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Two South shore women with a novel business idea to help mothers and expectant mothers have just celebrated a big grand opening in Farmingdale.
The Nesting Place at 2043 Wellwood Avenue is described as a one-stop place for Long Island women to find a community within motherhood.
“In 2016 alone, there were 29,000 births on Long Island, yet there has never been a dedicated space for mothers to seek support — until now,” said Laura Siddons of Islip, who teamed with Jacqueline Aiello of Lindenhurst on the project.
The concept is to align motherhood and overall wellness. The grand opening was held Saturday, Oct. 17.
The timing couldn’t be better, or the business more needed, given the coronavirus pandemic and its effects on women, The Nesting Place owners and staffers say.
“People are craving face-to-face interactions,” said Marissa Sherov, the center’s director of maternal mental health services. “Mothers that were isolated during their pregnancies and early post-partum period are no exception to that.”
“Before Covid-19, motherhood isolation was real,” she continued, “but now the demand is much stronger due to the need for connection among mothers. Now is the time for Long Island to have a dedicated motherhood wellness center outside of their traditional medical care.”
To assist in the very many mental and physical transitions motherhood brings, therapeutic services such as acupuncture, reiki, and massage are offered at the one-story office building, all taught by leading holistic practitioners.
There are also classes offering childbirth education, self-care workshops, and regular baby-and-me and toddler-and-me sessions.
The Nesting Place has already undertaken partnerships with Long Island-based wellness businesses such as The Mindful Journey and Calm Cookie Yoga.
These collaborations will “offer a holistic approach to childhood development and learning,” Siddons said.
the background
Building a strong community around motherhood wasn’t something farfetched for Aiello and Siddons, who is a birth doula and mother of three.
Aiello is an attorney and mother of two.
For Aiello, her mission is rooted in her experience with motherhood. She said she found it “difficult to balance the overwhelming amount of information online with the lack of in-person, real-time supportive resources for new mothers in the Long Island community.”
Speaking also on a personal level, Siddons said:
“It wasn’t until my twins that I experienced the common, yet intense struggles many moms feel welcoming one baby, like breastfeeding issues, guilt, sleep deprivation, and a lack of confidence as a mother.”
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if you go
The Nesting Place offers membership packages as well as one-on-one services.
Other services offered include fourth-trimester support groups, fitness, yoga classes, holistic health coaching and homeopathy, as well as lactation support services, nutrition counseling, and parenting workshops. Prenatal childbirth education classes, pediatric physical therapy, sleep coaching, and prenatal scans will also be available, along with mental health services.
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