How do I cope with the loss of an infant?
Infant death is one of the most devastating experiences any parent could face. Nothing can take away the pain or fill the infants place in your heart.
Parents often retain strong feelings of guilt and sometimes a sense of responsibility for what happened even though they've been told there was nothing they could have done to prevent the death.
Acknowledging your baby's death - as well as your lost hopes and dreams for the baby's future - is an important part of the grieving process. It's often comforting and therapeutic to share your grief and feelings with others who have had similar losses.
Whatever the circumstances of your baby's death, you will need to share your grief outside of yourself. Whether you were pregnant for a brief time or many months, delivered a stillborn baby or your baby lived for a longer time, you have every right to grieve.
The death of your baby may have come suddenly, without any warning. You have been given little, if any, preparation for this experience. You will grieve in your own special way.
Try not to adopt assumptions about how long your grief should last. Just try and take it one day at a time.