Nurse Jodi

I was more nervous about the delivery of my second child than I had been about the birth of my first son. This anxiety surfaced even before ultrasounds in the third trimester indicated that he was going to be a large newborn. As I walked into Bergan Mercy that Friday morning in January, I did my best to keep my fears hidden for the sake of my husband.

After checking in, our labor and delivery nurse sat with me to explain how the day was expected to progress. Her soothing presence and, the patience with which she answered my questions, helped put me at ease. As the Pitocin started to generate contractions, I actually began to relax. My labor progressed and when it became apparent that delivery was near, the nurse went to phone my doctor. The anxiety returned when she let me know that she was unable to reach him. “I knew it,” I thought. “My doctor won’t be here to deliver my baby. Something’s going to go wrong.” Not a minute later my doctor walked through the door, exuding calm and confidence with his “How ya doin’?”

Shortly thereafter, my son Mick was born. Nothing went wrong. In fact, I could not have imagined a more peaceful delivery. I thanked my doctor and teased him about having another child now that I knew how good he is at his job.

As my husband and I made our way to our room in the maternity wing, we expressed how wonderfully we had been treated at Bergan. It was the antithesis of our experience with the birth of our first son, Charlie, at a Chicago hospital, and we were grateful to have such genuine and attentive care. And then we met Jodi.

Every postpartum woman should be so lucky. Jodi walked into our room and introduced herself while gushing about our newborn son. She made sure I had all that I needed, and professed that I should not hesitate to call her for any reason. She was there to make me comfortable and wanted to make sure that I took advantage. Since Mick is my second son, I knew that a night of uninterrupted sleep was not on the horizon for a long time to come. Jodi suggested that we let Mick sleep in the nursery, saying she would love to take care of him during the night for us. Her nurturing demeanor made the decision so easy. When she brought Mick back to us in the morning, Jodi talked about how much she enjoyed holding him and rocking him during the early morning hours.

Jodi was our nurse again the following night. She was a welcome figure in our room, with her easy sense of humor and the endless offers of her special ice cream concoctions. She cared for Mick in the nursery that second night and when it came time for her to leave in the morning, she stopped by to say goodbye. “He’s the cutest one in the nursery,” I remember her saying. I knew she said that to all the parents, but it still felt good. We thanked Jodi for the wonderful care and felt a bit sad when she left. My husband and I reiterated how wonderful our experience at Bergan had been, and how the staff at had been so good to us.

A few weeks later, after posting pictures of Mick on Facebook for my friends and family to view, I received a “friend request” from Jodi. It turns out, we have a mutual friend and Jodi had seen our photographs of Mick. After acknowledging our “small world,” I asked Jodi to be my Facebook friend.

A mother never tires of hearing that other people think her children are adorable. Now, Jodi can continue to tell me. And, I know she’s not just saying that.
--Martha