Dr. Kiarra King On The State Of Black Maternal Health And Her Love For Fashion – Essence

Black women like myself are in a unique position currently, especially given the countless medical advancements that are trending within the healthcare system. For many of us who are in their 30s, family planning feels like it’s right around the corner. There have been many moments when I’ve asked myself with the looming negative statistics regarding childbirth: when will be the ideal time to start the journey of motherhood. On some days, the only silver lining is watching the mothers I know personally thrive, like my mother and some of my peers. Here enters Dr. Kiarra King, a Chicago-based medical doctor (FACOG), mother, and media expert who has an innate sense of optimism, but also care, when it comes to Black women, other marginalized women and our bodies. Over a video call, King, who is also originally from Chicago broke down her lively background which consisted of studying athletic training at the University of Michigan in the School of Kinesiology.

Before heading to the University of Illinois Chicago for medical school, King, who eventually landed in obstetrics tells me she focused on athletes who played field hockey, soccer, crew, and field hockey. “Athletic training is essentially the study of sports movement and rehabilitation of sports injuries. And so we worked with a variety of sports teams,” she shared. “We did a lot [of] hands-on things that made me better prepared for medical school.”

A six-week rotation in obstetrics and orthapedic surgery while she was in medical school pushed her to the realization that the former was her calling. She expresses that she felt moved by being a part of some of some of the most joyous days in women’s lives. “That’s what hooked me,” she said. King says that no day was the same–and that’s what kept her energized for the years that followed graduation.

During the years when she was a practicing OB-GYN, she explains that she revelled in her ability to assist in enriching the lives of her patients. Not only was she educating them on steps they could take for themselves ahead of pregnancy, but she also instilled a level of confidence in them that she is proud of. According to King, some Black patients don’t feel comfortable asking questions while at the doctor’s office–through her work she aimed to dismantle this notion. Furthermore, she was instilling a safe space for her patients who often came to her with health dilemmas.

Alongside this calming and friendly approach which I pick up on over our hourlong call, she says her clothing choices while in-office also helped her express her innermost self. Beginning in junior high school and also in high school, she recalls getting dressed was of the utmost importance to her. She recalls her mother saying King was regularly in her closet rotating clothes to ensure she wasn’t wearing the same items constantly.

“I’ve always loved fashion. I think especially as I’ve grown and I’ve gotten older, I’ve always just loved style and fashion,” she shared. “I love prints, color, statement pieces. Give me a shoulder, give me an epaulet on the shoulder, give me a ruffle, give me a cinched waist,” she said.

King mentions during this part of our conversation that she is in love with the process behind putting pieces together. Taking formative memories to heart when she got dressed years ago; she still sticks to styling items differently each time she wears them. “I have fun taking pieces and mixing them, throwing on different types of jewelry.” She adds that her basement is being taken over by her clothing racks through laughter.

In Harvey, considered the south suburbs of Chicago where her last clinical in-office position was, she explains she saw predominantly Black patients. Aside from describing the experience as “amazing,” she expresses that she’d often wearing bold pink lipstick, head wraps, and other pieces that she felt like herself in. She says that she styles herself for comfort too. “I’ve always been very confident in how I style myself,” she adds.

At the moment, she is focusing on consulting for brands like Tampax and Secret. This line of work has allowed her to homeschool her daughter while working as a media expert. Her content on Instagram is filled with colorful outfits, partnerships with supplements brand Olly, and intentional moments with her family and friends. The digestible nature of her content is not to be remiss.

When tasked with detailing one important notion regarding maternal health and the overall health of Black women, Dr. King declares that optimizing one’s well-being should not start at pregnancy. She declares that a part of her clinical work was pouring into her patients and getting them to not feel as though they needed to know it all. “I feel like if people find a [doctor] that listens and understands, that is responsive, that’s going to go further than you reading a textbook for hours on end.”

“To be able to take care of women, have them trust you, have them seek your advice, have them ask you questions, have them confide in you, is a big deal to me,” she added when reflecting on her clinical work. 

Below ESSENCE catches up with Dr. Kiarra King MD, FACOG to discuss the state of maternal health, shares details on her personal style, and what she recommends for those who are getting ready to begin family planning.

ESSENCE: Do you feel that the work you previously were doing in-office was intentional?

Dr. Kiarra King: Yes. I definitely felt drawn to it. I felt, honestly in many respects I felt like it was a ministry. When I was in residency and even beyond when I was an attending, at several of my practices, it was so much more than just getting patients and shuffling them in and out of rooms. [As doctors] we are privy to such intimate moments and spaces, literally and figuratively, right? You are there when someone is giving birth to their child. You are there and unfortunately, we have been conditioned to believe that a lot of female body parts there’s shame and stigma.

I understand that everyone is in a different space in terms of how they feel about their bodies, how they feel about needing to have an exam in an area that they may feel [is] a little bit more sensitive, more vulnerable, and so we are privy to those spaces, and so that is no small feat. To be able to take care of women, have them trust you, have them seek your advice, have them ask you questions, have them confide in you, is a big deal to me. I don’t take that for granted at all. That can be a very challenging thing.

What was most enjoyable for you?

I enjoyed helping patients connect the dots. They weren’t just coming to me for an [OB-GYN] visit. I would say, “Listen, I know you’re here for your pap smear, but your blood pressure’s elevated. What are we doing? How are we exercising? What are you eating? All right, we need to get you to see a primary care doctor. Maybe this is just a fluke, maybe you’re a little bit nervous, but this needs to be addressed. You don’t have to have high blood pressure. If this is a true reading and not just a fluke, white coat hypertension or what have you. If you go and the next several times your blood pressure’s normal, but we still need to address it. We still need to make sure. Let’s look at this as a whole holistic things. What types of foods are we eating? Are you eating a lot of processed foods?”

I almost felt like I was a motivational speaker at times. But I know that the patients felt supported and I know they felt cared for, and at the end of the day that’s what matters. And to be honest, with many of my patients there, their health was the least of their concern. They were coming for a routine checkup, but it was some of the social concerns and issues that really needed to be addressed. Maybe they weren’t aware that they could see a therapist or could go and get this particular type of support. Being able to help bridge those gaps in certain instances was super important.

How important is style and self-expression to you on the daily?

Honestly, it’s just a part of who I am. I mean, right now I’m in super mom mode. So I actually had a dentist appointment earlier, then we went to the library. I homeschool with my daughter. I do like a zillion different things. So today was like, I’m in a striped shirt and some jeans. But let me tell you, I’ve always loved style and fashion since I was [in] junior high school. 

My mom used to laugh at me because I would never wear the same thing twice. Now I would wear the same thing, but I would never style the same thing the same way. So if it was like [a] jean, now don’t get me wrong, I would wear this again a couple weeks from now, but in high school I wouldn’t. 

In matters of style, what type of clothing do you feel most comfortable in on your day-to-day?

[When I was a practicing OB-GYN] I wore dresses or I wore slacks and tops. There was nothing against me wearing a head wrap. There was nothing against me wearing big, bold earrings. There was nothing against me wearing four-inch heels. I stayed within in the guidelines of our dress attire, but I just made it my own.

So I think I’ve definitely, just over the years with life experience, with work experience, I’ve just gotten more and more confident and very sure in who I am. And so it just allows me, when I’m talking to other young women, [to share], “Girl, you don’t have to do that. What are we doing? Let’s do this, do that.” It’s like it just allows us to move forward in a very empowering way. Whether it’s style, whether it’s just how we move through life, I feel like it kind of just flows one into the other.

We can’t be no fool, but being aware of the culture of your environment. Certainly if there are clearly outlined dress codes for your place of work, you might want to adhere to them to stay employed. But if it says it’s business casual and that you can wear slacks and a blazer, well, why not wear a bold printed blazer? You can still fit the requirements when it comes to style, but you can make it your own. I ain’t out here trying to get nobody fired, but certainly I always was very professionally dressed.

What would you recommend to Black women who would like to learn more about navigating healthy deliveries and family planning?

Ideally, if someone says, “Hey, my partner and I want to get pregnant within the next six months or the next three months or the next year,” then we want to say, “Okay.” We want to look at things like are your vaccinations up to date because there are several vaccines that you can’t get in pregnancy. So let’s say you are not immune to certain things, say like varicella, rubella, we can’t give you those vaccines in pregnancy. And if you’re not immune and you happen to be pregnant, we make note of them in your chart and we’ll recommend a vaccine later. But if you’re not pregnant yet, we can say, “Hey, you’re not immune to these things. We’d recommend you getting vaccinated for that.” 

Things like weight, we do know that there are higher risks for things like gestational diabetes, high blood pressure. We call them intrauterine fetal demise or stillbirth when people are overweight, and other risks as well. We want a healthy mom and we want a healthy baby. So how do we optimize your health overall?” 

I don’t ever want anyone to say, “I [have] to get in shape to get pregnant.” You want to be in shape, healthy, and make lifestyle adjustments. So you know what? Walk 30 minutes a day at least five days a week. Okay, what types of foods are we eating? If you know that you are eating fast food every single day, if you know that you are drinking three cans of pop every day, those are types of things that we want to modify and make adjustments to. 

What do you feel is most important that women pay attention to regarding maternal health?

Managing and optimizing any pre-existing medical conditions, [ensuring your] immunizations up to date, making lifestyle adjustments with regards to weight, diet, and then making adjustments to any kind of substance use. Those are probably the big ones that we can address preconceptually. With the initial intake visit, we’re addressing genetic concerns with both sides of the family. Does anyone have any issues that could be potentially passed on to the child? We’re screening for anything that we may need to do. If they have a family history of diabetes or any other risk factors, we may do an early screen for gestational diabetes.

The other thing I always try and caution against though is I don’t ever want patients to come into an office and feel like they have to know it all. I think the most important thing is aligning yourself with someone who you’ve established a good relationship with, who you trust, and who listens to you. 

I don’t want a patient worrying. I don’t want a patient up at night googling what they should do about this or if they should do this. I want them to be able to say, “Hey, I saw XYZ. Should I be doing that?” And then I can say, “Well, actually, I’m glad you mentioned it. You don’t need this because this is for somebody that has XYZ and is also pregnant, but you don’t have that, so you don’t need it.”