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Community Support

Apr 24
Love0

A Trusted Presence: Selene’s Experience with Home Visiting

By Home Visiting

Selene heard about Nurse Family Partnerships through WIC when she was four months pregnant – her daughter, Delia, is now six months old. Selene continues to meet with registered nurse Meredith Lucas, who has become a trusted confidante for more than a year.

 At the very first visit, I thought, “I don’t know if I want to continue this.” But the more I got to know Meredith, the easier it became. I was able to open up to her. She told me a lot about programs I could look into. And she was always giving me information with each monthly milestone for the baby. Whatever I needed. 

Now, I don’t like missing our appointments –  I think I’ve only ever missed maybe one of them. My mom actually passed away some years ago, so it’s good to talk to Meredith and ask questions about Delia’s age, milestones, and what I should be teaching her. 

Before I gave birth we went over one of those birth plan forms to take to the hospital – what kind of music I wanted, how I felt about interventions, etc.  Meredith knew that giving birth without my mom was something I struggled with. So as part of my birth plan, she suggested I bring a photo of my mom to the hospital with me. I did that and it was really soothing for me.

I did want to have a natural birth with no medications and I tried for this through the whole pregnancy. When I went to the hospital, my fiance, Monty, was there with me the whole time. He was the one playing the music, trying to help me feel more comfortable. I was in labor for 26 hours and I was given an ultimatum to take the epidural or have a C-section, which I chose to have the epidural. There were some decisions about medications I was advised on after this that didn’t work out and actually seemed to make things worse. That was really frustrating since I was doing my best to follow the doctor’s advice. But when I trusted my instincts on a medication they recommended, and said no to this, it ended up being the right call and things were regulated. You hear that message that “you are the one who knows your body the best.” That can be a risky statement at the moment. But it was awesome because that was the right move – that made me feel like I got some power back. Also, it gave me a perspective on that really helpless feeling your partner can have in that room. 

 Monty did the cord cutting and when Delia came out, she looked right at him, which the doctors said was surprising. I guess they usually don’t really acknowledge dad. They just want mom. But Delia looked directly at him – it was beautiful. 

When I started meeting with Meredith again, I think the main thing I was wanting to know was if things would ever be regulated with Delia. Everything just seemed so all over the place when they’re newborns. But I think it was more like the comfort of having Meredith there, more than anything, both before and after I gave birth. She had insights about postpartum stress and had a list of therapists if I wanted to connect. Meredith helped me get in touch with a doula for placenta encapsulation, then she helped with breastfeeding and also helped me get signed up for Medicaid. She’s been able to come to the house a few times and to do weight checks for the baby when I’ve been feeling like I need to know exactly what she’s weighing. She was a huge help every step of the way.

Delia is now six months old, and it’s been more than a year since I’ve been meeting with Meredith.

We’ve mostly met at little coffee shops in the morning and that’s been a comfortable setting. And then sometimes here and there she’ll come to the house and see the baby – it really just depends. She just goes where I feel like I want to go. 

In the beginning  I felt like visits were going to be a place where they judge you or report things back – whatever bad things they can get out of you or point out things you’re not doing right. I thought that this was just going to be a negative thing. Although it turned out to bring out the best in me. Meredith would highlight everything I was doing wonderfully as a new mother. The more I just kind of kept going with it, the more I ended up finding out about Meredith as well. I was able to open up to her and trust her.  

If anyone asked me, I’d tell them that home visiting programs are a huge advantage for moms – during pregnancy, but especially postpartum. I really, truly think this has been such a blessing for us – I will always recommend it highly for support in all areas.

You can use the LIFTS Online Resource Guide to find home visiting programs across Montana—just type “home visiting” into the search feature. If you need help finding a program, you can also call the LIFTS Warmline at (406) 430-9100 for personalized assistance.

Apr 23
Love0

Support from the Start: Tristan, Emberly, and the Power of Home Visiting

By Home Visiting

Tristan was 18 years old and 10 weeks pregnant with her daughter, Emberly, when she was first connected with home visiting nurse Hannah Akard through Nurse Family Partnership. Now 21, Tristan speaks on the role Hannah played in her birth journey, and the joys and challenges Hannah has been present for as Emberly, now 2, continues to thrive.

I remember I had gone to see a nurse and they had a little poster by the door for Nurse Family Partnership. I read it while I was waiting on the nurse to come back in, and I was like “maybe I’ll give it some thought.” I was signing up for WIC at the same time too and I was thinking that it seemed like a resource I needed. 

Garett and I got together in our senior year of high school and we’ve been together since – but we were super shocked about the pregnancy. We were so young. I went into it knowing a little bit about babies and birth, but I wanted to be fully informed. I wanted to know everything so no one could say “you don’t know anything –  you’re just 18.” 

We both went to meet up with Hannah for a coffee the first time. Then we started meeting biweekly. I did a lot of my own learning and Hannah helped me with that as well.  Like with what’s changing in my body, what’s going on with the baby, and life after having a baby, and what postpartum depression and anxiety was. 

Garett was there at some of the meetings with Hannah. Sometimes I’d bring material from Hannah home and I reviewed it with him. He was very involved in the birthing plan – he knew all  the stretches to help relieve all the pressure during pregnancy and then also during labor. He was amazing during the whole process.

I had three different birth plans – an A, B, and C. Hannah was just super supportive through it all because I’m very much a natural person. So she really helped me with finding natural remedies. But Hannah and I also talked about how it might not go perfectly. So I went ahead and made B and C plans. But it did honestly, end up being the best birth.  I used aromatherapy and I did a lot of prep before. I stretched and I did these workouts with the yoga ball. 

I delivered naturally. It was 19 hours, with me pushing for less than 30 minutes. They put Emberly on my chest and it was like my whole world shifted. 

The only part that didn’t go to plan was that I didn’t get my “golden hour” that we’d talked about right away. I wasn’t delivering my placenta and then I was losing blood and a doctor had to step in and do what needed to be done. So Garret got her, and he had his skin to skin time with her until I could hold her.

After, I was texting Hannah, sending her pictures of Emberly and filling her in on the birth. Then she got to meet her and see her in her little car seat with her cute outfits and stuff –  it was just so sweet. 

I did fall into postpartum depression and anxiety pretty bad for a little bit. I didn’t want to tell anybody. When I was doing those screenings, I just kept lying on them. I was thinking, “I don’t want anybody to think I’m unfit.”  You know? Just the fear of all that. But then I had this one day –  I don’t remember what happened. I broke down to Garret and I told him everything. He said I  needed to talk to somebody about this. And so I talked to Hannah about it and we got very open and honest and she helped me with all the resources that I needed. Even just being open and talking about what I was feeling helped me.

I’m 21 now, and Emberly is two – she’s very independent. Anything she can do herself or she wants to do herself, she will do. So that’s pretty fun. She is super sweet and well-mannered – that was a big thing for me. She’s very much a daredevil. 

Hannah has been my rock from the beginning. She knew before anyone about the pregnancy, other than Garret and a few key people. So it was really special to be able to show her my baby after everything that we’ve been through. We finally got into our own apartment six months ago and we have just kind of been thriving. 

It has been so amazing as a young parent to have somebody who’s not related to me, to be able to give me reassurance and information. With Hannah, it was always super neutral. It was like, “Here’s information. Take it if you want it – don’t take it, if you don’t want it. No matter what, I’m here for your peace of mind.”

You can use the LIFTS Online Resource Guide to find home visiting programs across Montana—just type “home visiting” into the search feature. If you need help finding a program, you can also call the LIFTS Warmline at (406) 430-9100 for personalized assistance.

Apr 22
Love0

‘Let’s Talk About It’: Meredith Lucas on Showing Up for Families

By Home Visiting

Meredith is a Montana native and lifelong learner – so traveling and experimenting with different professional and personal endeavors has become a passion as she has explored and worked through the United States and South America.  Once an aspiring Spanish professor, now a nurse home visitor for the perinatal population, her curiosity and drive to advocate and inspire positive change in perinatal health care has become a refined focus. When she’s away from work, Meredith can be found with her two children, Buckley and Iris, or navigating the terrain with her dog, Stanley. 

From my perspective, a home visiting program is working to close the gaps and create a judgement-free presence in a way that’s unique to each person. It gives people the space to be who they are.

There are people who have the benefit of having a family or friends that really step up at this time, are there for them and do all the things that need to be done – I think that is wonderful. But I just don’t think that’s the case for the majority of families. So many of us are kind of on our own trying to figure things out, and you take on so much that you shouldn’t have to. Sometimes the difference is just having that support person who says: “Hey, let’s talk about it.” Or “What are you feeling? What do you need?”

Yes, there’s the healthcare aspect to home visiting – supporting people through that is important. But I think we get more of – “I just need somebody here to really be with me at this time in my life.” 

I’m originally from Billings. When I was 18, I moved out to Oregon to go to school and I majored in Spanish. I traveled down to Mexico and South America and was on that path of just working towards becoming a professor in Spanish, but things changed and I ended up moving to Oklahoma and working with non-governmental organizations like Feed the Children and Boys and Girls Club. I had my first child during nursing school and was a night shift nurse while working in research. Then after Covid, I decided I needed to be closer to my home base, and we moved back from Kansas up here to Billings.

I had my second child and had the opportunity to use daycare and switch gears with a day shift job – and that’s how I came into this position as a home visiting nurse. In supporting other parents and mothers who were in the same boat as me, I feel like it was like I was widening my own community. 

I’m the person who can provide advocacy and education and walk alongside new parents. I’m there to ask “How do you envision yourself? What issues have you been dealing with – and how would you like to approach those issues?” They’re doing the hard work – I get to be there to support them when they need me and tell them it’s going to be okay. That we’ll figure it out. 

With the rise in the knowledge and advocacy of perinatal mental health, we’re allowing people to be vulnerable and not carry that weight all themselves. We’re also normalizing not feeling okay during a period of time when you’re told you’re supposed to be having the time of your life, you know? That’s not always the case for people. And if they’ve had a lot of their past, kind of creeping in during parenting – what do you do with all that? 

A lot of people have burdens they’re carrying around, and they need to feel safe. That’s a big one. They have a need to feel like they’re not the only ones that are, say, having a child with developmental delays. They might just need to gain perspective on what’s going on right now.

We remind our clients that if anything, at least they know they have a choice. They can choose to call me – or not. They can see me – or not. And that in itself is an intervention and outcome for a person who may not have had a lot of decision-making opportunities in their life. 

If there’s hesitation, that’s completely okay and normal. I’ve softened my approach a lot since I first started. You don’t need to sign anything or enroll. We can just talk or you can get to know me. Because some people do require a lot more relationship building upfront. It’s just allowing that person to be the decision maker. Maybe in the grand scheme of things, it’s just a little ripple in the pond, you know? But it’s something.

Everyone has an internal dialogue. It’s hard when the internal dialogue is not a positive one. I really like to support people by providing a positive dialogue no matter their situation. Reminding them that there’s still hope and there’s still the ability to change. This is not the end, you know? This is only the beginning.

You can use the LIFTS Online Resource Guide to find home visiting programs across Montana—just type “home visiting” into the search feature. If you need help finding a program, you can also call the LIFTS Warmline at (406) 430-9100 for personalized assistance.

Apr 21
Love0

‘You Don’t End Up Here by Accident’: Hannah Akard on Heart, Trust, and Home Visiting

By Home Visiting

Hannah has been a nurse for almost 17 years and has been a Home Visiting Nurse with Nurse Family Partnership in Billings for three years.

She and her husband have six children – fostering and adoption are part of their story – and Hannah will be the first to tell you that she loves her role as an RN. But even more, she adds, she loves each of the families who have given her the honor of being invited into their stories. 

I always tell people, “you don’t end up in this job by accident.”

Since I was little, I’ve always, always loved moms and babies. I was a missionary kid and I think that’s just part of my DNA –  I knew I wanted to be a nurse since childhood.

When I was in high school, I actually interned with a midwife and I got to follow her on some prenatal appointments and several deliveries. On one of the deliveries she didn’t make it in time. So at 16, I helped the mom deliver and I actually caught the baby. It was life changing. Just a really incredible experience to see what it looks like to support a woman during pregnancy, then during labor and delivery, and postpartum.

From my personal experience, I had my first baby during finals week in between my two years of nursing school and when I graduated, I had a 1-year-old. My husband and I went on to have six kids within eight years – three biological and three adopted. And through that process of fostering especially, I feel like it really gave me a heart for mamas who were struggling and wanted to be moms, but didn’t have support systems in place, or didn’t have people advocating for them, or advocating for their babies.

I actually stepped into home visiting from being a NICU nurse. I’d been a NICU nurse for a long time. I was also a flight nurse for a while – but there was not a good work/life balance. I was like “there has to be a way that I can still take care of mamas and babies and be a good mama myself.” So I legitimately just Googled “Mother/ Baby, Nurse”- and this position popped up.

I get the privilege of being there through pregnancy, which is such a pivotal time for a mom – and then through the first two years of baby’s life, which is so foundational. This has been such a gift to me, because that is something I didn’t get in the NICU.

There are so many joys and heartaches we are invited to share in. Sometimes a client’s mom – maybe they don’t have that relationship. Or they’re estranged or, you know, her mom isn’t alive anymore. They need somebody who can rejoice with them. Who can sit in the pain with them. Just continue to walk every step of these critical first few years with them. Consistency is huge. For some moms, we are the longest and most consistent relationship they have ever had. You really, really do give these families your heart. We pour our blood, sweat, and tears when walking through the hardest of times with them, which is such an honor.

I had an experience with a mama where I went to the first postpartum visit and I walked in the door and she was holding her baby. And I was just like, “Oh my gosh, she’s beautiful.” And she was like, “I want you to hold her – I want you to be the first to hold her.” And I just …  it wrecked me. 

We really work hard to try to collaborate. And that collaboration really looks like bringing in the right people. Sometimes these are connections for behavioral/mental health or housing. One of the first things we ask moms is, “Do you have Medicaid?” “Are you connected with WIC?” “What’s your living situation?” We can’t really go further until those necessities, those high needs are met. Nothing else really matters. Those are the priorities, you know, the focus initially when we start meeting with mamas. 

I do feel like the acuity of the situations that our mamas are in, just in the three years I have been here, has significantly increased. When I first started, we maybe had a mama whose main need was finishing high school. Or they needed housing or resources as far as, you know, just making the paycheck go through the rest of the month. Sometimes it was a relational issue.

But now I feel like with so many of our mamas that we’re working with, there’s mental health issues. There’s substance use issues. There’s intimate partner issues. There’s legal issues. Housing, I feel like, has been a constant the whole time I’ve been here. There’s just more acuity and complexity now.

Ultimately, it’s really trying to just meet them where they’re at and finding out what their priorities are. And remembering that their priorities may not be my priorities. So how can I support what is important to you?

 The beautiful thing about Nurse Family Partnership is that this is evidence-based. The numbers really show the return on the investment. And yes, there’s the financial part of the investment, but it’s also the return on the investment of relationships. Of time spent with that person and the trust that is built. Home visiting is very valuable for our community because we have our eyes on the most vulnerable.

It’s breaking down walls where racism, economic status, and past experiences of judgment have created barriers. Home visiting nurses have the opportunity to get past all of that.

For me, visiting with mamas during pregnancy and continuing to care for them and their family until the baby turns two – that’s more than a two and a half year relationship.  I don’t know any other area of nursing that I would get that opportunity to really be a part of a family’s story –  just like each of them are a part of my story.

You can use the LIFTS Online Resource Guide to find home visiting programs across Montana—just type “home visiting” into the search feature. If you need help finding a program, you can also call the LIFTS Warmline at (406) 430-9100 for personalized assistance.

Apr 20
Love0

Strong Families Start Here: Honoring National Home Visiting Week in Montana

By Community Support, Home Visiting

National Home Visiting Week is recognized from April 20–24, 2026.

This nationwide observance celebrates the life-changing impact of home visiting programs and the dedicated people who make this work possible every day. Alongside the Montana Home Visiting Coalition, we’re excited to highlight home visiting in Montana by recognizing families who have benefited from home visiting, as well as the outstanding home visitors serving communities across our state.

We’re grateful for the Governor’s Proclamation celebrating the life-changing impact of National Home Visiting Week  here in Montana and helping showcase the importance of this work across our state.

So, let’s take a moment to hear directly from Montana families about why they said yes to home visiting. Watch their stories in this short video:

Frequently Asked Questions About Home Visiting

Next, let’s walk through some frequently asked questions about home visiting. Many people aren’t quite sure what it is or whether it’s right for them and their families – and that’s okay. Our hope is that this week helps more people understand that no matter where you live, your income, or your circumstances, there may be a home visiting program available to support you.

What is a home visiting program, and how can it benefit my family?
Home visiting is a voluntary, evidence-based support and coaching service that strengthens families during pregnancy and early childhood.

Trained home visitors, such as nurses and early childhood specialists, partner with expecting parents and caregivers of young children to build parenting skills and connect families with services that support healthy physical, social, and emotional child development.

Who can participate in a home visiting program?
Eligibility varies by program, but some are available regardless of income or background.

While access is not yet equal across all areas of Montana, there is ongoing statewide work to expand availability and ensure more families can benefit.

What happens during a home visit?
Each visit is tailored to your family’s needs and goals. Home visitors work with you to build confidence in parenting and support your child’s development.

This might include:

  • Discussing developmental milestones
  • Answering parenting questions
  • Providing lactation support
  • Offering health and safety guidance
  • Connecting you with community resources

What if I’m not able to have someone visit my home or I don’t have a home?
Home visiting programs are designed to be flexible, supportive, and non-intrusive.

If in-home visits aren’t a good fit, many programs offer alternatives such as virtual visits or meeting in community spaces like libraries or coffee shops. You can work with your program coordinator to find an option that feels comfortable for you.

Is there a cost to participate in a home visiting program?
Most home visiting programs are offered at no cost to families. They are typically funded through state or federal programs, nonprofits, or community organizations.

How do I sign up for a home visiting program?
The best way to get started is to connect with a local program near you.

You can use the LIFTS Online Resource Guide to find home visiting programs across Montana—just type “home visiting” into the search feature. If you need help finding a program, you can also call the LIFTS Warmline at (406) 430-9100 for personalized assistance.

So join us this week! Here on the blog and across social media, we’ll be sharing stories from Montana families about why they said yes to home visiting and highlighting the dedicated home visitors who walk alongside them every day.

Follow along! And if you have a story about how home visiting has benefited you and your family, we’d love to hear from you. Reach out to us at stories@hmhb-mt.org.

Jan 30
Love0

Stepping into a new season of storytelling

By Caregiving, Community, Community Support, Early Childhood, Maternal Mental Health, Parenting, The Power of Story

By Gwyneth Hyndman, HMHB Storytelling Coordinator 

I place Hamnet on my knee at page 207 and stare beyond the wing of the Boeing 737 window. My face is wet with tears I wipe away with a sweatshirt sleeve, feeling everything that powerful stories ignite.

Icy peaks of the Gallatin Range and Tobacco Root Mountains rise through the clouds, thousands of feet below as we head south and west towards the Pacific Ocean. I give Maggie O’Farrell’s imagined backstory of Shakespeare’s tragedy a pause so I can pull it together, accept the tissue handed to me from the woman in seat 27 B, and remind myself I’m only gone five days and that traveling alone right now is a luxury.

Instead, the ache to hold my daughters is almost gravitational.

Flying solo with Jessie and Eliza, now 6 and 4, were some of our first bonding moments. I had more than 40 years of travel on my own before I became a mother. After four pregnancy losses, I suspect part of me held back from planning beyond nine months. Both births became C-sections. I was never able to breastfeed successfully. I shook off fumes of failure every time I stood in the checkout line with baby formula at our local grocery store. But flying with each of them at six weeks old to visit my parents in California, watching skies, mountains, oceans, their sea shell earlobes and twitching noses as they slept in my arms, undisturbed by the world below, as the turbulence worked its magic, was like we were finding our footing. Up here, it was safe to fall in love with this new life in my arms, without feeling like I was tempting fate.

O’Farrell’s words were a reminder that this rose-hued season – with all its conveniently forgotten exhaustions, frustrations and nightmare toddler travel tales to come – is behind me now. And if you’ve read Hamnet, or watched the stunning film adaptation as it soars through the 2026 awards season, you’ll be aware that it is a guide through the darkest places a parent can walk.

Hamnet is a reminder that storytelling – both the story, and the telling of it – is illuminating.

In my first few weeks as the Storytelling and Engagement Coordinator for Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies, I’ve made my way through half a decade of storytelling in Montana. I’ve cried while washing dishes and listening to “EnduringLoss with Emily Tosoni” in the first season of the Mother Love/LIFTS Podcast. I’ve stood in the middle of my office and said “Huh,” out loud to no one in particular, when a statistic hit home in the “Mining City Stories” series of Season 4. I’ve allowed myself to be unsettled and angry while watching Siloed, a documentary on the disparities in maternal healthcare in rural Montana, and more than once, as first-person narratives were shared in the last five years of our LIFTS Magazine, thought: Hey, me too.

Stories don’t just bring us to tears and leave us there. They can move us to take action. They ask that we clarify our purpose and at their best, face and explore our fears.

For those of us reading on our couch during naptime, or listening in our cars, stories can be ports in a household storm, a stolen hour of stability and connection in the chaos and devastation of the world outside.

For the storyteller, the very art is like dumping a purse all over the floor to sort out what’s actually been buried in there. We make decisions on what’s treasure and what’s trash every time we pick up a pen or open our laptop.

What do I hold on to? What can I throw in the garbage to make this handbag a little less heavy? What can I share that might be valuable?

As the team at Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies sits down to map out our 2026 season of the LIFTS Podcast, and look ahead to the 6th annual issue of our LIFTS Magazine this summer, I’m honored to step into a role that Claire and Emily established and shaped with such respect, trust and tenderness, bringing our rich stories across Montana to the page and podcast.

If you have any thoughts on topics, issues and policies that you believe are important to parents, caregivers and providers in our state, you can reach me at gwyneth@hmhb-mt.org

And as always, we welcome your story submissions at stories@hmhb-mt.org

I’m so thrilled to read and hear your words in the months to come,

Gwyneth

Dec 19
Love0

LIFTS Out Loud: Ryan’s Journey Home

By Caregiving, Community Support, Dads, Early Childhood, Parenting

By Callie Triller & Jake Maher

This story appears in the 5th Annual LIFTS Magazine, where Montana parents share honest experiences about connection, resilience, and the journey through early parenthood.

By Jake:

Before my son Ryan was born, my life was spiraling out of control. I wasn’t a productive member of society, and was just lost. I was in jail when I discovered I’d become a dad, and Ryan’s mother and I were no longer together.

I eventually got into the drug court program, and went to treatment, and that’s when Callie and her family got involved as foster parents.

I started doing weekly video calls with them, which Child Protective Services (CPS) encouraged. Callie sent me a notebook and a pen, and said if you want to write a letter to Ryan, we’ll read it to him, so I did. She and her family were so supportive of me. They sent care packages while I was in treatment, they sent pictures and a photo album, and wrote to me about what it had been like since the day they got him. They saw me as a person who was struggling and needed a lot of extra encouragement, and were always helping work towards the goal of reunification. When I got back from treatment, Callie would drive Ryan to me for my supervised visits, twice a week for an hour each.

I took parenting classes, got enrolled in an intensive outpatient program, and went to 12-step meetings. Ryan was the reason I didn’t give up. I didn’t really look at that as an option at that point. I just wanted to be with him.

When he finally came to live with me, I continued these efforts, attending recovery meetings and taking every parenting class that I could. I wasn’t court-ordered to do these things, but felt it was necessary to keep me on the path that I was on. I wanted to take full advantage of every opportunity I could that would give me greater chances of having Ryan permanently. I’ve learned that the more you put into something, the more you get out of it. That’s why I went all out, and did everything I possibly could to better my chances of getting him back. I work full-time, Monday through Friday, and Ryan goes to daycare. He’s just started walking, and has been communicating more. It’s not so much like a guessing game anymore – he can actually let me know what he wants. The communication between the two of us, growing together, and having the bond that we do is a huge win.

Eighteen months ago, I never would’ve thought that I’d be where I am today.

By Callie:

When we started fostering, we knew we would need every resource at our disposal. With every placement, it held true – we needed friends, babysitters, doctors, and community to support us so we could love and support each child who walked in our doors. Baby Ryan was no exception. He came to us straight from the NICU after a pre-term birth, and we immediately enlisted as many friends as we could to take turns holding and rocking him, knowing he needed all the love we could provide.

As a child in Montana’s foster care system, Ryan qualified for many public benefits, including Medicaid, WIC, and the Best Beginnings Scholarship. Through Medicaid, we were able to quickly connect with an occupational therapist familiar with feeding premature infants. She educated us on proper bottle placement and techniques to allow him to drink as much formula as he could so that he would grow stronger. His occupational therapist also worked to provide him positive sensory touch, and coach us on how to best care for him as his body and brain developed outside of the womb.

Medicaid also paid for all of his well-child check-ups. Over the course of the year that Ryan lived with us, his primary care provider helped us navigate some difficult illnesses and directed us to the proper treatments when there were milestones he was slow to meet.

We connected Ryan with the WIC program, which paid for most of his formula throughout the first year, helped track his growth and development, and provided us with nutrition support as Ryan transitioned to solid foods.

Once Ryan worked his way into a more routine schedule and got bigger and stronger, we enrolled him at a high-quality early childhood program in our community, utilizing the Best Beginnings Scholarship, a state-funded program that helps families cover the costs of childcare.

We had no idea that one of the coolest parts of fostering Ryan would be getting to know his biological parent. I remember learning that Jake had chosen to go to treatment and I literally cheered! When he asked to do Zoom visits through treatment, we were so happy to help make that happen. As soon as possible, we wanted Ryan to know his dad, and for Jake to be continually motivated by all the sweet coo’s and big brown eyes Ryan could give.

After Jake finished treatment, and in-person visits started, we got to know him even better – seeing him at least once per week. We were inspired by his hard work and dedication to both his sobriety and his parenting. He was utilizing every resource he could for himself, just as we were utilizing every resource we could to support Ryan.

As visits progressed from “supervised” to “monitored”, and then from a day at a time to overnight, we got to witness Jake and Ryan’s bond flourish until our very final handoff. I was tearful, as I knew I was saying goodbye to the sweet little boy who had lived with us for the past 15 months. But Ryan crawled right over to Jake who picked him up. He then looked at me with a big smile and just waved. He knew he was home.

 

Professional photos by Highland Creative Solutions.

 

Visit hmhb-lifts.org for local resources using the search terms “Family Support & Education”, “Substance Use Disorder Treatment Providers”, and “Birthing & Parenting Classes”.

 

Feb 14
Love0

MTPAL: One Number, Two Programs—Empowering Healthcare Providers for Moms and Kids

By Community Support, Maternal Mental Health

Thanks to Shawnalea Chief Goes Out, Perinatal Health Program Officer for the Member Health Management Bureau of the Health Resources Division, for authoring this guest post!

In Montana, healthcare providers now have a powerful new tool to support maternal and pediatric mental health through the Montana Psychiatric Access Line (MTPAL). Combining two vital programs—MTPAL for Moms and MTPAL for Children—this initiative expands access to expert consultation, resources, and training, ensuring that both mothers and children receive timely, high-quality care for behavioral health concerns.

One number, two programs.

PRISM for Moms and MAPP-NET is now Montana Psychiatric Access Line (MTPAL). Access perinatal and pediatric mental health care services at MTPAL.org or 1-844-40-MTPAL or 1-844-406-8725.

The MT PAL program is a comprehensive initiative designed to enhance the capability of health care providers in both maternal and pediatric settings. MTPAL for Moms focuses on expanding providers’ capacity to screen, assess, treat, and refer patients for maternal mental health and substance use disorders during or after pregnancy, ensuring holistic care for maternal well-being. Simultaneously, MT PAL for Children aims to integrate behavioral health into pediatric primary care, utilizing telehealth modalities to offer high-quality and timely detection, assessment, treatment, and referral for children and adolescents with behavioral health conditions. Both facets of the program emphasize the use of evidence-based practices and methods, striving to deliver effective and accessible health care for mothers and their children.

  • Training and Education for Treatment for Healthcare Professionals
  • Telehealth Consultation and Referral
  • Resource for Healthcare Professionals

Announcing MTPAL for Moms Learning Hub

Each month, our expert hub publishes didactics to empower clinicians in evidence-based best practices in the care and treatment of pregnant and postpartum patients who have mental health concerns. All trainings are presented free of charge to Montana healthcare professionals.

Simply sign up on MTPAL.org to join our list and access the first training – Understanding Perinatal Mental Health: Prevalence, Risks, and Impacts.

Join us March 18,19th in Helena, MT for our combined Perinatal and Pediatric Mental Health Symposium https://www.umt.edu/pediatric-mental-health-symposium/ .Here we will be launching our new MTPAL Psychiatric Access Line along with providing great training and learning opportunities.

Jan 09
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2024 HMHB Year in Review

By Community, Community Support, Early Childhood, Montana Early Childhood Coalition, Native American Initiatives, Published Work

With the close of 2024, we’re reflecting on a year filled with meaningful milestones, new connections, and impactful work at HMHB-MT. From expanding our team to strengthening collaborations, this year has been one of growth and inspiration. Join us as we look back on some of the highlights that made 2024 so remarkable!

January

We started the year strong with a team retreat in Helena, welcoming two new team members: Hollin Buck, Program Manager and Lauren Johnson, Director of Communications and Outreach.  Together, we set our intentions for the year and bonded through team-building activities.

Dr. Amy Stiffarm traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with HRSA (Health Resources & Services Administration) officials, sharing valuable insights about our collaborative work with state partners.

February

HMHB Team members attended The 2024 Montana Winter Institute on Improving Public Health through Positive Experiences, learning about the impacts of supportive and caring experiences for child and families and how communities can support them.

Claire Larson continued to craft new episodes of the Mother Love podcast, featuring powerful stories from mothers and care providers across Montana.

 

March

We put more momentum behind our Look Closer public messaging campaign, working to decrease negative biases around perinatal substance use disorders. This free, downloadable campaign fosters kindness and compassion, encouraging those struggling with unhealthy substance use to ask for help and for providers who may serve them to meet those requests with understanding.

Dr. Amy Stiffarm took the lead in organizing a series of Indigenous doula networking events, strengthening connections and support for Indigenous birth workers.

April

We were thrilled to have our article, “A Strategy to Support Perinatal Mental Health by Collaborating With Tribal Communities in Montana,” published in Health Affairs’ April issue. Co-authored by Dr. Amy Stiffarm, Stephanie Morton, Dawn Gunderson, and former Executive Director, Brie MacLaurin, this piece highlights critical work in improving maternal mental health.

May

May brought bittersweet farewells as we said goodbye to Claire Larson, who released her final episode of the Mother Love podcast.

This month we were especially grateful for funders and supporters. We celebrated receiving a grant from the Women’s Foundation of Montana, allowing HMHB to begin more formally support building the doula and birth worker workforce in Montana.  The Helena Exchange Club and Gulch Distillers generously hosted a pint night fundraiser on our behalf for Mother’s Day.

Dr. Amy Stiffarm also collaborated with the Family Medicine Residency of Western Montana to enhance understanding of Indigenous perinatal cultural safety.

June

Dr. Amy Stiffarm unveiled an updated version of the Cultural Safety for Indigenous Women and Birthing People Toolkit, offering vital resources for providers supporting Indigenous families during the perinatal period.

Several staff members attended The Montana Healthcare Foundation’s 2024 Symposium as part of our work on the Meadowlark Initiatives. We also participated in Early Childhood Strategic Planning hosted by the Early Childhood and Family Services Division of DPHHS.

Our Essentials Program received $35,000 from the Otto Bremer Trust Community Responsive Fund at Montana Community Foundation. These funds will help us to continue distributing safe sleep kits and car seats to family support providers across the state, to provide to families and caregivers, giving them the essential tools and information they need to care for their children. Through the Essentials program, in 2024 we distributed 363 safe sleep kits; 420 car seats; and served 527 unique families across Montana.

 

July

We convened an in-person meeting of the Montana Early Childhood Coalition alongside our coalition co-conveners, The University of Montana Center for Children Families and Workforce Development and Zero to Five.  We also co-hosted a day long training with our partners in the Injury Prevention Bureau at DPHHS, called Resilience Rising: Navigating Through Adversity and Cultivating Positive Childhood Experiences.

August

The fourth annual edition of LIFTS Magazine was published, featuring stories from Montana parents and caregivers sharing about how asking for help has transformed the lives of Montana families. With 14,000 copies distributed to nearly 100 sites statewide, this edition continues to inspire and inform about when getting help, helps.

Dr. Amy Stiffarm delivered a keynote address at the inaugural Indigenous Milk Medicine Conference, a keystone event for Indigenous maternal and child health.

September

We hosted Dr. Samantha Greenberg’s virtual Perinatal Mental Health 101 series—a free webinar designed to raise awareness among Montana professionals about perinatal mental health.

The Montana Home Visiting Coalition, co-convened The Home Visiting Summit with the Early Childhood and Family Services Bureau of DPHHS. This provided an opportunity to connect with passionate home visitors through training and shared experiences.

This year, we dedicated significant time to improving the back end of our LIFTS Online Resource guide, focusing on making the overall experience more user-friendly. This fall, we were excited to

complete several meaningful updates and look forward to continuing to expand and enhance the capabilities of LIFTS.

October

Our 2024 Perinatal Mental Health Conference returned to an in-person format in Helena, reuniting partners from across the state. Nearly 200 providers, advocates and system champions gathered to learn and celebrate together. A standout moment was the screening of the impactful documentary film, Siloed, and the addition of poster sessions featuring local level work from around Montana.

We also received incredible news of funding from the Arthur M. Blank West Foundation, to support our storytelling work and build a strong administrative foundation for our growing organization.

November

We were thrilled to welcome two familiar faces to our team: Chelsea Bellon as the Native American Initiatives Program Manager and Emily Freeman as our new Storytelling Coordinator. We were excited to welcome their expertise and passion to our team.

Dr. Amy Stiffarm returned to Washington, D.C., to address the 2024 Tribal Prenatal-to-Three Policy Agenda, spotlighting critical issues facing AI/AN mothers, children, and families.

December

Stephanie Morton represented HMHB at the NCIT Paid Family & Medical Leave Education Initiative Convening and PN3 Policy Impact Center’s Great Opportunities, Great Progress event in Denver.

HMHB worked closely with Montana Doula Collaborative, Indigenous Birth workers network and state and national experts to draft a bill to create a state certification for doulas and birth workers, a key step to expanding access to these critical supports during and after pregnancy.

As we wrapped up 2024, we looked ahead to the 2025 Legislative Session the much-anticipated release of the fourth season of the Mother Love podcast in January, and continuing to build and deepen relationships to support the collaborative and impactful work of building a better system to improve the lives of moms, babies and families in Montana.

Looking Ahead

2024 was a year for HMHB filled with growth, collaboration, and impact. We are energized to carry this momentum into 2025 as we continue to support the work and partners helping Montana families.

 

Dec 20
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I Can Do This by Kelsie Christensen

By Birth, Community, Community Support, Parenting, pregnancy, Self-compassion, The Power of Story

This is a featured article from our 4th edition of the LIFTS Magazine.  

I Can Do This

By Kelsie Christensen

“You’re an adult woman, you can do this!” my husband Bob says over the phone from 1,500 miles away, as I dress our four-month-old son, Emmett.

“I’m so nervous,” I reply. “I don’t know any of these people.”

There are many things I didn’t expect as a new mom, forced mom outings being one of them.

If only my anxiety would calm down.

The sun is setting as I load Emmett into the car, still on the phone with Bob. “Who knew free dinner would be such a driving force to get me out of the house?” I joke. “New mom life.”

We arrive at the old brick school where the moms group is held, and I strap Emmett into the front pack. “I’ll call you when we’re heading home,” I tell Bob as we hang up.

Walking down the ramp into the building’s basement, I feel nauseous. “We can do this, right buddy?” I ask Emmett.

I hear kids playing and moms chatting from down the fluorescent-lit hall. I take a deep breath and walk in. Moms are on the left by a big table covered with taco fixings. Kids are to the right playing in a padded area with so many toys and activities. Emmett will LOVE this place when he gets bigger, I think.

With Emmett still strapped to my chest, I get some food and walk to another room, where I sit down at a plastic folding table with ten other women, a huge ball of anxiety in my stomach. What do I even talk about? My whole world revolves around this tiny person. Am I even interesting anymore?

Turns out they can relate.

I chat with a mom of two whose husband is also a truck driver. I ask if being a trucker’s wife with kids ever gets easier. “Kind of…not really,” she answers. At least she’s being honest.

The woman sitting next to me has a baby girl strapped to her as well – a three-month old, she tells me. We exchange numbers so we can meet up for a walk, and have another adult to talk to. I feel my anxiety lessening.

After two hours, I walk outside into the dark. I can’t wait to call Bob and tell him how it went. I can’t believe I had the guts to go – to meet new people, and to take Emmett along to something that’s actually for me. I plan to go again next month. I appreciate knowing I’m not alone and now have a community I can turn to.

I am an adult woman, I think to myself, as I strap Emmett into his car seat. And I can do this.   

 

 

Visit hmhb-lifts.org for local resources using the search terms “Birthing and Parenting Classes” and “Support Groups”.