She told them that the pain she felt was just too much to bear. They squeezed her arm and told her, "just hold on, you're nearly there." And sure enough the screams from her gave way to tiny cries, She grabbed her husband's hand and saw the pride fill up his eyes. I…
The Friendship Support Group
I sometimes wish I could package up the support that our friends have shown to us since November and hand it out to people experiencing grief - like a little 'hug in a bottle'. In the hours after we lost Evalyn and the hours before I gave birth to her, my mind went into major…
For The Love of a Pug
We have always wanted a dog. But we wanted to do it right. Me and Nick both worked full time and it wouldn't have been fair to introduce a dog into our family when we weren't around to care for it properly. In February 2016, I fell pregnant with Evalyn and that's when we formulated…
Grief . . . . My Enemy, My Friend
Grief, I'm slowly learning, is a process. I am sometimes a victim of my own projection. I often let my mind wander off too far into the distance, willing myself to reach a point in my life where everything hurts a little less. Then I slowly reel myself back to shore. I know that I…
Loss Through Little Eyes
As parents, our main aim is to protect our children. When they cry as newborns through those long nights, we go to them. When they scrape their knee and recoil at the sight of the red liquid on their skin, we're right there with a plaster. When they fall out with friends, we tell them it…
Dads . . . (you matter too)!
In the hours after my son's birth back in 2012, there are two things that I remember the most. The first was the shock I felt at becoming a new mother. I hadn't had the easiest labour. Ieuan was determined to stay inside of my tummy and had made us wait the whole 42 weeks…
Finding Hope In Rainbows
I never really used to notice rainbows. My son, Ieuan, was the one who'd get excited over the arch of colours that appeared in the sky. "Look, mum! LOOK!", he'd exclaim, his little face full of excitement, "Where do they come from?" "Well," I told him, "rainbows appear when it's sunny and rainy together. Rainbows…
“My Little Sister” (a poem)
I spent days after Evalyn's death looking through library bookshelves trying to find a story I could read to my four-year-old son so that he could understand a little better why his sister wasn't with us anymore. But I couldn't find a story that was right for him. Evalyn was stillborn. She was not ill.…
The “In-Between” Parent
On the day our daughter was stillborn, we were granted entry into a surreal new world of the "in-between parent". A place where you are allowed to experience everything the prospect of becoming a parent to a new baby brings; growing your child inside of you, attending scans, choosing names, announcing to friends and family,…
The Beginning of Grief
I remember the exact moment I realised she was gone. 4:02am. Tuesday 8th November. I'd had a slight niggle in my head when I'd fallen asleep that night. Had she moved much today? Yes, she had. I'd felt her. And besides, Evalyn sometimes had her quieter days and I'd kept track of her movements since…
After Evalyn 