Sidelines National Support Network  / Volunteer Spotlight  / July_Volunteer

Volunteer of the Month
July 2007
Cheryl Levit

Sidelines volunteer Cheryl Levit with her husband, Ron, and twins, Sam and Edie

Name: Cheryl Levit
Home: Baltimore, Maryland
Husband's Name: Ron
Children's Names and Ages: Sam and Edie, who turned two years old on July 9

"I was on strict hospital bedrest and felt that I needed to be in touch with someone who could truly understand what I was going through. I had a hard time explaining my feelings to family and friends."

The signature on Cheryl Levit’s e-mail includes this quotation: "Life is not the way it's supposed to be. It's the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference."

That statement sums up how Cheryl dealt with her own difficult pregnancy and why she reaches out to others as a Sidelines volunteer. While pregnant with her twins, she was placed on modified bedrest at 18 weeks due to a shortening cervix. At 24 weeks, she began having contractions and was hospitalized and administered magnesium sulfate to help control them. A week later, she went home on strict bedrest.

At 25 1/2 weeks, Cheryl was admitted to the hospital for the duration of her pregnancy—a total of 10 weeks. Eight of those weeks, she was not allowed out of her bed. During this time, she was administered magnesium sulfate and procardia daily. She delivered her twins at 35 weeks, 3 days.

"I will always remember the uncertainty of it all," Cheryl says. "The 'not knowing' is what made each day so difficult for me."

Cheryl enjoys keeping in contact with several of her past referrals, and she particularly likes getting updates and photos from them. A stay-at-home mom, she also likes to read when she has a few moments of spare time.

Cheryl advises her referrals to have a daily routine, even if they are n the hospital. “It is what got me through the day,” she says. "Not that I would do the same things each day, but I would try to get up at the same time, take naps at the same time, etc."

Cheryl also encourages moms-to-be to accept help, even though it may be hard for them to do so."I had a friend who came to the hospital the day after I was admitted with a razor and pedicure kit," Cheryl remembers. "She was not letting me stay in the hospital with hairy legs and nasty toes. That was one of the most wonderful gifts I ever received!"