Losing More Than Babies

Historically perinatal loss such as stillborn is rarely a topic of discussion. (Avelin, Erlandsson, Hildingsson, & Rådestad, 2011). Stillborn loss was not viewed as an problem, and was expected for mothers to forget about the baby, and have another one, while siblings were told to forget about the baby and not talk about the loss (Avelin et al., 2011). Perinatal loss responses can be vary widely as it covers variety of loss from pregnancy to birth within a few weeks, but most often it is an unexpected loss for many families who typically do not know what to do, what to expect and how to handle grief (O’leary & Warland, 2013). Furthermore, there is very little information on Stillbirth experiences especially about men who lose their child(Bonnette & Broom, 2012). Experiencing the loss of a child can be very difficult and often complicate grief which can affect parents social well being (Kersting & Wagner, 2012). In pregnancies that follows a loss such as perinatal loss, it has been found that parents experience high levels of psychological distress, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress. (O’leary & Warland, 2013; Kersting & Wagner, 2012)

This group is for addressing those issues, letting the women share their stories and experiences, find support through one another, create lasting friendships, and creating a positive difference in each woman’s life after “losing their child.” These women will hopefully take with them many positive lessons and self-reflection. The birth mothers will learn to overcome and share their own difficulties and issues of the following: healthy coping skills for dealing with the grief and loss of each birth mothers’ baby, their guilt and shame, identity issues within each birth mother, the effect adoption has on their present and future relationships, and gaining control once again on each birthmother’s lives and create a strong network of support and friendships. Each birthmother will find out more about themselves than they knew before the group, such as identifying each woman’s strengths, weaknesses, goals, and challenges that still need to be addressed. The major theme of the group will consist of resolving grief, making peace with this life decision each birth mother recently made, and find one selves identity again while incorporating another aspect of their identity as a birth parent. The population to be served in this group are women ages 15 to 35 and of the greater Kansas City area, who have gone through the adoption process and are trying to find support and treatment post placement experience are welcome to join this

Patients who are experiencing a life challenge or have experienced loss of any sort may it be loss of body image, body function, mental function, health, and loss of independence goes through a grieving process. Depending on the circumstances of the loss, grieving can takes weeks to years to overcome. They must first become aware of their loss. They must grasp the fact that their reality has changed, then they may become numb or tearful or even angry. Some may internalize it while other may express behavior uncharacteristic of themselves and their previous personalities. Having sympathy for their loss and encouraging them to start reconstructing their life can be

It’s understood that the shock of not knowing who you could have raised and loved is devastating, a reason why certain hospitals will give the parents an option to spend time with the deceased child in an attempt at offering closure. Additionally, for some people it's not only the loss of the child they are grieving for, but the hopes and dreams they had for it. This type of loss has similar shocking effects to those who have had a miscarriage. Both miscarriages and fetal deaths can affect the

Postpartum depression is the most common psychological complexity that occurs after childbirth (Bakhshizadeh, 2013). This form of depression has been reported to be as high as 20% (Asltoghiria, 2012). The mother will begin to experience postpartum depression between the birth of the infant and 6 to 8 weeks later (Bhati, 2015). Depending on the person, the typical length of postpartum depression ranges anywhere from two weeks to two years in length (Posmontier, 2010). It is thought that postpartum depression affects mothers of multiples at a greater incidence than mothers whom birth just one child, and the chance increases with the number of children in a multiple birth. Evidence shows that the older the mother’s age at the time of birth, shows there is no notable increase in the risk of being diagnosed with postpartum depression. Another factor that is thought to have an influence on the diagnosis of postpartum depression is income within the household. A study shows that as income goes down, the risk of having

A couple that experiences this trauma will be affected mentally too because it will be difficult for them to understand the reason why the baby died.

The Literature Review discussed in this chapter commences with a discussion on the prevalence of second trimester miscarriage, risk factors associated with second trimester miscarriage and hospital care during miscarriage. Next the theoretical approaches that have informed our thinking on grief and bereavement are discussed; such as the contemporary theories of grief and bereavement (Stroebe and Schut 1999; Worden, 2009) while also drawing on the earlier work of Freud (1925), Bowlby (1980) and Parkes (1972). The psychological aspects of pregnancy loss and fathers’ experiences of miscarriage and are then discussed. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the literature in relation to health care professionals’ experiences

Miscarriage is the most common complication of pregnancy in the United States, occurring in 15-20% of clinically-recognized pregnancies, or ~1,000,000 cases annually. - Despite its frequency, the majority of Americans believe that it is a rare complication occurring in 5% or fewer of all pregnancies. Miscarriage can be an unexpected and emotionally devastating diagnosis for patients and their partners with studies showing that some women may suffer from psychological morbidity for months after the miscarriage and even into subsequent pregnancies. Our recent study revealed that those who have suffered a miscarriage frequently feel guilty, isolated and alone. Additionally, there are widespread misperceptions as to the

Losing a child is one of the most severe losses, even worse than losing a parent. After the death of the child, parents then need to grieve. Some parents grieve a completely different way than each other. This can cause a lot of problems and stress in the family and sometimes the family is unable to resolve these problems. The loss of a fetus or an infant is very difficult. The loss of a fetus is a little different because they have not lived very long as a separate person, the person parents do not have much to absorb in of the child. They have to adapt back to their life and realize that their baby is never going to be with them again. Losing an infant puts a lot of stress on a family for years. When some mothers lose an infant, their

The importance of providing support for women who have a history of miscarriage has increased in the last decade, not only during the following months after the loss, if not in their subsequent pregnancies. Consequently, it is increasingly recognized that having previous miscarriage can be related with psychological and mental health disorders in their next pregnancies (Lok I.H, 2007; Hutti, Armstrong & Myers, 2011). Also, it is well-documented that women who have a history of miscarriage show higher levels of anxiety and depression in their subsequent pregnancies (Cote-Arsenault, 2014; Bergner A, 2008; Cote-Arsenault, 2007; Armstrong DS, 2004; Amstrong, 2002; Cote-arsenault & Dombeck, 2001; Geller, Klier, & Neugebauer, 2001; Gong X, 2013).

According to London et al. (2014), stillbirth is defined as the “death of a fetus or infant from the time of conception through the end of the newborn period 28 days after birth” (p. 481). In 2011, in the country of Taiwan, there were a total of 2,321 stillborn births and it was reported that 60% of the women who experienced this loss suffered from severe postpartum depression within 4 years (Tseng, Chen, & Wang, 2014, p. 219). Although it is known that the mothers of these infants suffer with traumatic stress, follow-ups after stillbirths are rare and there is no community support groups available. There is not much information available on the experience of Taiwanese women who experience a stillbirth nor is there information about the steps taken by these women to recover from their loss. Thus, this study seeks to understand the experiences of these Taiwanese women who have experienced the loss of an infant and how they cope within their society (Tseng et al., 2014, p. 219).

Women who miscarry have a higher chance of postpartum depression, even after giving birth to a healthy baby (Leis-Newman, 2012). Postpartum depression affects the mother’s diet, sleep, and activity. She can be malnourished, exhausted, and overly or less active than usual. The theory in practice would involve nurses offering services like therapy. With the theory in practice, it helps the emotional state of these mothers, thus achieving the health metaparadigm.

It is well established that the mother’s mental health status is tightly linked to the pregnancy outcomes and the postnatal period. Some studies (53,18 ,55) have has demonstrated that women with prenatal depressive disorders are more likely to have pregnancy complications such as low birth weight infants, and preterm delivery in comparison with women without such prenatal depressive disorders. Seng et al. (56) have shown that there is an association between PTSD and the adverse pregnancy outcomes (low birth weight and preterm birth) and that the effect is much more marked among women

The research was done with an aim of examining the sociodemographic factors and psychological stress that is related to pregnancy and depression, health risk behavior, psychiatric illness and pre-pregnancy medical and birth outcomes as the factors which affect a new mother. The research article finds that factors such as age, unemployment, and chronic illness that is associated with pregnancy were predictors of postpartum depression.

Furthermore, It is evident that the mother in Brooks’ poem is experiencing regret and guilt as a result of her decision to abort her pregnancies. These feelings are very real and directly associated with the feelings other women who have abortions experience. These emotional feelings are all generally comprised into one diagnosis entitled Post Abortion Stress Syndrome (PASS). This syndrome is not a disease or something that is significant to one’s health. Psychology today provides an important disclosure stating, “It is important to note that this is not a term that has been accepted by the American Psychiatric Association or the American Psychological Association”. It is simply a term used to describe the stresses that commonly affect women post-abortion. The process of choosing to follow through with an abortion, experiencing it and being left to live with the grief and pain, is certainly a form of a traumatic experience for some. After having an abortion women just want to forget. They strive to put this low point in their life behind them and continue on with life. This is easier said than done. At some point, however, memories resurface and the truth of this loss can no longer be denied. During these moments, the pain of post-abortion syndrome reveals itself in the hearts of millions of lives. The symptoms of post abortion syndrome will not necessarily appear at the same time, nor is likely that any woman will experience the entire list. Some may occur immediately