By: Jennica Griffin
Hello, my name is Jennica Griffin. On May 23, 1923, I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy named Jabez Judah Griffin. In August 2022, I conceived a child, and I was so stressed out. I found out I was pregnant on October 17, 2022, almost three months later. My body wouldn’t allow me to keep anything down; I threw up every month on the minute and hour and was rushed to the nearest emergency room throughout the entire pregnancy.
One day, a friend of mine saw me at a local pharmacy, and I explained what was going on with my body. She explained to me that I had hyperemesis gravidarum, a severe nausea sickness that causes vomiting, dehydration, and dizziness. In order to treat this, you have to be hospitalized with IV fluids in your body. I was hospitalized several times due to this matter.
Two days prior to my due date, my mom and sister got me to my local hospital. The contractions were heavy, and I had to get an epidural. Then, the nurse explained to me that the doctor had to perform a C-section. When the nurse came into the room and explained the procedure, I was nervous.
I was on top of a table, fending for my dear life in the delivery room. All I saw were lights and doctors and nurses. They gave me more medication and proceeded to cut my stomach wide open to deliver my baby. All I felt was a lot of pressure from my stomach as it was pulled. I screamed, “Jesus,” and my baby was pulled from my stomach. When I opened my eyes, there I was with a baby boy who looked like an alien.
My family was there celebrating with me, bringing gifts and viewing the baby. I ate for three days, got some rest, and then my sister packed me and my baby boy up and brought us home. There I was with a newborn baby at night, trying to figure out how to get rest. My mom was by my side every step of the way for three months, making sure we rested, ate, and went to the doctor.
The real question kicked in: how do I co-parent with the father of my child? Co-parenting wasn’t easy for me because I was a new mother. The father of my child and I discussed several topics and we often disagreed on how to raise our child. That was the hardest thing I had to commit to in life. After three months of disagreeing, he finally met his family, his aunt, who he looked just like—her twin. She really came to me as a woman. I respect her for that. She sat me and my child’s father down and explained to us that the baby is innocent. A light bulb went off in my head, and I realized it wasn’t worth arguing back and forth with my child’s father.
Co-parenting became better. I started to build a great co-parenting relationship for my child’s future. The question was how I was going to work and build my empire while raising a kid and overcoming a few life struggles. I started to utilize my time and money more efficiently, speaking with different mothers and fathers in the local community to get different ideas.
Being a mom, working, and running a business can be very stressful. You have to create a balance for yourself and your kid. I call it a life budget of time and money. It’s the best feeling in the world.
Published by: Martin De Juan
