This is a place for sharing. This is a place for families. This is a place inspired by a mother's love.
I had been in the hospital for a week after being diagnosed with severe preeclampsia and after an initial scare, it had been a rather uneventful stay. They were ready to send me home and have me visit the hospital daily for monitoring. I was on board with the plan. I felt fine and Dorothy…
Continue reading ➞ Dorothy’s Birth Story–A Story Of Preeclampsia, Stillbirth, And A Mother’s Love
What I'm about to say might scare you and to be honest, it should. If you are pregnant or plan to be pregnant, there is a chance that your baby could be stillborn. Why am I telling you this? Because no one told me. Not even when I was on bedrest and doing everything I…
Continue reading ➞ I Wish I Had Known That Stillbirth Was A Possibility
This is to the woman who wondered if a photo of a dead baby was necessary on a Facebook feed. Yes. That photo of a dead baby was necessary because that dead baby is MY dead baby. That dead baby--the one you "didn't have time to look away from"--she's my daughter. Her name is Dorothy…
Continue reading ➞ To The Woman Who Wondered If It Was Necessary To Share A Photo Of My Dead Baby
Chances are, even if you don't know who, you know someone whose life has been impacted a stillbirth. If you are aware of this, then you probably know how important it is to acknowledge and honor the baby who was lost. You may have heard the parents ask for you to say their baby's name…
Continue reading ➞ I Need You To Know That My Stillbirth Was Still A Birth
It was almost 9:00 at night when I was admitted to the hospital. An hour later and I had been visited by doctors from at least four different departments. There was the doctor from Maternal-Fetal Medicine who was there to give me the Cliff-Notes on preeclampsia and explain how shitty I was going to feel on…
Continue reading ➞ Enough With The Silence–We Need To Talk About Stillbirth
On February 22, 2016 our daughter, Dorothy Grace Helena Whalen was stillborn. This is a continuation of her story. When I transferred to the Intensive Care Unit, everything came with me--large plastic bags stuffed with clothing, haphazardly stacked books and magazines, a jumble of flower arrangements. All of this traveled on a large, noisy cart as I was rushed from labor…
Continue reading ➞ My Stillborn Baby Still Has A Birth Story