Your Story Matters

Mary Rutherford

Hi Mamas! My name is Mary Rutherford! I am 39 years old and an incredibly proud mother of two boys and two fur baby girls! My sweet boys are 100% boy – wild, crazy, loving, and oh so fun! They are full of joy and I pray they continue to hold onto their sweet innocence for as long as possible. Not only am I a mom, but also a wife. I am incredibly lucky to have been married to my best friend for 16 years and counting. He loves and supports me unconditionally.

As a child I struggled with anxiety and even the most simple situations would cause my heart to race, my stomach to turn, and my body to tense up. I was making myself sick in order to avoid situations that triggered these feelings. Over time, I learned to manage, but never had the full escape from anxious feelings. Fast forward many years to my third pregnancy that was completely unexpected. We weren’t financially prepared, the stress built up, and we worried endlessly about what the future would hold. But, in all things, faith and love got us through and we were excited for the slight change of plans. That is until I lost the baby 12 weeks into my pregnancy. As the most heartbreaking thing I experienced, my anxiety went through the roof and I blamed myself. I read books, got a new dog, and tried to escape the heartbreak. I had all the love in the world from family and friends, yet somehow still felt internally isolated.

I know how it feels to struggle, break down, and feel lost. I also know that there are ways to be supported, uplifted, and feel like you belong no matter what you’re going through. It took time for me, and I still struggle, but I have a beautiful community to stand beside.

Motherhood is constantly changing and I’m blessed to share this journey with so many amazing women!

Haleigh Caron

I’m a first time mom, and going into pregnancy and postpartum, I truly had no idea what to expect. You hear people talk about postpartum depression and anxiety, but even when you’re aware of it, nothing really prepares you for what it feels like when you’re actually in it. It’s not always obvious, and it can be incredibly hard to recognize that you’re struggling while you’re going through it.

In my case, I later found out I had postpartum thyroiditis, which amplified everything I was feeling. It completely disrupted my body and my mental health in ways I couldn’t understand at the time. The anxiety, the emotional lows, it felt overwhelming and, at times, scary.

One of the biggest things I’ve learned is how important it is to advocate for yourself. If something feels off, push for answers. Ask for the bloodwork. Speak up, even if you’re told it’s just normal postpartum symptoms. I had to see multiple doctors before I finally found someone who listened and helped me get the answers I needed.

Now, 19 months postpartum, I finally feel like myself again. I’m on a low dose anxiety medication, but I feel stronger than I ever have, mentally and physically. This experience changed me, but it also made me more resilient. I’m now able to show up as the best version of myself, and the best mom I can be.

Hope Sorrentino

First pregnancy I had to have a rescue cerclage and my 2nd pregnancy I received a preventative cerclage. I'll have to look back for the information during my first pregnancy about the cervical length stats if you want to go that in depth!

I was 18 weeks pregnant and bled while I was at work, rushed to the hospital and found a hematoma and that my placenta was low lying so they sent me home and I went to the OB the next morning. That's when they noticed my cervix was short and referred me over to Winnie palmer for a high risk evaluation. A week went by and no one had reached out to me so I called and demanded an appointment and they got me in that day. They did an ultrasound and sent me directly to the hospital for an emergency cerclage because I was 2cm dilated with bulging membranes. At this point I'm 19 weeks. They placed the cerclage (fully awake with a spinal block and inverted on the OR table) and I put myself on bed rest for the remainder of the pregnancy, which wasn't hard because it was peak Covid 2020. I was due to have my cerclage removed at 37 weeks and at 36 weeks I rolled over and heard a pop and my son decided he wanted to arrive early and tore through my cerclage and made his entrance. If it wasn't for such a great epidural the doctor said I would've been in the OR being stitched back up it was that bad. Other than that the birth went well. Had him within 4 hours of my water breaking.

I attempted to breast feed and I was unsure how much he was getting and he became VERY jaundice. His bilirubin level was 21 and Cleveland clinic Vero Beach could not even start his IV (a nurse offered Pedialyte 📷) Nemours showed up, started his IV and transported him to Nemours where he stayed there for 4 nights.

Fast forward to my 2nd pregnancy, because I knew I had an incompetent cervix, I had partners refer me to Winnie palmer where I had all my OB appointments. Received my preventative cerclage at 12 weeks (again fully awake with a spinal block) and at 36 weeks I had them remove it because I was terrified of tearing again and I delivered her very fast at 38 weeks. I was contracting at the hospital and they were not showing on the monitor and they didn't believe I was in full blown labor and the anesthesiologist legit put my epidural in while my daughter was coming out... Had her within 2 hours of my water breaking.

I'm guessing if I were to have another child, I'd be having a home birth with how fast my daughter came!

Real Women. Real Struggles. Real Strength.

Mary Rutherford

Haleigh Caron

Hope Sorrentino

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