The Squatters, Another slum, July 23, 2008

This is Ritchel, she is due any day now! It was really easy to find and hear her baby's heart tone with the doppler.
Measuring her fundal height.
Mary Ann is in the middle with the yellow shirt on. She has been pregnant 6 times but lost one baby at 6 months gestation:( She didn't believe she was pregnant til she heard her baby's heart beat with the doppler!! Hopefully now she will stop drinking beer! The other lady, Chonchita, is her neighbor. She is 30 and this is her 4th pregnancy.
This made me laugh when I saw it!! I don't know if you can make it out but there are roosters under the rice! Chicken n Rice anyone??!! lol

Today we took a tricies, then a bus to a nearby slum area. They call it the squatters. So many families make shift homes in such a small area! It took some doing to find the lady that we were looking for. She is a first time patient of the midwives so this was the first time that they met her. Her name is Mary Ann and she is 30 years old. This is her 6th pregnancy!! She lost one baby at 6 months gestation but the other 4 are still alive and she is in her 19th week gestation with this pregnancy. We did a complete medical history, took her vital signs and tested her blood for anemia. I got to measure the fundal height and use the Doppler to hear the baby’s heart beat. She said that she didn’t really believe she was pregnant this time til she heard the heart beat and she has been drinking beer at parties. We strongly advised her to stay away from alcohol and gave her some prenatal vitamins to take. She was really friendly and even sent a neighbor to buy us soda and crackers to show her appreciation. She fed her 1 year old baby and 3 year old daughter orange soda too!! L DJ and I are planning to teach some parenting courses and nutrition and prenatal care are some of the topics we will cover. We are going to plan out the course and then go invite mothers from the slums to come to our place. Hopefully we will get a good turn out and that the ladies will take what we teach them to heart! While we were in this slum area we also did follow up visits with 3 other pregnant ladies. One of whom is due any day!! They are all so appreciative of the free care. Most would have no access to any prenatal care without the service of Mercy in Action! It is so important for these poor women to have regular prenatal check ups to catch high blood pressure and other serious complications and to detect any stress the baby may be in early enough so that a referral to the hospital could be made before its too late! Midwives, DJ and Imelda, are just beginning to become known among the poor areas here. Many pregnant ladies or their families are skeptical of the free care and are often advised to seek the services of a local witch doctor, called a Helo. But as the women start to talk of the good care, prenatal vitamins, and around the clock availability of the midwives here, their ministry is starting to grow. It was really touching today to be able to pray with all of the ladies. I really felt like a bond was startedJ I’m excited to get to know them more and be there when they have their babies! It’s so hard to play the waiting game! I now have a cell phone for emergencies so that if I’m out, DJ or Imelda can text when a pregnant woman comes here in labor!! It’s an experience that I don’t want to miss!! So it was another interesting day! And at the end of everyday I try to help DJ and Imelda with cooking dinner. They are trying to teach me a few new words in Tagalog each night. They always laugh at me as I try to pronounce them and get it wrong! The hardest one for me to say is: Do you need any help? Which is: Ka ee la ngan mo nang too long? We’ve laughed about this one for 3 days now!! But I’m determined to learn as much as I can!! And when I’m not learning Tagalog, I have my head buried in a Labor and Delivery textbook. I only have about 30 of such books to read in the 4 months I’m here before I go to the southern island!!
I know that I’ve probably been writing a bit much right now but don’t worry; it will probably get less and less!! The more familiar I become with the culture here and the more that I learn my way around, the less time I will have to write! Lol So enjoy it while you can! :P
So far I haven’t even been home sick or cried silently into my pillow!!:) Thanks so all of you that have responded to my emails. That helps a lot!! I miss you all!! And I can’t thank you enough for all of your continued support, encouragements and love!! Means so much!!
Love and Prayers,
Sherina