The "Incompetent" Cervix and the "Good" Mother with Madeleine Michalik
CW: premature birth, pregnancy loss
At what point does a medical term go from useful and clarifying, to a detrimental word that can lead to guilt, shame, and “what ifs” in the minds of parents? Today we chat with Madeleine Michalik who expresses how being told her baby was born prematurely due to an “incompetent cervix” changed her life - and how she plans on changing the lives of others through her advocacy. Episode 15 of Poised & Powerful Podcast is sharing about Early Cervical Opening!
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Madeleine Michalik is the Founder of “Early Cervical Opening” and a board member of the I.C. Aware campaign, where she advocated for the elimination of shameful medical terminology as well as the detection and prevention of the ECO diagnosis. Madeleine earned her MA in communication studies at UNC Charlotte, where she wrote her award winning thesis; The ‘Incompetent’ Cervix and the ‘Good’ Mother”.
In this episode of Poised & Powerful Podcast, Maddy and I discuss the following:
Maddy’s story of (very possibly preventable) preterm delivery after trying to advocate for herself but being left unheard by medical professionals.
Patient/ medical professional communications and how that can affect a patient’s experience and sense of empowerment.
Maddy shares her research on womxn being silenced through interactions with providers and in the literature around the diagnosis of ECO.
How certain terminology can imply that a parent is at fault for their or their child’s condition or diagnosis.
Maddy’s biggest message is to advocate for yourself as a patient, as a mother to your children, and with your community. Maddy plans on continuing to change the narrative until the terminology has been replaced, and physicians are utilizing narratives of patients (particularly womxn), to improve both research and patient care.
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Learn more about Poised & Powerful and Sarah at https://poisedpowerfulparenthood.com/interviews
CONNECT WITH MADELEINE MICHALIK:
Blog: read and share personal ECO experiences
Instagram: Early Cervical Opening
CONNECT WITH SARAH MAYHAN:
References/ related:
The episode of Call the Midwife with a plot point re: cervical cerclage
Tressie McMillan Cottom: I Was a Pregnant and in Crisis: All the Doctors and Nurses Saw Was an Incompetent Black Woman (CW: racism, pregnancy/ infant loss)