way), this free gathering focuses solely on mom-support issues and solutions.
Its mission is simple: to empower moms through sound advice, encouragement and access to community resources. This vision of community health care professionals Meghan Olsen, Diana Medina and Laura Longer, appears to have only just begun.
“This is a place to find community,” says Olsen, a speech language pathologist, specializing in pediatric feeding and swallowing. “This is where moms anywhere on their journey, from pre-conception to first-time moms, and beyond, can be heard.”
Olsen, a mother of two, had significant feeding issues with one of her children, and struggled to find assistance and resources.
“To be honest, I felt I wasn’t being heard,” she says.
Within her profession, Olsen was often unsettled with comments that left moms frustrated or without better guidance.
“No, breastfeeding is not supposed to hurt,” says Olsen. “No, your baby crying for six hours per day from colic is not normal. There’s often something else going on.”
Her training and desire to share that knowledge and experience led her to fellow medical professionals, and moderators for this forum. With Medina, a certified birth and postpartum doula, and Longer, a breastfeeding educator and lactation counselor, they agreed to create what is now becoming a thriving community.
“Social media can often paint a pretty picture that everything (with motherhood) is great,” says Olsen. “But that is just not the reality for everyone.”
She believes this forum is an opportunity for vulnerability and no subject is off limits. Conversations are honest and open, often getting into the good, bad and ugly that motherhood can inevitably present.
More young families are moving to the Bluffton and Lowcountry area and this growth has been seen in their attendance. In watching the group’s evolution, and considering the positive feedback they’ve received, it was decided that a monthly Community Speaker Series would be beneficial.
Topics are varied along the spectrum of issues that moms in all stages encounter. Presented by professionals in their respected fields, some subject issues for May include:
• Feeding and Sleep, presented by an international board-certified lactation consultant.
• Pelvic Floor PT/Not Your Mama’s Kegel’s, offered by a breastfeeding educator and lactation counselor.
• The Science Behind Increasing Milk Supply, presented by a breastfeeding educator and lactation counselor.
• Integrating Breath-work Into Exercise, offered by a certified birth and postpartum doula and a fitness coach.
Discovering Your Village’s Facebook page details each month’s changing schedule.
Olsen, Medina and Longer also have a passion to educate moms about healthcare choices and advocacy for care.
“One thing that is very important to me as a practitioner is to let moms know they have options when selecting their family’s healthcare,” Olsen says.
Many moms Olsen has worked with in her private practice were unaware of the wealth of resources available within the community. This forum provides a community resource table filled with business cards and information on a wide range of relevant area specialties to continue growing the access for families.
Meetings can last upwards of two hours, with the speaker presentations lasting no more than 45 minutes. Children ages 3 and up are welcome to attend.
Olsen said Discovering Your Village is a no-judgment zone. She encourages moms to come and stay as long as they can, even if they are running late, because she believes this support is valuable.
To learn more, call Olsen at 843-410-4466 or email meghan@ltssc.com.
