Nov 17, 2021
Marnie’s story is all about bringing her son, Joe, into the world as the dust was settling in New York from the 9/11 attacks which became a transformative experience for her. Her story circles around her experience of getting pregnant and having a scheduled delivery on that same day, while residing in downtown Chicago, where the city was bracing itself to be the next hit after New York. Her experience as she describes it is one of vulnerability and gratitude in the face of fear. Marnie explains that she was supposed to be induced that day, two weeks after her due date, she was considered a high pregnancy, but felt like a million bucks. It was the day of, when she received a phone call from a friend to check the news, this is when she and her husband realized getting to the hospital would be a challenge, as Chicago already started to shut down. Marnie takes her time to detail the experience of getting to the hospital, what it was like at the hospital, observing those in helping professions that were scared and worried and some hysterical as they could not reach their loved ones. The entire time, she found a way to hold space with compassion for others, indicating that it was the only thing that she could do, this is the time where she realized that she was part of collective humanity. Her key message to the listeners is that: build a mental health toolkit that you can carry around with you in your pocket; collect tools and sharpen your tools, so if ever faced with adversity or unknown emotions, you can turn to your toolkit; practice gratitude; be curious, ask more questions, go deeper -- the more information you have it leads you to good and right choices for you.