Wednesday 11 October 2017

Stacey: Baby Loss Awareness Week


This week is Baby Loss Awareness Week. 1 in every 4 women will be directly affected by the death of a baby during their lifetime. Baby loss does not discriminate, sadly, it can happen to anyone at any time. It is time to start talking about our children because they deserve to be remembered.

Almost 5 years ago my first daughter died and baby loss wasn’t something I knew much about, I didn’t know anyone who had lost a baby, or so I thought. Turns out so many women and men have lost children, babies and pregnancies but we just don’t talk about it. After my daughter died it was like an open floodgate of friends and family telling me they knew what I was going through because they had experienced something similar. They, of course, didn’t know what I was going through as each person’s loss and grief is unique to them but sometimes it is helpful to not be alone in grief. To simply feel less isolated and to break the silence surrounding the taboo of baby loss.

That is what this week is all about, breaking the deafening silence that masks the horror of losing a child, reducing the feelings of isolation and, most importantly, celebrating our babies lives however short they were.
This week there are many local and national events but one I would invite everyone to join in on is The Wave Of Light. On Sunday 15th at 7pm wherever you are in the world you light a candle which burns for an hour creating a global wave of light lasting 24 hours. Whether you have lost a baby or are simply supporting someone you know who has this is a beautiful way to break the silence and show the world that our babies have left their mark and will not be forgotten.

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