Why Shelley Swan Supports YW

I’ve often said being a girl is hard. Sometimes I mean it as a joke, but I really do believe there are some things that are harder for girls.

As for being a woman, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done is being a mother. Being a mother was something I wanted really badly. My husband, Carl, and I had to work at getting pregnant, not finding success for over three years, until after our second IVF attempt.

A week before delivery

We were thrilled to learn we were pregnant with twins, but obviously the hard part was yet to come. Connor and Chloe were born early and spent the first 3 weeks of their lives at NICU and Special Care at the hospital before coming home. The hospital stay was stressful but the work really began with two newborns at home.

Connor in Special Care

Chloe in Special Care

I had the full support of my husband who took off a month when the twins came home. My Mom, who lives nearby, was able to spend a week with us and is always ready to come help at the drop of a hat. Not to mention the extended family we have in town and how helpful everyone was. They are all my preverbal village.

But even with all of that support I felt overwhelmed, alone, and exhausted.  Being a mother is so important and so very challenging. I can’t imagine not having some sort of network to support you as a mother or trying to raise children as a single mom. If I can help any moms at all I want to. This is why I support YW.

YW provides skills for self-sufficiency through free programs that help women manage their health, finances and new parenthood. My favorite is the YW Nurse-Family Partnership that pairs a registered nurse home visitor with a new mother for two and a half years.

I consider myself an empowered woman. I love the idea of being able to "share my power" with other women. One way I’ve done that is with the Give $5 Take 5 campaign. I encourage you to learn more about YW and consider helping in one of all of the following ways:

Like YW on Facebook

Follow YW on Twitter @YWDallas

Follow this blog

Make a donation at  Give $5 Take 5, then share on Facebook and Twitter, you can even use #ShareYourPower

Thank you!

Step Up and Share Your Power

YW changes women’s lives.  From first-time moms, to those learning to balance tight finances, to those seeking access to women’s breast healthcare, women look to us to make their lives better.  Changing lives is serious business, and we take our work seriously.

 

Sometimes the life changed is our own.  Two years ago, I had the opportunity to sit down with a 14-year old mother, Angelica.  Her baby, Sebastian, was six months old at the time, and Angelica was sharing with me how she juggles middle school and a new baby.   I kept thinking about my baby, who was 15 at the time.  How my baby only has to worry about what she’s going to wear to school that day, and did she finish her homework (often in that order!). 

I thought about how two young women can be born into this world and have two vastly different experiences, sets of worries, and two vastly different opportunities in life.  And as I held Sebastian, I thought about what his life would be like.  What kind of love and care would surround him?  What future would he have being born to a 7^th-grade mom?

And then I realized, because his mom had chosen YW as a partner to help her during his first two years of life, his future was bright.  The moment Angelica chose YW, Sebastian’s life was changed.  Angelica’s life was changed.  And so was mine.  Never have I met such an articulate young woman.  Never have I met someone so determined to be successful in school and in life – despite the obstacles in her way.

When I come to YW every day, I don’t think of the challenges facing Angelica and Sebastian, I think of their drive to make their lives better.  I think what can I do today, to make sure YW is there for other women of all ages ready to take action?  Ready to make a change?

I can’t do it alone.  It will take each of us as concerned women and men, coming together to Share our Power.   Join us in changing lives.