(Warning, possibly trigger. Perinatal loss is discussed.)
Reborn baby dolls are amazing works of art that serve many different purposes. In addition to being collector items they also serve as therapy tools. Recently an Amarantine Baby made his way to Northside Hospital in Atlanta, to the H.E.A.R.T.strings Perinatal Bereavement & Palliative Care program for a special purpose. Reborn Max (sculpted by Cindy Musgrove and reborn by myself) is now used as an infant model for nurses to learn infant photography in a program that supports families who have suffered a loss.
Christina Marlo R.N. of the H.E.A.R.T.strings program, spoke with me about the program and why they decided to use reborn dolls. Ms. Marlo discovered reborns online and had the idea that they would be great as teaching tools within the program. Baby Max will be used in workshops designed to train nurses how to help families who have suffered infant loss. The H.E.A.R.T.strings program provides palliative care, which is care for families who are still pregnant but facing loss, as well as bereavement care for those who have already suffered a loss.
The H.E.A.R.T.strings program is the largest palliative care facility in the country, and helps train over 100 nurses, technicians, and primary care providers, in addition to serving the families needing support. There are 1 in 4 pregnancy losses, and many times people, including doctors and nurses, don’t know the best ways to support grieving families. This program helps train professionals to provide the best support to families who have suffered a loss. In addition nurses are trained in photography, how to care for babies who have passed, and how to create keepsakes for grieving families. The program also offers grief counseling over the phone for other facilities.
H.E.A.R.T.strings at Northside Hospital is a wonderful program. They are a blessing and a comfort to those in need, and they train others to provide the same level of caring that they provide. Using a reborn baby doll as a teaching tool will help their training program and will help to serve others. It is an honor to have an Amarantine Baby used in this program!
If you are in needs of infant loss support please check out their website here: www.northsidepnl.com .
If you wish to donate to the program you can do so here: www.northsidepnl.com/donate
I am super excited to announce that this November of 2018 I have officially graduated from the College of Reborn Artistry (CORA) and now have a Master Reborn Artist Degree! CORA is an online college that can be found here: http://reborningartists.proboards.com/ I completed 24 classes and fulfilled other requirements to earn my degree. Graduation was held at CORA Conference in Oklahoma this year and was an amazing experience! I learned so much from some very talented women! I was able to attend an in-person reborning class at conference in addition to Graduation.
Earning my Master Reborn degree is such an honor, I have learned so much and grown so much as an artist during my time as a CORA student. I have also worked very hard to earn my degree. In addition to taking 24 classes I earned my Standards Crest, which is awarded to those whose babies adhere to CORA’s highest standards. I competed in reborn contests and won the February 2018 monthly photo competition, 2nd Place in the 2017 Baby Pageant, and 1st Place in the 2018 Baby Pageant. My college Final was a baby that I painted and rooted and brought to CORA Conference in person.
It is strange to be done with something that has been such a big part of my life for an entire year. I will continue to be a part of the CORA community, and will strive to learn and grow with each reborn baby I create. I look forward to other exciting things upcoming in my Reborn Art career. This will include taking future reborn classes to further my education, as well as creating reborn babies completely from my own heart. I love this art form so much, each baby I create is such a joy! Graduation is only the beginning for Amarantine Babies!
(Originally I wrote this up and posted it on my Facebook. I thought it would be great to share it on my blog as well!)
I've been asked by a couple of different people what the point is of the Reborn baby art dolls are that I am making. I'm happy to answer that! I thought I'd do it in a post for everyone else who might be wondering to see:) They are collectors items for many people. Some grown men collect model trains, and some grown women collect model babies! Others make them to sell them.
Reborns are also used as therapy dolls for many different people. Because they are weighted to feel real, and painted to look real, they can create a comforting feeling when they are held. They are used for people with depression/anxiety, children who have suffered trauma, and adults who have suffered trauma. They are not comforting to everyone. Some who have suffered infant loss find them incredibly comforting, others find they make them feel even more pain. It's different for everyone.
Interestingly there was a scientific study done on patients in the beginning stages of Alzheimer's/Dememtia with Reborn dolls. Patients given these babies became attached to their 'babies' and displayed less negative behaviors than those without the dolls. Regular baby dolls did not create the same effect as the Reborn dolls in these patients.
To sum up there are many reasons for Reborn art dolls. There are people who treat them as if they were real children, and others who display them on a shelf. I personally feel that all reasons are valid, and I'm very excited to create these babies for others to love!