Kyla Pratt Gets Candid On Having Feelings Dismissed By Care Providers During Second Pregnancy: ‘Standing Up For Myself’
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Kyla Pratt is one of the guests for the upcoming episode of Springhill’s Daytime Emmy Award-winning series Recipe for Change. The show brings together celebrities, chefs, activists and creators who gather around the dinner table for necessary conversations.
The episode “Revolutionizing Black Motherhood” sheds light on the healthcare experiences of Black women, their bodies and their children by welcoming advocates and industry leaders for a candid conversation about the transformation that needs to happen within the healthcare industry, a news release stated.
Tatyana Ali, co-hosted the discussion with chef Nyesha Arrington. Singer Melanie Fiona, entrepreneur Lizzy Mathis, licensed midwife and engagement director Kim Durdin, and Pratt joined the conversation. Together, they shared their experiences as Black women navigating the healthcare system.
Pratt, a mother to daughters Lyric Kirkpatrick, 13, and Liyah Kirkpatrick, 10, recounted her encounter with a dismissive care provider who disregarded her concerns during the birth of her second daughter.
“I remember for my second pregnancy, I went into labor early,” the One on One star said. “Being in the hospital, I told the nurse there I was having contractions’; she looked at the machine and said, ‘No, you weren’t,’ and I said, ‘Yes I am. I’ve done this before; go get my doctor.'”
She continued, “Luckily, standing up for myself in that moment, my daughter is here now. She went to get my doctor; my doctor said, ‘You’re 6-centimeters dilated, and we have to do an emergency C-section. But because I was so small, it wasn’t showing up on the machine. In that moment, I didn’t really recognize when people weren’t listening to me because I was young, because I am Black, because I am a woman.”
Pratt went on to say that the nurse dismissed her, but she emphasized that her child’s safety was more important. This experience highlights the ongoing challenges Black women encounter when seeking care from healthcare providers who are supposed to support and assist them.
Watch the episode below:
