Black Maternal Health Week: My Story

Trigger Warning:

This story contains detailed accounts of medical trauma, pregnancy complications, and near-death experiences related to childbirth. Please take care of yourself as you read.

I got pregnant for the first time at 30 years old. I found out early on that I was having twins — and while I was constantly sick and couldn’t keep food down, everything seemed to be progressing okay physically. But that changed quickly.

At four months pregnant, I woke up in excruciating abdominal pain. I feared I was having a miscarriage. I was admitted to the ER, and it took two full days before they diagnosed me with two dying fibroids. The pain was relentless and lasted for weeks.

Not long after that, I was diagnosed with pelvic symphysis dysfunction (PGP) — a condition that happens when the ligaments that normally keep the pelvic bones aligned become too relaxed too soon. It made walking and even simple movements extremely painful. I was put on limited bed rest and given a walker.

By five months, I began to swell rapidly. I brought it up at every prenatal visit and was repeatedly told that swelling was “normal.” But it didn’t feel normal. The slightest touch was excruciating. The swelling reached up to my bra strap. I had to sleep sitting upright just to breathe comfortably. And yet, my concerns were brushed off at every single visit.

At 34 weeks, I finally decided to seek a second opinion. That decision saved my life.

Dr. Charles Bryz-Gornia was the first provider who took me seriously. He validated what I was feeling. He told me plainly that my condition was serious and warned me: If you ever feel off — even if you can't explain it — go to the ER immediately. It was the first time I felt seen.

At 36 weeks, I woke up with a deep feeling of dread. I couldn't explain it. I just knew something was very wrong. I told my husband, but I was hesitant — I had been told so many times by my first OBGYN that I was overreacting, that I had stopped trusting myself.

But we remembered what Dr. Bryz-Gornia said. My husband told me, “Trust your gut.” We packed a bag and went to the ER.

There, I was diagnosed with preeclampsia and rushed in for an emergency C-section. My twins were born safely. But five hours later, I went into heart failure.

I had developed postpartum cardiomyopathy — a form of heart failure caused by fluid overload. It was the very thing I had been trying to tell my doctor about for months. But she never listened.

I almost died because I was dismissed over and over again.

Black Maternal Health Week isn’t just a campaign. It’s a demand for change. A call for Black women to be heard, believed, and taken seriously in medical spaces. A call for providers to listen — and for us to trust ourselves even when others don’t.

If you're reading this and you're pregnant, or planning to be, please hear me when I say:

Trust your gut. Speak up. Get the second opinion. You deserve to live.