“I was completely inconsolable, bawling, unable to pull myself together. ‘I just don’t want to ever have to do this!’ She had lived, breathed, and been loved completely.”
‘Are you sitting down?’ I was carrying a little one incompatible with life. I’ve prayed like I’ve never prayed.’: Mom grieves loss of 2 newborns to rare chromosome condition
‘Why are there only four people?’ ‘I’m not in the picture, I’m in heaven.’ A part of me knew it was true, even then.’: Mom shares emotional grief journey after 14-year-old son killed in car crash
“He was everyone’s greatest cheerleader, and his teammates and coaches loved him for it. I had an overwhelming feeling to appreciate that exact moment in time. ‘The traffic is actually not too bad.’ That was the last moment I remember.”
‘Get off the toilet and deliver her!’ My boyfriend grabbed a shoelace and blanket. There was nothing they could do.’: Woman celebrates rainbow baby after loss, ‘She is everything to me’
“I woke up bleeding. I didn’t want to believe it was happening. ‘You need to prepare to deliver your daughter.’ I grabbed a towel and placed it down on the bed. I was only 22 weeks pregnant.”
‘We lost 12 babies. 7 years is a very long time. Most couples we know now have 2 or 3 kids.’: Couple advocate for other bereaved parents, ‘We continue to fight’
“I go from being fine one moment to full-blown labor.”
‘If you withdraw care now, it’ll be easier to say goodbye.’ That’s not how love works. The looks of pity deepened.’: Mom births baby with Hypoxic Encephalopathy, ‘We never gave up hope’
“I sped to the house and scooped up her purple lipped, shivering body, then dropped to the floor and set her on top of my chest. We had to be on our top game 24 hours a day because if we slacked, she’d die. Discussions of death were as common as, ‘Hey, I emptied the dishwasher.’”
‘You can do it. You’re Norah’s mom after all.’ Our future changed. The weight of the day was so heavy.’: Mom honors late daughter with nonprofit, ‘Where there’s grief, there’s hope’
“At night, the hospital halls became so quiet. We made beds out of chairs, cots, and window ledges. Hospital living and doctor offices became our new normal. But every moment was filled with love.”
‘His brother said, ‘I didn’t get to tell him goodbye today.’ All I could see were his little bare legs, dangling.’: Woman loses infant to SIDS, starts foundation in his honor, ‘Love pushes you to go on’
“She said, ‘It’s an emergency. It’s Knox.’ Looking to the back where he was, all I could see were those bare legs. I had no idea how much this decision would replay over in my head and haunt me.”
‘That doctor ended up saving me twice in that hospital — first with a life-saving surgery, then again with a simple business card.’: After ectopic pregnancy, woman credits doctor with helping her ‘mental recovery’
“She handed me the business card and said, ‘I feel like you may need this.’ I started to talk, but the words couldn’t find a way out. I wanted to tell her I was fine and give the card back. Yet I knew, somewhere in my soul, I would need that card.”
‘If something happens, I’ll never be the same. I can’t lose another baby.’ He coughed, and blood came out of his mouth. I started to scream.’: Woman loses rainbow baby to Alloimmune Liver Disease, ‘He made me a better mother’
“I finally got to hold him skin to skin. It took everything in me not to cry the entire time. He was perfect. He was everything. When I woke up, people were running everywhere; our doctor was giving orders. ‘His blood pressure is dropping.’ I wasn’t going to lose him, I couldn’t.”
‘It was a birth injury.’ I was furious. Because it was a home birth, he was denied care.’: Woman loses son after being refused care, ‘They let us down in our time of need’
“The doctor refused to come down and treat Sterling. The ER staff weren’t preparing for a newborn. It was horrific. I don’t know that I’ll ever forgive the doctor who denied my son as a patient. I knew we probably wouldn’t be bringing our son home.”
