Dear Readers,

I have to say that I was lucky to have never had a miscarriage.  But I sure know a lot of women who have.

If you didn’t already know, a rainbow baby is a baby that is born following either a miscarriage or a still birth.  I believe the word rainbow is used to describe the live birth as a bright colorful light at the end of a dark grief stricken tragedy. 

Today I am talking to the creator of the Facebook group, Rainbow Baby and Family Advice.  She also has another group, Rainbows And Angels Support Group.

Please welcome Lisa

Hello I’m Lisa and I lost my son last year at 5 months pregnant so I opened up a pregnancy loss support group to help other grieving families.  I created rainbow babies and family advice support group so that mums who are pregnant with their baby would have a group where they can share there stories in a safe friendly group. This should not be a taboo subject to talk about. Here we are able to talk about our angels and new pregnancy, also known as rainbow babies.

What inspired you to create this group?

I lost my son last year at five months pregnant, so I created a pregnancy loss support group to help other grieving families. On this page mothers and fathers and other family members can post about their experience to help each other. I wanted to give mothers who are struggling with loss and difficulty conceiving a safe, friendly group where they can share their stories.

What would you like the group to accomplish?

My goal is to spread awareness of pregnancy and infant loss to stop it from being taboo. All mothers and fathers should be able to talk about their angels and new pregnancies- our rainbows. 

I also have members who would like to tell their story…

Hello my name is Denise. My story is a little long but I hope it helps. in 2001 I was blessed with a beautiful baby girl. But when I was 5 months pregnant they took what they call a triple screen blood test and the results came back that my baby had Trisomy 18. the The doctors said she wouldn’t make it passed the delivery and said I should abort her..Well I changed doctors and said to myself that was not a option, God gave me her for a reason. She was a fighter and made it passed the delivery.  At 7 weeks old however, she went to sleep in peace. I then found out in 2002 I was pregnant again this time with a boy. The doctors confirmed I was a high risk pregnancy and at 5 months they took a blood test and results came back Trisomy 13 which was down syndrome. So I said OK well it is what it is and I will deal with what comes my way. A week later the nurse called and said the blood test was done to early and they had to repeat the test. Uggg my heart was sinking till they called with the results and the nurse said my baby was good, no abnormal blood. When my son was born it was very hard for me to hold him. The nurses had to put my arms around him because seeing him reminded me of the baby I lost.  To this day my son is as healthy as can be. He is My rainbow baby.

Hello I’m Lauren McDonnell. Riley was diagnosed with hypo plastic left heart syndrome when I was 20 weeks pregnant. We had numerous scans, conference calls, meetings etc on how and what happens next. We had 3 choices

-have a termination I was 7 months at this stage
-have him and go through the 2 stages of open heart surgery
-have him(if not stillborn) and let nature take its course.
We chose option 2.

When Riley was born his heart was severely malformed so we went down the comfort care route. We wanted as much time with him as possible. He passed away at 4 days old. I was pregnant within 4 months with my rainbow. He is now 11, and my 2nd rainbow, she is 5.

Hello I’m Mandy Holt. When I first lost my baby, at 6.5 weeks on January 16th, 2015, I had nowhere to turn. I wasn’t married and didn’t plan to get pregnant at all. Doctors told me I wouldn’t be able to easily. So I gave up the dream. Guess they were wrong. When I first discovered I was pregnant I was thrilled. Then that joy turned to sorrow. My boyfriend had walked out on me a few weeks before I found out, so I was alone. I buried the pain. Around my due date I finally shared with some trusted friends. Then, earlier this year, I found this group. I don’t even remember how, but I love how it helps me to talk with other women. If one of us is having a bad day or missing our angels, the others rally and check in on us. It’s been amazing to know I have a place online to go to and talk about my baby girl, and the emotions that come with being an angel mom. I can’t thank them enough for all their love and support.

Thank you Lisa, Denise, Lauren and Mandy for taking the time to share your stories. I am so very glad a group like this exists!

Click on the link to find this Facebook group – Rainbow Baby and Family Advice
Lisa’s other Facebook group – Rainbow and Angels Support Group

*This blog post is part of the Blogging From A-to-Z Challenge (April 2017).

*The Internet is a useful tool for creating online support groups. Please lend a helping hand by sharing this blog post in the hopes it reaches someone who may benefit from this group.

*If you are interested in sharing your Facebook group with my readers please email me at pluckingofmyheartstrings@gmail.com

Books About Infant Loss

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