The loss of an unborn baby can be devastating. For the parents who were anticipating a healthy baby at the end of a nine month period, the shock and loss of the abrupt end of a pregnancy can lead to feelings of grief and bereavement.

When a miscarriage of stillbirth happens, it may seem quite natural to look for a reason why this happened. Could you have done anything to prevent it? When grief affects us, we try to understand what is going on, maybe blame someone else, when the pain is too much to bear.

A period of grieving is quite natural and healthy after a loss. Talking about your loss can be very helpful in expressing your emotions, unfortunately this is not always possible. For whatever reason, parents often feel that prolonged attention to a miscarriage is not welcome. It may in fact affect the relationship, when one of the partners does not feel supported by the other.

The grieving process is different for everyone, for some it may take longer than others. There is no set time to grieving, but if you feel after a period of time that this loss is affecting your life long term, then maybe you need to look for support.

There are many support groups for parents that have suffered a miscarriage. These may not only give you the support you may need, it may also encourage a social aspect to your life.

Counselling can be another way of understanding what the miscarriage has meant to you. Looking at understanding the grieving process, and looking at ways to move forward.