Sidelines National Support Network  / Volunteer Spotlight  / August_Volunteer

Volunteer of the Month
August 2009
Erin Berg

Volunteer Erin Berg with her husband, Christopher, and daughter, Milla, shortly after the birth of son Corbin

Name: Erin Berg
Home: Brool;yn, NY
Husband's Name: Christopher
Children's Names and Ages: Milla, age 3, and Corbin, 2 months

"I found the volunteer who kept me company when on bedrest so helpful, I wanted to return the favor for other women on bedrest."

Architect Erin Berg set goals during her pregnancies—24, 28, 32, 36 weeks—and felt a sense of achievement as she reached each milestone.  

"With each passing goal, it gave me more confidence that we would be successful," she said.  

Following the loss of a twin pregnancy, Erin has had two successful pregnancies.  She said that she found a high-risk doctor "that I absolutely trust because I had lost all trust in my body."

She became a Sidelines volunteer early in 2007 because she wanted to help other moms-to-be like she was helped during her pregnancy with daughter Milla, now three years old.  Both pregnancies were similar in that at 14 weeks, she got the McDonald cerclage, and later started modified bedrest.  Her contractions were monitored through Matria, and at week 36, the bedrest restrictions were lifted.  

In both pregnancies, the cerclage was removed at 38 weeks.  Milla was born at 39 ½ weeks, and she went into labor with son Corbin at 41 weeks.

"Both labors and deliveries were pretty straight-forward and so rewarding when we finally met our babies!" she said.

Although the pregnancies were similar, the challenges were a bit different.  

"The first bedrest included lots of quiet time—the luxury to learn how to crochet, work from bed, watch TV during dinner," she explained. "The second bedrest was a lot different, with our three-year-old daughter wanting me to do all the things I used to do.  Luckily, my parents were able to take her most days so I could continue to work from home.  However, the down side was that I really missed the day-to-day interactions with her."

Erin has enjoyed working with her Sidelines referrals, and she urges them to have faith in their doctors and call whenever they have questions or need reassuring.  She also encourages them to learn to love drinking fluids and lying on their left sides.

In her spare time, Erin enjoys reading, quilting, cooking, and catching up on her Netflix queue.