THE CONNECTED: DIGITAL RESOURCES & mORE
ART WORK
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: HELP LINES
(Nigeria) Mentally Aware
(Nigeria) DSVRT Lagos
(UK) Victim Support
(USA) The Hotline
MEDICAL TERMS
Incompetent Cervix
An incompetent cervix happens when weak cervical tissue causes or plays a part in a premature birth or the loss of a healthy pregnancy. An incompetent cervix also is called cervical insufficiency.
The cervix is the lower part of the uterus that opens to the vagina. Before pregnancy, it's usually closed and firm. As pregnancy goes on and you get ready to give birth, the cervix slowly changes. It softens, gets shorter and opens. If you have an incompetent cervix, it might begin to open too soon causing you to give birth too early.
An incompetent cervix can be a hard problem to diagnose and treat. If your cervix begins to open early, or if you've had cervical insufficiency in the past, you might benefit from treatment. This might include having a procedure done to close the cervix with strong sutures, called a cervical cerclage. You also may take medicine to help the incompetent cervix and have ultrasound exams to check how things are going.
Source: Mayo Clinic
Postpartum Preeclampsia
Postpartum preeclampsia is a rare condition that occurs when you have high blood pressure and excess protein in your urine soon after childbirth. Preeclampsia is a similar condition that develops during pregnancy and typically resolves with the birth of the baby.
Most cases of postpartum preeclampsia develop within 48 hours of childbirth. But, postpartum preeclampsia sometimes develops up to six weeks or later after childbirth. This is known as late postpartum preeclampsia.
Postpartum preeclampsia requires prompt treatment. Left untreated, postpartum preeclampsia can cause seizures and other serious complications.
Source: Mayo Clinic
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health problem you may develop after experiencing traumatic events. The condition was first recognised in war veterans. It has had different names in the past, such as 'shell shock', but it's not only diagnosed in soldiers. A wide range of traumatic experiences can be causes of PTSD.
Source: Mankind
Postpartum Depression
Most new moms experience postpartum "baby blues" after childbirth, which commonly include mood swings, crying spells, anxiety and difficulty sleeping. Baby blues usually begin within the first 2 to 3 days after delivery and may last for up to two weeks.
But some new moms experience a more severe, long-lasting form of depression known as postpartum depression. Sometimes it's called peripartum depression because it can start during pregnancy and continue after childbirth. Rarely, an extreme mood disorder called postpartum psychosis also may develop after childbirth.
Postpartum depression is not a character flaw or a weakness. Sometimes it's simply a complication of giving birth. If you have postpartum depression, prompt treatment can help you manage your symptoms and help you bond with your baby.
Source: Mayo Clinic
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS):
Unfortunately, there are times when healthy babies die suddenly without a known cause. In most cases, the death is caused by Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) which is also known as cot death or crib death.
SIDS is when a baby who’s younger than 1 year old dies suddenly (usually during sleep), and after an investigation, no cause can be found. SIDS can happen suddenly to a healthy baby.
Source: West Cape Government
SONGS
The First (Original Song)
Deon Kipping — By Myself
Waje — No Be You
Tiwa Savage ft. Wizkid — Ma Lo
Peter Collins — What A Friend We Have In Jesus
Eric Roberson ft. Anthony Hamilton, Raheem DeVaughn & Kevin Ross — Lessons (Remix)
BIBLE SCRIPTURES
Key for Bible Versions
NLT: New Living Translation
NIV: New International Version
TPT: The Passion Translation
The Wedding Guest
Proverbs 7:26-27 (NLT): “For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims. Her house is the road to the grave. Her bedroom is the den of death.”
Proverbs 31:2-7 (NLT): “O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows, do not waste your strength on women, on those who ruin kings. It is not for kings, O Lemuel, to guzzle wine. Rulers should not crave alcohol. For if they drink, they may forget the law and not give justice to the oppressed. Alcohol is for the dying, and wine for those in bitter distress. Let them drink to forget their poverty and remember their troubles no more.”
John 5:14 (NLT): “But afterward Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, ‘Now you are well; so stop sinning, or something even worse may happen to you.’”
John 8:10-11 (NLT): “Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, ‘Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?’ ‘No, Lord,’ she said. And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I. Go and sin no more.’”
Hosea 3:5 (NLT): “But afterward the people will return and devote themselves to the Lord their God and to David’s descendant, their king. In the last days, they will tremble in awe of the Lord and of his goodness.”
Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV): “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NLT): A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.
Ephesians 3:19 (NLT): “May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”
Sometimes, I Tie Gélé
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NLT): “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”
Psalm 63:1-5 (NLT): “A psalm of David, regarding a time when David was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy.”
Genesis 1:27 (NLT): “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female, he created them.”
Centre Stage
Proverbs 14:9 (NLT): “Fools make fun of guilt, but the godly acknowledge it and seek reconciliation.”
Colossians 1:17-18 (NLT): “He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything.”
Proverbs 14:29 (NLT): “People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness.”
Proverbs 3:31-32 (NLT): “Don’t envy violent people or copy their ways. Such wicked people are detestable to the Lord, but he offers his friendship to the godly.”
1 Samuel 16:7 (NLT): “But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Oru Mu
1 Samuel 1:4-7 (NIV): But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb. Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. Because the Lord had closed Hannah’s womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.
1 Samuel 1:8 (NIV): “Her husband Elkanah would say to her, ‘Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?’”
1 Samuel 1:9-11 (NIV): “Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s house.
In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, ‘Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life…’”
Matthew 26:36-39 (NLT): Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and he said, “Sit here while I go over there to pray.” He took Peter and Zebedee’s two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
Psalm 139:3-5 (TPT): “You are so intimately aware of me, Lord. You read my heart like an open book and you know all the words I’m about to speak before I even start a sentence! You know every step I will take before my journey even begins. You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness you follow behind me to spare me from the harm of my past. You have laid your hand on me!”
Psalm 42:4-6 (NLT): “My heart is breaking as I remember how it used to be: I walked among the crowds of worshipers, leading a great procession to the house of God, singing for joy and giving thanks amid the sound of a great celebration! Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and my God! Now I am deeply discouraged, but I will remember you— even from distant Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan, from the land of Mount Mizar.”
James 4:1-3 (NIV): “What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.”
Psalm 139:24 (TPT): “See if there is any path of pain I’m walking on, and lead me back to your glorious, everlasting way— the path that brings me back to you.”
James 4:10 (NLT): “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.”