CHICAGO (WLS) — Friday was the first day of Black Maternal Health Week.
One Chicago woman is using dance to close the gap on the disparities Black women face during and after pregnancy.
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Kemeera Nimahat is the CEO of Mamma Jamma Dance & Maternal Wellness.
“My movements are designed to help balance muscles and tissues, help create space in the body,” Nimahat said.
The Mamma Jamma dance class intentionally crafts moves with a pregnant and postpartum body in mind.
“I feel like it keeps me going like, I’m still myself at the same time as I’m carrying another human being,” dance client Ameri Reese Jelani said.
Led by doula and dance teacher, kemeera nimahat, the classes are taught virtually and in person to help rewrite what it means to be a black mom.
“The way we experience our pregnancies has a direct impact on our children,” stated Nimahat. “Our hips and womb space can store a lot of trauma. In my approach, we aim to unlock and release these stored emotions and experiences.”
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In Illinois, Black women face unsettling statistics as they are three times more likely to die during pregnancy and six times more likely to die within a year of giving birth, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. However, at Ingalls Hospital, efforts are made to prevent this trauma from affecting the birthing experience.
“These classes are typically costly for our community, and it’s not uncommon for individuals to have to choose between paying bills or attending these classes,” explained Shanice Williams, who oversees the Healthy Baby Network at UChicago Medicine Ingalls Hospital.
Williams said each class can cost an average of $50-60. Her partnership with Mamma Jamma allows moms to take two classes for free and walk away with even more.
After the moms finish dancing, they walk away with a goodie backpack, with things like children’s books, shampoo, diapers, and it even opens up to a changing pad for moms on the go.
“Walking into a system that knows that my physician looks like me, their team looks like me, that creates a different level of comfort,” Williams said.
The classes are giving space and permission for moms to be nothing more than themselves as they embark on a new chapter of their lives with joy.
The celebration doesn’t plan on stopping in Chicago.
“My ultimate dream is for Mamma Jamma Dance to be global,” Nimahat said. “My dream is for every person that I encounter to be left better because they met me.”
More information about Mamma Jamma Dance & Maternal Wellness can be found on their website.
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