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Two doulas help dad deliver baby during a blizzard with help from strangers on Facebook

"This is going to be me. I’m going to have to put my big boy pants on and figure this out."

blizzard; Buffalo; snowstorm; doulas; deliver baby
Photo by Shawn Dearn on Unsplash

Two doulas help dad deliver baby in blizzard

Working remotely usually isn't this hands on but two doulas in Buffalo had to get creative when a patient went into labor while trapped inside the house due to the historic blizzard. Davon and Erica Thompson found themselves in a peculiar situation when Erica went into labor on Christmas Eve.

Davon called 911 multiple times in an attempt to get assistance but the operator couldn't send anyone out according to NBC News. But the baby was not going to wait until EMS was free. Erica's contractions quickly jumped to just three minutes apart and Davon knew he was about to become a midwife.

Davon told the Buffalo News, “At that point, I was like: ‘This is going to be me. I’m going to have to put my big boy pants on and figure this out,’" so he reached out to a friend.

With his friend's help, Davon found a Facebook group that led them to Raymonda Reynolds, a doula - who then called Iva Michelle Blackburn, a doula and licensed practical nurse. Typically doulas don't deliver babies, but are there to help the mother through the birthing process through coaching, massages and advocacy. But since they see a lot of birth, it's not a surprise that if there's no other option, one may be able to walk terrified parents through the process - like in a storm...a blizzard where the baby is coming regardless.

blizzard; Buffalo; snowstorm; doulas; deliver baby

baby in white knit blanket lying on bed

Photo by Garrett Jackson on Unsplash

While doulas aren't trained to deliver babies, most LPNs complete a rotation in labor and delivery and Blackburn told NBC that she has helped deliver more than 50 babies in a hospital. But needless to say, this was the first time she'd helped deliver a baby in the Metaverse.

By the time Blackburn began video chatting with the nervous dad, Reynolds already had him collect the supplies, boil water and get mom in the shower to take the edge off of her pain. Once Blackburn saw the soon-to-be-mom, she knew a baby was about to make their entrance. With a loud moan - it was go time.

Davon was ready with towels to catch his daughter as Erica squatted to help the baby enter the world. Blackburn told NBC, “At first mom and dad looked like they were both in shock and the baby looked like she was in shock, too, because she was alert but not crying. But as soon as they picked her up, she started crying and we all started cheering.”

Devynn Brielle Thomas was caught by her dad and she weighed 6 pounds, 9 ounces and was 20 inches long. The family couldn't make it to the hospital until the following day but everyone is healthy. And the person that drove them to the hospital in his truck, a real angel - Angel Lugo. Once the snow melts the Thompsons plan to meet the doulas in person but something tells me, they'll be connected for life.

This just goes to show that while social media can have its downfalls - it truly is a connector of people when they need it most.

blizzard
Science

Astronaut shares the profound 'big lie' he realized after seeing the Earth from space

This change in perspective could change humanity.

via Rubén Moreno Montolíu/Flickr

Our home, from space.

Sixty-one years ago, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to make it into space and probably the first to experience what scientists now call the "overview effect." This change occurs when people see the world from far above and notice that it’s a place where “borders are invisible, where racial, religious and economic strife are nowhere to be seen.”

The overview effect makes man’s squabbles with one another seem incredibly petty and presents the planet as it truly is, one interconnected organism.

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space
Pop Culture

Special ring that tells people you're single created for folks tired of dating apps

The Pear ring is a new "social experiment" trying to connect folks IRL, not online.

Photo by Michael Discenza on Unsplash

Dating never stays the same.

Why, it feels like it was only yesterday when dating apps were the shiny new trend in the singles world. However, with life becoming increasingly more virtual, many people are looking to become less dominated by screens. As a result, folks are once again hoping to find love from an authentic connection IRL. Swiping just isn’t as romantic (or cutting edge) as it used to be.

That’s where the Pear ring comes in. Self dubbed as the “world’s biggest social experiment,” this $25 brightly colored blue ring offers something classic, with a twist. Basically, folks wear it out to signal they’re single and ready to mingle. Almost like the opposite of an engagement ring, really.
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dating
Family

Wife cooks nachos for 'picky' husband who refused to eat her salmon. But she has a point.

Should she be cooking two meals?

via TheMamaBrianna/TikTok

Brianna Greenfield makes nachos for her husband.

A viral video showing a woman preparing nachos for her "picky" spouse after he refused to eat the salmon dinner she cooked has sparked a contentious debate on TikTok. The video was shared on April 26 by Brianna Greenfield (@themamabrianna on TikTok) and has since earned over 2.5 million views.

Brianna is a mother of two who lives in Iowa.

The video starts with Brianna grating a massive hunk of cheese with a caption that reads: “My husband didn’t eat the dinner that I made…So let’s make him some nachos.”

“If I don’t feed him, he literally won’t eat,” she wrote. “This used to irritate me. Now I just blame his mother for never making him try salmon,” Greenfield wrote. The video features Meghan Trainor’s single “Mother” playing in the background.

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marriage
Family

New study shows spanking hurts kids' mental health and is less effective at teaching lessons

Why is it wrong to hit an adult or an animal but OK to spank a child?

Photo by Kat J on Unsplash

Yet another study shows that spanking isn't good for kids.

Whether to spank your child or not is one of the oldest debates among parents. Many live by the age-old wisdom that to “spare the rod” is to “spoil the child,” while others believe it’s wrong to resort to violence to punish a child when so many alternatives exist.

It also begs the question: If it's wrong to hit your spouse or pet, why is it acceptable to hit a defenseless child?

The 2021 American Family Study found that support for spanking has declined in the U.S. over the past few years. In 2015, 54% either somewhat or strongly agreed with the practice, but that number dropped to 47% in 2021. Thirty-five percent of respondents disagree with the practice and 18% neither agree nor disagree.

A new research study from the Parent and Family Research Alliance in Australia led by Professor Sophie Havighurst and Professor Daryl Higgins from Australian Catholic University makes a strong case that people should stop using corporal punishment to discipline their kids. The study “Corporal punishment of children in Australia: The evidence-based case for legislative reform” analyzed countless studies on the topic and found spanking ineffective and harmful.

The study was published to urge lawmakers to make corporal punishment in Australia illegal. Sixty-five states across the world have made corporal punishment illegal, protecting 14% of the world’s children.

The study defined corporal punishment of children as using physical force to cause pain, but not injury, to correct or control a child’s behavior.

The most startling meta-analysis published in the study found that "only 1 out of 111 statistically significant effect sizes was associated with a link between 'spanking' and a positive child outcome," while 110 were found to be associated with adverse outcomes.

The one positive outcome was in a 1972 study of children of the U.S. military living in West Germany that found those spanked showed less amphetamine and opiate use as adults.

However, the remaining 110 significant results found that spanking had adverse effects, including: “reducing trust and connection with those they are closest to, lower self-esteem, more internalizing and externalizing behavior problems including aggression, mental health difficulties, and increased risk for later substance abuse, antisocial behavior, and violence.”

A meta-analysis found that when children are spanked, they are less likely to internalize the moral implications of the behaviors that led them to be disciplined. It also found that non-physical discipline was more effective at teaching “alternative behaviors,” “developing a child’s conscience,” and advancing their “emotional development.”

Another meta-analysis cited in the story found that corporal punishment in childhood was associated with mental health problems, low self-esteem and antisocial behavior.

In the end, the studies show that corporal punishment is counter-productive when it comes to raising healthy, happy children. But it will take much more than a study to get people to reconsider their views of corporal punishment because they are deeply rooted in many cultural traditions.

Looking for some non-physical alternatives to discipline your child? Here’s a great place to start from WebMD.

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Identity

Woman’s experience scheduling an EEG highlights the unconscious bias of textured hair

Though her scalp was exposed for the procedure, they still insisted she take her twists out, making it harder to get to her scalp.

Sadé Naima|TikTok

Woman can't schedule EEG due to unconscious textured hair bias.

Getting a medical procedure done can be scary, or at the very least nerve-wracking, no matter how many times you've had it done. It's something that's outside of your normal routine and you're essentially at the mercy of the medical facility and providers. Most of the time, the pre-procedure instructions make sense, and if something catches you by surprise, it's usually easily explained.

Sadé Naima recently had an experience while attempting to get an EEG that wasn't easily explained away. In fact, the entire situation didn't make sense to the TikTok creator who experiences migraines. Naima uploaded a video to the social media platform explaining the sequence of events that happened after her doctor referred her to receive an MRI and EEG.

An MRI uses a magnetic field to generate images and an EEG uses electrodes that stick to your scalp to create images of your brain waves.

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unconscious bias
Joy

Heroic train conductor spots and saves 3-year-old autistic, nonverbal boy lost on tracks

He was dangerously close to the third rail.

via MTA info/YouTube

An MTA employee rescues a 3-year-old child on the tracks.

Five Metropolitan Transportation Authority employees are hailed as heroes for their quick thinking and diligence in the April 6 rescue of a young boy. Locomotive Engineer William Kennedy was operating a southbound Hudson Line train near Tarrytown, a few miles north of New York City, when he noticed an unusual object on the northbound track.

That “object” was a 3-year-old boy.

Kennedy sent an emergency call out to all trains in the area, catching the attention of a northbound conductor, Shawn Loughran, and a trainee. Loughran slowed down his train as he approached the child, who was straddling the electrified third rail.

When the train screeched to a halt, Assistant Conductor Marcus Higgins didn't waste a second. Leaping down the tracks, he sprinted 40 yards ahead of the train, scooping up the young child like a guardian angel.

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