Local Mom’s Nonprofit Provides Support, Doppler Rental For Women Who Have Experienced Pregnancy or Infant Loss
Photographer: Brian Brosmer
For many couples, pregnancy is filled with excitement and anticipation. But too often a pregnancy ends in tragedy — a tragedy that could have been prevented.
That was the reality for Greenwood mom, Katie Sparks. During a routine checkup, the doctor discovered her baby’s heart was no longer beating. Like many other moms who experience a stillbirth, Sparks’ experience was traumatic from the time of receiving the news of the loss to the lack of sensitivity in the way hospital staff handled her questions and inquiries in the immediate aftermath.
For Sparks, the effects of the loss compounded in ways she never expected. First came the physical complications like hemorrhaging, and then, of course, the emotional effects like post-traumatic anxiety from hormones and grief. Then, just three months later, she became pregnant again, causing a collision of post-partum hormones and new pregnancy hormones. Sparks carried the pregnancy to term and delivered a “rainbow baby” (the first birth after a miscarriage or stillbirth) but not without her fair share of anxiety.
Never one to be defeated, Sparks found a way to turn her tragedy into triumph. Realizing there were likely dozens of other women who’d experienced the same thing, Sparks decided to do something about the lack of support and resources she had after the stillbirth.
“After my experience, my eyes were opened to the lack of resources a lot of women have to help them cope with loss or prevent it,” she says. “After my son was born, I knew God wanted me to do something to help people handle their loss because it can be very isolating.”
So, in May 2011, Sparks founded Beats for Bristol, named for the daughter she lost. Her mission was to help other moms through the grieving process and connect them to support groups. In doing so, she uncovered some startling research.
“The US has one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates of similarly developed countries,” Sparks says. “Plus, statistics show that the anxiety and depression that comes with coping with that loss affects the subsequent pregnancy. Beats for Bristol connects those two headlines.”
The original goal upon launching Beats for Bristol was to start small and help moms in Indiana. But within three days of launching her website, Sparks’ work took her on a different track.
“I got a call from a mom in Oregon and I helped to connect her to the resources she needed,” she says. “Now I talk to women in all 50 states and six different countries. I’ve helped more moms outside of Indiana than in state. It underscores how fetal mortality is a global issue and proves how important women’s emotions are to future pregnancies.”
Connecting moms to appropriate resources was a great first step, but Sparks wanted to do something that provided an ounce of prevention and some peace of mind. She wanted to buy doppler fetal monitors so she could rent them to moms allowing them to hear the baby’s heartbeat and put their minds at ease. So, Sparks and some friends put together a small dine to donate fundraiser, some memorial walks, and the most successful of all, the Touch a Truck event.
Touch a Truck invites guests for a $5 cover fee to check out 40 different types of trucks like cranes, Hummers and limousines. They can get in, touch, honk the horn and vote for their favorite.
“We had a huge turnout, music was playing, we had plenty of food vendors, and the truck owners got really competitive with each other for the coveted ‘Best Truck’ title,” Sparks says.
The events raised enough funds for Sparks to purchase the Dopplers. The Dopplers are FDA approved and under full warranty. Moms can rent the device for free, but a $25 donation is appreciated. Beats for Bristol cautions patients that it is to be used to supplement standard medical care, not to replace it.
The overwhelming success has been thrilling for Sparks who was previously a teacher. But she admits running the organization alone has not been easy.
“I talk to 50 women a month from all over the world,” she says. “It’s a heavy load for me as a single mom. About a year and a half ago, I reached a point where I thought it was getting to be too much for me. But I thought it over carefully and realized how important it is to help these moms, so, I decided to quit teaching and do this non-profit full-time.”
Besides the anonymous donation, Sparks has received generous donations from families who’ve heard about the organization and families who donate to sponsor a doppler in honor of their baby who died.
“It’s really cool to see it all come full circle,” she says.
Beats for Bristol has surely come full circle and then some. Sparks has secured a $6,000 grant with the Johnson County Community Foundation to help build their program locally by purchasing dopplers. Just recently, Sparks was asked by Johnson Memorial Health to help them with training in the Resolve Through Sharing program. The national bereavement care program provides very specific training to health care professionals giving them the tools to handle loss in the most sensitive and appropriate manner.
Sparks is also delighted to be invited to attend a national pregnancy loss and infant death conference in St. Louis as an exhibitor.
“I’m excited and nervous,” she says. “I’m hoping to nail down some sponsorships. It’s a blessing to have the time to build relationships with doctors and hospitals and make Beats for Bristol sustainable.”
For now, Sparks wants to sustain Beats for Bristol by concentrating on the organization’s three main goals. First, the organization works to improve maternal and fetal outcomes. An alarming 49,000 babies die annually between 20 weeks gestation and their first birthday, not including miscarriages prior to 20 weeks gestation. For statistical purposes, a stillbirth is a fetal death occurring after 20 weeks gestation. That translates to 65 babies dying every day before their first birthday. In addition, two women a day die from pregnancy complications.
“We hope to change that by providing critical education, improved prenatal care and other support systems,” she says.
Reducing maternal anxiety is next on the list. Research has proven that increased anxiety, stress or depression increases the risk of the child developing ADHD, impaired cognitive development or other emotional issues.
“These moms need better emotional support to achieve better outcomes,” she says.
Finally, the organization works to improve marital relationships and family dynamics.
“Couples who experience loss through pregnancy or childbirth are 80 percent more likely to divorce within three years,” Sparks says. “It’s critical to give these couples and their families the education and bereavement support they need to heal.”
To learn more about Beats for Bristol, visit them online at beatsforbristol.com.
