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I think that for a mother's experience during the time of developing a baby with COVID 19 is very hard. They are struggling because if they find out news about their baby or anything most husbands or fathers of the baby can not be in attendance, due to the pandemic. I think the best way is to allow these parents to have there loved ones join because in a way having your significant other might not stress the mother and help her to not worry as much, because stress can put a lot on the baby and the mother. I also think they are finding more out about a mothers health and stress levels. It is important to keep those down and to keep them stable.

- Rachel Roberts

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In the US they give mothers about 12 weeks of maternity leave from work. I think that the mother should be able to go back to work whenever she is ready. The mothers body also needs to heal while she is learning how to take care of her new baby. If the mother was to return to work when she is ready that would create more time for the mother to work with their child on developments such as holding their own bottle, sitting up, and laying on their stomach. This would also allow time for the mother to find a babysitter who their child is comfortable with so there is no separation anxiety.
-Maddie Egner

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By looking at  the textbook and looking at the videos that was posted it is very important that kids around that age interact with a lot of people if we are looking into our  society today in time i have a 2 year old in my family and she saying more words than i was when i was a toddler the reason been is because they are around a lot more people now then before but it is still kinda hard for her to  get out the house due to covid so what we do for her  is FaceTime and also we have family get togethers one a month just to make sure everyone is doing good but the main thing to this to have them around different kinda of environments so they can get that exposure and don't let them forget because if they do they will go through that pruning stage and  the less they forget the better. But it is very hard for the parents to allow there kids around anyone that they have not been exposed to it is a very hard time to rise a kid this day in time.

-Carlon McClerkin

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Hi Maddie! I completely agree with you a 100% on the aspects of maternity leave. I think that it is so important for mothers to get and be allowed extended time with their child. I think that it will help if they  eventually get to go back when they please and if they ween the child off and maybe go in to work possibly two times a week. I as well do not think that it is just hard on the baby but mothers too! They don't want to have to leave there new born baby! As for the healing of a mother, I think that it is so important to have the mother go back when they feel the most comfortable and the best to go back. I agree with you and thanks for sharing! - Rachel Roberts

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Hey Carlon! I completely agree with you on the aspect that it is so hard now a days due to covid! But I think that is really awesome how you guys are still able to do stuff for your two year old family member! I completely agree with you on the aspect that kids are learning so much more then we did. I am an aunt to three and all I can say is half the stuff that they know I never knew at there age! I think that the environment is constantly changing and there is so much more being taught thank you so much for sharing! -Rachel Roberts

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I think that there should be harsher punishments for mothers who expose their unborn babies to teratogens. It seems like a lot of the time mothers just get a slap on the wrist. It would be nice to see some type of law that requires pregnant women to get drug tested. If they are positive, they should have to spend the remainder of their pregnancy in a facility that prevents them from engaging in harmful behavior. This may seem harsh, but so is harming an unborn innocent child!
If we implemented some kind of laws we would see a decrease in children born with abnormalities. This would help us have healthier communities and we would spend less money on potentially preventable diseases within our healthcare sector.
-Hope Woods

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After giving birth, there are those scenarios where the mom and dad have to worry about transporting their children because of weather. During the first couple of months of the baby being outside the womb, it is continuously adjusting to the world around it in relation to breathing. There have been cases and times in history where infants have died by hundreds and even thousands because of the lack of knowledge when in drastic areas of the world with environmental shifts. For example, babies catching pneumonia, getting overheated, etc. because of the parents not knowing or understanding how to keep the babies temperature in the normal 97 to 100 range. So, my proposal is to teach parents on how to shelter their infants for certain weather conditions so that the child easily adapts to it.

-Taylor Page

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Based on my observations of family members who were pregnant, I noticed that not all of them took the proper nutritional steps. Proper nutrition during pregnancy is not common knowledge so I believe there should be ways for women to get prenatal nutrition information for free. Information should be made available in multiple forms to cater to all types of people. This should include in person seminars and webinars. They should also be available to men because they are an important component of the woman's support system. I am positive that most people do not know that during this time most women need to consume 2,200 to 2,900 calories a day to maintain pregnancy. Knowledge is extremely important and pregnancy can be a financial burden, so why not spread knowledge for free to the people who need it!

-Curtis Reeder

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Many expecting mothers are unaware of things that can cross their placenta and impact their developing baby. Anything a pregnant woman puts into her body has a chance of entering her blood stream which can lead directly to the fetus. Things such as food, liquids, medications, and other drugs travel through the placenta. Whatever an expecting mother is exposed to in the environment, has an affect on her baby. The placentas main function is to provide nutrients to the fetus which is why it is important for mothers to ingest things that will be healthy for the baby. Some mothers are unaware of harmful substances and do not think that everyday items like certain types of cheese can really harm the growing fetus.
-Lily Gonzalez

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When reading through the text I saw that toddlers can learn both through operant condition and through classical conditioning.As babies grow they learn from what they see and hear. As well as their actions show from the praises and punishments they are receiving from parents. My mom works in a day care and it is hard for them to punish some of the kids for their actions because they are not really allowed to punish them. They have one kid who likes to bite other kids and they have a hard time to punish him because he does not care about timeouts, but he is an only child at home so he does not show this behavior at home. How would his parents be able to condition him to not bite anymore if he does not show that action at home? Since society doesn't like the sound of punishing their kids in ways that may benefit them it may be hard for these kids to learn what is right and wrong. Even when it just comes to the parents giving a small punishment when the kid does something wrong. My parents used to give us a little tap on the hand nothing that would hurt us it would just scare us to let us know what we are doing is wrong.
-Katie Werkema

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Hope,
I see how you can be upset with mothers exposing their unborn babies to harmful substances. It makes sense that the nutrients that the mother consumes goes to the baby as well. - Jimmy Brennan

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The prenatal period in the baby's development is extremely important. This is because the baby is still being developed and outside influences can affect how the baby forms and if there is any negative affects. So if a women finds out after two months that she is pregnant, however she has been heavily drinking for the past two months and the baby develops fetal alcohol syndrome, should we label that as abuse or ignorance. While on the other hand if a mother knows that she is pregnant and still choices to smoke cigarettes is that considered abuse? The environment that the baby is being developed in has a huge impact on that baby. From if they will be more likely to develop autism  and other different disorders. Just like if we experience a traumatic event in our environment we can develop PTSD. As a society should we make birth control methods more readily available to the public to help promote safe sex to help keep the number of surprise pregnancies down so when people are ready to have children they can stop activities that could be harmful to the baby's health?

-Mallory Jones

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I think it is important to really educate women on how important it is to have prenatal care. Prenatal care can help avoid and handle most teratogens the baby is introduced to. Another area it would help is letting mothers all over the world know that breastfeeding is healthy for the mom and child and not only to be used in developing countries. Higher class women tend to think breastfeeding is more for poor families but breast milk gives the baby the correct calories and nutrients it needs.
-Reja'

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Rachel,
I totally agree with your statement above. I think that the pandemic puts mothers in an even harder spot being pregnant because of specific stressors that can happen during the pandemic and questions that can arise. What if the mother gets Covid? How will it affect the baby? I just feel like there are more things to stress out about.
-Jimmy Brennan

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In the book, it talks about how the exposure to chemicals, radiation, air pollution and extreme heat and humidity can impair development to the child through the mother. One example of this is how after the accident at Chernobyl, children displayed many physical deformities, mutations and intellectual deficits.
-Jimmy Brennan

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Rachel Hey just wanted to say that I agree with you trying to bring a kid into this world right now is very stressful you have a lot more to worry about and the suggest about bringing the loved ones in the room it is a risky play also because you are bringing more things into the room with the mom and the baby. But it is a smart play by bring the farther in to bring the mom stress levels down I totally agree with you on that. Because there is a lot of Black women dying during brith and not been able to see there kids first step so yes i do agree with bring in more health history about the mom to help  her have the baby in a safe way.

Carlon McClerkin

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I know that this is during the pregnancy but it should also be addressed after birth. During the pregnancy the doctorand everyone else around her are focused on the mother because her body is supporting the baby so it is important for her to be healthy. However, I feel as though they focus solely on the physical aspects of the pregnancy rather than looking at the mental aspects too. During pregnancy the mother goes through a lot of different phases and has surges of different hormones that they usually do not have. A lot of these mothers do not know how to mentally deal with all the emotions and other aspects that come with pregnancy. Not only during but also after, once the baby is born everyone focuses on the baby and not so much on the mother. More often then not the mother gets post-partum depression and leaves it untreated because she does not understand it or she does not want her peers to know nor do they pay attention. I think that all post partum mothers should go to therapy for at least a couple of weeks to deal with all of the new emotions and past emotions during the pregnancy. The mothers mental health is just as important as the baby's health.
-Micaela Bryan

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As a society, we put a lot of pressure on pregnant women. Especially women that are not married and women that are still teenagers. A lot of people have their opinions on these women, that are not needed. In the end, the women need support from society because they are bringing new life into the world. Clearly, women do not need to be married or in their 20's before having a child, so the mindset of pregnant women needs to change. Even when women are married and able to support a child, people still give unwanted opinions that are not asked for. When women have support from the people around them, they are more likely to get the proper nutrients and care for their developing child. The negative thoughts on certain pregnancies can lead to unsupported and malnourished children because the mothers can be so depressed they don't want to take care of themselves or their baby. A supported mother will create a supported child. When people think about what is best for the child, they also think their opinion is needed. In reality, if we support all pregnant women and encourage them through the process, they will have the right mindset to care for their child as best as they can.
-Dorian Jenkins

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I think it should be really important to educate women on what happens during the baby's development. Especially with teratogens, I agree with the first post and that there should be some type of punishment to mothers who harm there baby's while in the womb. Educating them on these effects could save life's. Educating women on how there baby develops is important too. It is important for them to know what is happening within their body and their future child. Education is the key to healthier children.
-Tait Harvey

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I think that part of socialization for children can start earlier than we even think possible. Physical Development is a big growing time at this age, but also a growing stage for the brain as well with many introductions to all different and new things to a child. This is when a child starts to learn how to talk and show what they want through either speech or hand gestures. Though it is very important physically, also socially it can be beneficial that a child be around other children close to their age, or just other children in general to start to show them to socialize with others besides the people they see on the daily bases. One change would be to start socializing your child with others sooner than what others may say so that they are introduced to that at an early age and will be more comfortable as they continue to grow.
-Ellen McCorkle

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Physical development for toddlers of 1 to 2 years of age is extremely important. I work at a daycare so I see first hand the different development and stages different types of children are in. However, the place I work at also has a curriculum. This helps the students develop in lots of ways, from mentally to physically. Physical development also takes place in the daycare. We take the children outside to run around, we do different activities in the classroom like coloring, drawing, climbing. Anything you can think of. Watching the children each year and how much they grow physically is amazing! We could implement better physical growth if it was a requirement to go to preschool, I never went and I wish I did. But if preschool was mandatory, then children would have many other chances to physically grow and learn!

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As a mother your very own diet is detrimental to the outcome of you baby and his or her own health. We really need to begin to stress that you are not just eating for yourself but for your baby as well. I myself didn't know how important the mothers eating habits were during  there pregnancy until I took a nutrition course here at Lindenwood. Things such as the proper calorie intake and what exactly is the mother putting into her body are very important when it comes to the babies development. I feel as if this should not  over looked.
-Deronne Carson

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During this time it is the perfect opportunity to teach a toddler new skills to develop the brain even more. These can be anything from speaking/socializing to memory and plenty more like sensory skills and all. These are important because it will develop a bunch of things for them. The way to improve this is by playing games like toys or by simply throwing a ball and catching it. All of these exercises help them improve a lot of stuff. It might be harder because of covid for parents to buy/get toys or even let them play with other kids so they can practice their social skills and all. But I think that as parents and society we should start thinking about things we can adjust so these toddlers are still able to practice all those social and motor skills. I don't how it is here but in Canada where I'm from everything is in lockdown so there's only online school and all so it's even harder to do anything because there is also a curfew and all. It's probably also hard for toddlers to be 24/7 stuck in the house because  there is nothing to do because it's all shutdown like parks and all. I think that they should put some specific rules out there so toddlers are able to socialize a bit and go to parks or see friends cause in Canada they also have a rule of no visitors allowed at anytime. So I think that some places should adjust their rules just a bit to help them and all.
Kim Turcotte

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As mentioned in previous posts and the textbook, mothers during and after pregnancy experience a wide range of hormones, emotions, and difficulties. One way I think society can better support development right from the start is by addressing the mothers needs. By helping the mother in every way possible, the m
other will be able to address her baby's needs more effectively. Some ways to help a new mother may be to offer therapy or emotional support, supply readily available nutritious food, or help with potentially demanding tasks around the house. The less the mother worries about herself, the more she can focus on her baby.
-Regan Gaddini

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During the first several months of life infants growth at an incredible rate.  Many moms understand the nutritional importance of breastfeeding but may not know how to proceed with proper nutrition in addition to breastfeeding.  This is where I believe education about infant nutrition would be beneficial.  Some may not understand what could be of the most benefit to the infant to use as a supplement.  Are there some foods that are better than others to serve in addition to breast milk?  Are there some foods that should only be introduced at a later age?  Nutrition is a huge problem is some countries and this effects the infant's neurological development.  I think that Health Departments, pediatricians, or even hospitals should offer a class.  Maybe this can even be offered before the mother leaves the hospital.  -Reese Friedel

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One of the many things a mother should do is breast feed their baby. A baby should be breast fed along with the appropriate food for a year or longer. Breastfeeding a baby has many health benefits. Mothers who breastfeed their baby have lower rates of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and depression. After menopause, they are at lower risk for ovarian cancer and bone fractures. The benefit for the baby is that it promotes growth and development because breast milk contains the right amount of fat, sugar, and water, and protein. Also, breast milk contains immunizing agents that protect the infant from infections. Breastfeeding a baby lowers the risk of allergies and gastrointestinial symptoms. Breastfeeding a baby is very crucial to their develpment and growth, breastfeeding can go a long way when the child becomes an adult.

- Kaleb Bryant

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The ages 1-2 are significant times of growth. According to the text, brain development reaches 70% of its adult size by the age of two. Something that has captured my attention over the past few years is that I see many young toddlers on tablets, phones, and watching tv. Unfortunately, all the time given to screens is taken away from a child's development. A toddler’s physical development will suffer if they become too sedentary. According to https://www.healthychildren.org/English/family-life/Media/Pages/Why-to-Avoid-TV-Before-Age-2.aspx , it is unhealthy for a child to watch television until they are 18 months old. The skills learned to use a technological device does not translate to the real world. This will slow down a child’s learning and will have negative effects on language development and sleep due to what they are NOT learning while watching a screen. If a parent finds it easiest to keep their child busy with technology, interactive shows or games would best help a child's brain development to keep growing.
- Gaylinde Griswold

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The fact that many women do not seek prenatal care for reasons such as lack of knowledge or information on how to get it or lacking the education on the importance is baffling. In many health classes offered in high schools in the U.S., the main practice is still teaching abstinence. Instead, the school systems should be teaching students about safe sex, and then what their options are if they do get pregnant. They should be stressing the importance of prenatal care at this younger age, because then future mothers can bring this information with them into their adult lives.  The prenatal period is extremely important for the development of the baby, and lack of education should not be a reason why children are being born unhealthy. I would think that a majority of people make it to their freshman year of high school which is when many health classes are taught. If we can teach people valuable information that they can take into their future lives we can help these people have safe and healthy births in their adult lives.
Bria Barr

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The embryonic period is an important time in a baby's development, the first three to eight weeks. It is important for women who are pregnant or are trying to get pregnant to know that if there were to be any kind of serious defects during this time period, it could lead to miscarriages or a spontaneous abortion. -Maddie Tucker

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I think it is important for women who are pregnant to recognize the danger and consequences of alcohol use while pregnant. For a woman who uses alcohol very often to the point that it may be an addiction, this may be a hard experience for them to deal with. So even though some women may rely on alcohol, the should realize they can't while pregnant and it could be one of their experiences when pregnant.  -Maddie Tucker

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Nutrition is such an important part of everyone's life, no matter how old you are. Consuming the right amount of nutrients and calories is so important for our bodies and it is important we take care of ourselves to continue to be healthy. It is especially important to have good nutrition during the infancy stage of life, the first 12 months, as it will lead to the child either developing good nutritional habits or bad ones based on what they know. Since malnutrition is common in developing countries, it is important to do what we can to help.  - Maddie Tucker

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Social Referencing - Toddlers Reaction to Caregivers Emotions

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Social Referencing - Toddlers Reaction to Caregivers Emotions

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Toddlers really depend on their caregivers and take into consideration how their caregivers are feeling or reacting to certain situations. I read that if a toddler were to climb on the couch but falls back to the ground they are likely going to look at their caregiver before having a reaction. If the caregiver has a worried expression, the toddler is more likely to cry and be fearful as well but if the caregiver has a smile and doesn't seem to be too worried, then the toddler probably won't be as scared or upset.  -Maddie Tucker

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I think that educating women from a young age will help the rate of abortion and unplanned pregnancies decrease drastically. Allowing teenage women to talk through and learn about the consequences of having a baby when not ready will encourage them to take it more seriously. This is almost a frowned upon topic to talk about when it comes to teenagers because most adults just don't want to deal with it. Instead of ignoring it, it should be apart of sex education so that women and men can be better educated on the effects of having unprotected sex. This also goes for talking about abortion and unplanned pregnancy options so that if it were to happen then they would be able to make the smartest and best decision for them selves and the baby. -Claudia Treis

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Substance Abuse and Environmental Factors 

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Substance Abuse and Environmental Factors 

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Germinal Stage:

The germinal stage starts when the sperm breaks into the egg. The next 36 hours after that, cell devision happens rapidly. Making the skin and nervous system, digestive and respiratory system, and the muscle and skeletal system. We can better the development of this stage by avoiding drugs, alcohol, tobacco, etc. This will lead to rapid abnormalities in chromosomes and the genes of the newly forming baby. If there is a monitoring system to make sure the mom won’t use and or abuse during this stage, then it will lessen the chance of rapid cell division and trauma.

Embryonic Stage:

The embryonic stage starts about three weeks after conception. This is the important part of the development of the brain. Neural tubes will form and it will later turn into the central nervous system, which will include the spinal cord and brain. Certain environmental exposures can affect the growth of the baby in this stage. Collectively as a community, we can make sure we are doing everything we can to make sure our environment we live in is safer and free of air impurities. Alcohol and radiation can hinder growth in this period the most, and it the embryo will have devastating effects.

Fetal Stage:

After the three to eight weeks in the embryonic stage, the fetal stage is from nine weeks till about birth. The fetus starts to gain reflexes and more range of motion. Organs start to form more and it’s usually when the sex organs are noticeable, to differentiate sex. The fetus starts to gain weight and grow in length as well. Not only that, the central nervous system is more responsive and the brain is maturing much much faster. The fetal stage is much like the embryonic stage when it comes to what can affect it. The fetus is super vulnerable to injury whenever it is still growing and developing. Infections on the mother or drugs that the mother is around, can effect the fetus greatly. Also, environmental factors, such as radiation and air quality, can stunt growth and development. So, much like the embryonic stage, if we are able to keep the environment everyone lives in clean, it would greatly help growth and development in the prenatal stages of the baby throughout the nine months.
- Samuel Nudo

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I think it is extremely important for a mother to be in good health during pregnancy not only for the the baby but also for the herself. A mother's health is very important to having a healthy child. Maternal obesity increases the risk of a woman developing gestational diabetes or going into preterm labor, as well as the risk of obesity and diabetes in the child. Recent studies have also linked a woman's pre-pregnancy weight to her child's risk of asthma. Also, emotions like stress and anxiety can increase particular hormones in your body, which can affect your baby's developing body and brain. My idea for improvement is to bring attention to how important a mother's health is to having a healthy happy baby and to help educate mothers on how to be healthy.

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I think it will be extremely interesting to see how the babies who were and are being born during this pandemic will be able to perceive and express emotions.  Because everyone they see are wearing masks (except their parents and siblings at home) they will not be able to "scan" faces properly.  The nose and mouth area is very expressive and is the main point of focus (along with eyes) of infants during these crucial months of their emotional perception and development.  I think as a society to make issue un-problematic that anyone who is around babies should be required to wear plastic (see-through) masks so that the infants can properly scan the face of the person/people around them and hopefully perceive emotions in a correct and full manner.

- Topanga

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My thoughts on teratogens is that since ether main causes of development disabilities and birth defects are smoking and alcohol, it is essential to educate the mothers on the importance of avoid the intake of alcohol during pregnancy so as to curb instances of giving birth to children with abnormalities. Birth defects that are mainly associated with prenatal exposure tend to occur in the first weeks of pregnancy before the women realize they are pregnant.
- Unnati Patel

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Environmental changes mainly affect the growth and development of children since it exposes them to various chronic disease such as pneumonia. Such illnesses may lead to increased deaths especially among young children thus it is crucial to ensure that parents do not expose their children to harsh environmental conditions which may be harmful to their health.
-Unnati Patel

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Based on my observations from family members and friends, African American females who are pregnant do not receive the same treatment that their racial counterparts do. Countless family members have expressed delayed care when needed or no care at all. Prenatal supplements are not given accordingly as well as information regarding conception. Even during the birthing experience most accounted that it was not a pleasant experience because some doctors were not helpful in assisting them with care.
-Emily Sampson

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I think it is important to remember that women have to cope with a lot during pregnancy. Their bodies are changing to grow and support another person. For some that can be a magical experience while for others it can be a very difficult one. The body that they were once used to is now evolving and maybe in ways that they are not comfortable with. When my aunt had her daughter she struggled during the months where she showed the most. She said that she had moms all around her that saw her stretch marks as beauty marks while she only saw them as scars. She did not like how her body was changing and began trying to  conceal her pregnancy instead of embracing it. She claimed that when other mothers would tell her that she should feel good about her body she would then feel bad. She ended up developing a bit of body dysmorphia. She became so stressed from all the expectations that she felt she would be an unfit mother. She then went into preterm labor. Unfortunately, after the baby was born she suffered from postpartum depression as well. I strongly  believe if she had more support and people were more willing to validate her feelings instead of telling her how to feel she would have enjoyed her pregnancy. Luckily her daughter and her are closer than ever now. Looking back on my aunts story it has shown me how important it was to support mothers and validate them. - Aniah Moore

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In the US there is a massive societal norm that forces women to feel as though they should get pregnant and start a family as soon as possible. However, once they do get pregnant then their jobs are at risk because of the leave necessary after giving birth and  they are then forced to feel like their careers should be put aside to fulfill the stereotypical view of a mother. This time period can be extremely stressful on a mother and cause health problems during the pregnancy. As a society we need to be more supportive of mothers and offer longer and more stable maternity leaves, This might include more time leading up to and after. This ensures that money isn't an added stress. Their bodies are already going through massive changes and hormone influxes that can be extremely taxing on the body. They should be given more opportunities to take care of themselves.
--Sam Tancredi