Today we’d like to introduce you to Katherine Sylvester.
Hi Katherine, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I am a homebirth mommy of two and a wife. I know that without the example my mother set and the support of my family, I would not have been able to have my children at home. Both of my birthing experiences helped me learn the power of the female body and ushered me to my callings in life-being a mom and loving on moms. Doing both are deeply gratifying and bring me inexplicable joy.
A year after birthing my son, I got a call from four women who had their first child at the same time that I did. Each of them had different issues they wanted help with and with me being a physical therapist, they thought I could help. They had the following issues: pain with intercourse; urine leakage; scar pain following a c-section she felt was unnecessary followed by a hernia; and difficulty losing weight following her bout with postpartum depression. Afterwards, I developed two program to prevent and address the aforementioned issues-Rediscover your M.U.S.I.C. (muscle flexibility, urinary continence, sexual fulfillment, internal confidence, and core stability) and From Scars to Beauty Marks. During that time, I noticed that women who had cesarean deliveries took longer to recover than women who had vaginal deliveries and oftentimes had blood pressure issues so I became passionate about preventing unnecessary c-sections and supporting women who desired to have vaginal births after cesarean deliveries. It was during that time that I became a VBAC-certified doula.
After the birth of my daughter, I experienced postpartum preeclampsia and it was my midwife’s knowledge of my norms that allowed her to detect the preeclampsia while my blood pressure was 128/78 mmHg. As a result, I was still able to have my second homebirth safely. The OB who took over her care afterwards said that due to my skin color, geographical location and age, and based on the people he encountered like me before, that I likely had high blood pressure pre-pregnancy, would not follow up with a primary care doctor if I did, would never get off of blood pressure medication or have normal kidneys and that my body was not fit to have more children.
Nevertheless, through the use of a smart device sent to me by a dear friend and physical therapist, Perry Brubaker, that helped guide my sleep habits, food consumption, daily activities, exercise regimen and stress management and with a self-selected dream team that consisted of a physical therapist, kidney doctor, primary care provider, pharmacist, prayer warriors, family members and friends, I was off of blood pressure medicine within a couple of weeks and my kidneys healed within nine months. Once healed, I decided that all women deserved to have women walk the journey closer with them so I applied for a grant, won it, purchased 40 smart watches and sent them all across the country. With the help of a good friend and physical therapist, Dr. Jessica Thompson, I was able to bring the vision of monitoring moms for better births to life.
Since then, alongside a team of physical therapists, occupational therapists, and labor and delivery nurses, we have taught women to use smart watches, blood pressure cuffs, and every other number she has access to to help women modify their lifestyles to have healthier pregnancies, detect issues between office visits, avoid unnecessary medical interventions and advocate for necessary ones, recover following delivery without complications, and thrive throughout motherhood.
When Roe vs. Wade got overturned, we also began doing More than a Period Parties in the community where we teach women about their bodies so they can trust, prepare, and protect them throughout all phases of womanhood. We also teach at schools and in the community so people can know how to prevent the major causes of maternal death from home and how to address complications that can arise following childbirth..
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Honestly, the road has been exactly what I would have expected when implementing a solution to address the issues of maternal mortality and morbidity. I had a lot of knowledge gaps to fill so I took countless courses to learn about the physiology of pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period, and how commonly used interventions impact vital signs and pelvic health. I didn’t know how we would meet social determinant of health needs when they arose so I set up meetings with community-based organizations to learn about the resources they provide; and I didn’t know all of the people who could potentially be on the birth team so I connected with different types of healthcare providers to determine their potential role in improving birth outcomes. I also knew that the cost of monitoring would not be affordable for everyone so I applied for funding so that mothers who could benefit from our services, but couldn’t pay for them, could still be served. Thankfully, although we served the initial 40 moms without compensation, tracking and sharing the birth and health outcomes we observed resulted in major partnerships.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
At Operation M.I.S.T., we monitor moms for better births and teach them to use technology to make data-driven health decisions for the purpose of helping them show up to pregnancy healthy, stay healthy throughout their pregnancy, avoid unnecessary complications and interventions during pregnancy, catch minor issues before they turn into major complications between office visits, rest and recover well following delivery, and thrive throughout their lifetime.
Operation M.I.S.T. stands for Monitor, Intervene, Survive, Thrive when it comes to pregnancy and postpartum. Outside of that time period, it stands for Monitor, Inquire, Suggest, Test. Regardless of why or when someone chooses to join our sisterhood, what makes us different is that we don’t compare the women we support to each other; we only compare them to themselves. In that way, if they deviate from what is normal for them, we can help them figure out why and either pinpoint a lifestyle factor that has contributed to an improvement or decline in their health status, or get them to a provider who can help investigate and intervene further.
We also teach them to use the data they have access to to be proactive instead of reactive concerning their health. For example, if someone has suboptimal blood pressure, resting heart rate, stress, or sugar management pre-pregnancy, optimizing those numbers before getting pregnant becomes the goal. If we notice that there are social determinant of health issues that are negatively impacting health data, we prioritize meeting those needs. We don’t believe in protocol-driven care or comparing women to generalized standards-we believe that women’s health journeys are as unique as their fingerprints and should be treated as such.
Through our remote monitoring service, we have helped women identify issues like hemorrhage, fluid overload, preeclampsia, low vitamin levels, thyroid abnormalities, infection, and anemia from home. Majority of the time, however, we’ve helped women avoid unnecessary c-sections and inductions, and helped them make data-driven health decisions that has resulted in them having safe and healthy pregnancies and postpartum journeys without running into complications.
The other thing that I love about MIST and the monitors who love on moms is that they unequivocally believe in the design of the female body and it’s ability to create, sustain, bring forth, and nurture life. We believe that our job is simply to help women support their designs by being intentional about how they move, eat, sleep, manage stress, obtain resources, and utilize their villages.
Through our More than a Period and Lady Parts Power Parties, we educate ladies of all ages about their bodies so they can optimize their health in their current phase while preparing for the next phase. Ladies as young as 4 and as old as 81 have attended our parties. Through these parties, we teach women how their bodies work, what exists within their bodies, how to prevent and combat urine leakage and sexual dysfunction, and how scars, surgery, trauma, sleep, exercise and other lifestyle decisions impact their health.
I believe that what makes us most unique is the love that exists between the monitors and the moms we serve, The mother and her family become our family so while our goal is to at least monitor and support a mom through her first year following delivery, our bond lasts a lifetime. It is the sisterhood paired with the smartwatch that makes the difference.
Any big plans?
In the future, we plan to continue to partner with organizations who believe like we do that walking the motherhood journey more closely with moms helps prevent premature delivery, low birth weight, complications of high blood pressure and gestational diabetes, instances of postpartum mood and anxiety disorders, hospital readmissions, and preventable deaths. We also look forward to serving in more rural areas where healthcare is not readily accessible and traveling the world to teach women how to understand and track their cycles, protect their hearts, and optimize the function of their pelvic floors.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mommymonitor.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/operationmist/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherine-sylvester-pt-dpt-6a7b961b7
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@katherinesylvester1468/podcasts
