First Coast Connect: Mother of all challenges

Having barely survived the birth of her second child after a life-threatening hemorrhage, Dr. Bobbie Decker was nothing but grateful for the first few months. Then her postpartum psychosis began. Despite her training as a neurologist and being married to a neurosurgeon, Decker says, “I understood the brain but lost touch with my own.” In a searing editorial, Decker recalls being overwhelmed by impulses to harm herself or her child, and intrusive thoughts, like seeing insects crawling in her food. It wasn’t until she reached out for help that she found relief and stability, which she largely credits to programs offered through The Motherhood Space, a maternal health and wellness program at Baptist Health in Jacksonville, one of just 40 similar programs in the country. We talk to Decker and the program’s founder about providing better care for new and expecting mothers, whether in crisis or not. Guests: Dr. Bobbie Decker, neurologist, epileptologist and mother Dr. Jill Garrett, director and founder of The Motherhood Space Celebrating open adoption In 1992, when Linda Sexton and her husband began building their family, there were few guideposts in the world of open adoption. Her family memoir literally opens the book on their experience, sharing three generations’ and three decades’ worth of perspective, including that of the four birth parents, birth grandmothers, adoptive parents and the two adopted kids. We ask her about the surprises, lessons and joys of the experience and why she wants to share it with others. Guest: Linda R. Sexton, open adoption advocate and author of The Branches We Cherish: An Open Adoption Memoir On the pitch A long awaited announcement solidifies Sporting Club Jacksonville’s home on the First Coast. We talk to the football club’s chief community officer about playing for keeps at the team’s new permanent stadium site, as well as the start of the inaugural men's USL Championship season. The games get underway with Head Coach Liam Fox on March 7 when the team hosts the Hartford Athletic at 7:30 p.m. at the University of North Florida's Hodges Stadium, the first of 17 home games in a 34-match schedule. Guest: Tony Allegretti, chief community officer, Sporting Club JacksonvilleSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.