The impact of any bereavement – each type with its own particular difficulties – is frequently misunderstood. For parents bereaved by the death of a baby during pregnancy or shortly after, few will understand the depth and extent of their loss.

Many parents, from very early on in the pregnancy (for some this occurs even before the pregnancy) plan their lives around the new baby. Clothes and furniture may have been bought, a room freshly painted, plans made for including the baby in their lives, kindergarten and schools chosen. Others are often unaware of the parents’ hopes and plans for their baby. When a pregnancy results in loss, parents mourn the loss of their hopes and dreams, the loss of the future with a baby.

Contact with other parents enables those with recent experiences to learn that the intensity and longevity of their grief is normal. Parents may also be reassured to see that eventually they will adjust to their baby’s death and may experience personal change, often for the better, after the death of their baby. This facilitation of natural grief reduces the possibility of long-term problems developing, which can arise when the expression of grief is denied.