Infant and Pregnancy Loss Remembrance Day

October 15th is Infant and Pregnancy Loss Remembrance Day. I know many women including myself who have experienced the loss of a child, so I just wanted to post this to help raise awareness. This day was created for those who are suffering or may know someone who has suffered a miscarriage, an ectopic pregnancy, a still birth, or the loss of an infant.

I lost a child in April of 2008. It was an ectopic pregnancy and I never even got to hear the heartbeat, but the loss was devastating all the same. We had been trying for a year to get pregnant and with the help of clomid, we thought our dream of having a second child had come true. Sadly, two days after getting a positive HPT, were were told that I would lose the baby. It was such a sad time for me, and I really didn't have anyone to talk to. I turned to the Internet and realized that I was not alone in my grief.

The grief of losing a child is very real, whether or not you were able to hold your child on earth. Society has somewhat put this type of grief on the backburner and failed to recognize the loss of a pregnancy or an infant as a real loss. Some well meaning people, even women, will say things like "you can try again", or "just be thankful you weren't further along". While I am sure that the people that say these things mean no harm, their words are very hurtful.

So, today, please remember those who have lost a child. Their pain and loss is real, and their child's life, no matter how short, had weight.

You can check out www.october15th.com for more information.

I'll leave you with a bible verse:

Psalm 139:13-16
 13 For you created my inmost being;
       you knit me together in my mother's womb.
 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
       your works are wonderful,
       I know that full well.
 15 My frame was not hidden from you
       when I was made in the secret place.
       When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
 16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
       All the days ordained for me
       were written in your book
       before one of them came to be.