Tracy and Miles Bullion wanted to grow their family and were excited when they found out they were expecting, in 2013. The young couple had some experience caring for newborns through interactions with nieces and nephews, but they wanted to be better prepared to become parents. So the couple turned to Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas.
The Margo Perot Center for Women and Infants at Texas Health Dallas offers a variety of educational classes and resources to help parents prepare for delivery and transition from hospital to home. The Bullions took advantage of the hospital’s Baby Care Basics, Prepared Childbirth and Breastfeeding classes as they readied for the arrival of daughter Sadie Elizabeth in May 2014.
The Baby Care Basics class helped Tracy and Miles gain confidence in the child-care activities they already knew, while the other classes informed the couple’s expectations for childbirth and their understanding of the mechanics of breastfeeding. Being prepared was a gift the couple wanted to be able to give to their newborn early on.
“Texas Health Dallas is the right hospital with the right resources for expecting parents,” said Jill Johnson, the hospital’s childbirth education coordinator. “We provide one of the most well-rounded programs in the area, led by certified and supportive professionals. The classes take the parents from early pregnancy through labor and delivery to long after the family transitions home.”
Tracy and Miles found Jill’s teaching through real-life stories and hands-on interaction to be especially valuable. The hospital tour provided as part of the Prepared Childbirth class also helped raise the couple’s comfort level with the entire experience.
“Jill Johnson was a wonderful resource for me as I prepared and adjusted to delivery and then breastfeeding,” Tracy said. “She willingly gave out her personal information and urged me to contact her if needed and I did so on multiple occasions. Her personal touch really made the classes beneficial for my husband and me.”
“I am now a huge advocate for both mom and dad attending the classes because once we were home there were tips and tricks that my husband remembered that I didn’t,” she continued. “After the birth of our sweet Sadie, I attended the hospital’s Mommy Mixers to bounce some breastfeeding questions off of Jill and some of the new moms. I have made many connections through the mixers.”