General Pregnancy Loss

A Piece of My Heart: Living Through the Grief of Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Infant Death – Molly Fumia 

The death of a child is one of life’s most devastating experiences. Since it is contrary to the expected order of nature, most people remain confused about how to deal with their complex feelings. In A Piece of My Heart, author Molly Fumia chronicles the death of her infant son and her eventual recovery from it. Readers will empathize with the emotional journey that begins in denial and guilt, moves through remembrance and reconciliation, and ends in resolution and healing.

After the Loss of Your Baby Couple Communication After a Baby Dies: Differing Perspectives – Sherokee Ilse and Tim Nelson

is a unique book that helps bereaved parents at the time of their loss and in the days and months ahead. It offers hope, encouragement, and promotes healthy communication between partners who have suffered the ultimate loss of a baby.

Such a loss can shake the very core of a relationship, changing parents forever. The long process of healing can be significantly enhanced if parents remember things such as: ‘Love and loss are a part of life, just as joy and sorrow are a part of the human experience. Don’t add to your pain by attempting to deny your loss…talk with each other, tell your partner what you are feeling and what you need. Don’t try to hide behind work or keeping busy or staying in bed.’ The authors also offer extensive advice on the importance of communication, some of which includes, ‘Communication is not only what you say, but how it is perceived by the person listening. Communication is also what you don’t say as you interact. Judging each other’s words and deeds by using your intuition or making guesses is dangerous. When you are in doubt, don’t assume, instead check it out – ask. Make communication a priority, even during difficult times. This could be the key to saving your marriage and strengthening your love for each other.’

After the Loss of Your Baby: For Teen Mothers – Connie Nykiel 

provides information and loving support to the teenage mother, but does not pull any punches when it comes to explaining what risks are involved in another teen pregnancy. The book encourages teens to grieve, physically and mentally heal, and to consider how future pregnancy should fit into their life.

An Empty Cradle A Full Heart – Christine O’Keefe Lafser

Having twice lost children to death, the author offers grieving parents the empathy and courage that can come only from one who has shared the experience. Each reflection in this beautifully designed 249 page book is juxtaposed with a quote from Scripture

Bittersweet…Hellogoodbye: A Resource in Planning Farewell Rituals When a Baby Dies – Jane M Lamb

But Still My Child – Loretta Miles Tollefson

But Still My Child is a set of poems from the heart of one grieving woman to another.Written over a period of thirty years, the poems in But Still My Child express the immediate pain as well as the lingering ache that miscarriage can bring. They do not provide easy answers. Instead, they acknowledge the pain while seeking to provide the comfort and companionship that only someone who has also experienced the loss of an unborn child can share.

Carry You with Me – Alanna Knobben

Carry you with me is a heartfelt story of a mother’s love, loss, healing and hope.   Whimsical illustrations are brought to life with deeply rooted words and symbols.  Together we remember the great loves we have lost and cherish all the ways we carry them with us forever. 

Coping with Holidays and Celebrations – Sherokee Ilse 

examines the difficulty one faces on holidays or at family gatherings after the loss of a child–it may be the anniversary of the baby’s birth and/or death, a family reunion, Mother’s/Father’s Day, or the normal family traditions of religious holidays. This booklet examines the feelings that one may have on these occasions and offers suggestions in dealing with relatives or friends who may force participation “for your own good.” It also contains dozens of positive and affirming suggestions for turning those difficult days toward inner reflection and even celebration of the baby.

Empty Arms – Sherokee Ilse

Empty Arms: Coping with miscarriage, stillbirth and infant death, one of the classics that began the movement to understand the grief that comes with infant death, it is still one of the best resources to help grieving parents. Author Sherokee Ilse covers the feelings, fears, fantasies and options that families face. It offers suggestions and support for the decision-making at the time of loss and in the days and months that follow.

Empty Arms – Hope and Support for those who have suffered a miscarriage, stillbirth or tubal pregnancy – Pam Vredevelt

Christian-based emotional support from the “Shocking News” through “Grief” and on to the “Challenge of a Postpartum Body” and “Eating for Health”. There is also a chapter “The Bible Offers Hope & Comfort.”

Empty Cradle Broken Heart – Deborah L. Davis

Empty Cradle, Broken Heart: Surviving the Death of Your Baby by Deborah L. Davis, Ph.D., convincingly relays the message “You are not alone and you can survive.” It is one of the best written, best organized and most comprehensive books on the grief suffered after the death of a child. The “Points To Remember” at the end of every chapter help you decide what to read the first time, or are a wonderful way of re-finding something later to reaffirm the healing process. Includes a comprehensive index.

For Better or Worse – Maribeth Wilder Doerr

For strengthening marriages after a child dies. Looks at gender grief, building your relationship after your child dies, how to help each other heal; includes a grief chat. “While it’s important to respect your spouse’s needs, it’s also wise to respect your own. You must take care of yourself both physically and emotionally. . .”

Forever Silent, Forever Changed: the Loss of a Baby in Miscarriage, Stillbirth, Early Infancy – A Mother’s Experience and Your Personal Journal – Kellie Davis 

Forever Silent, Forever Changed was written for Kellie’s son, Kyle, born still on November 10, 1998 and for families and friends of those who have experienced losses similar to hers. In this book, you will find Kellie’s journey through loss, grief and acceptance. Also, she has included pages the reader can use as a journal to help guide her on her own healing path. A must read for parents, family, friends and health care providers.

Grief Unseen: Healing Pregnancy Loss through the Arts  – Laura Seftel 

This book explains the different kinds of childbearing losses, such as failed fertility treatment, ectopic pregnancy, and stillbirth and explores their emotional impact on women and their partners, and the process of healing.

Grieving the Child I Never Knew – Kathe Wunnenberg

When the anticipation of your child’s birth turns into the grief of miscarriage, tubal pregnancy, stillbirth, or early infant death, no words on earth can ease your loss. But there is strength and encouragement in the wisdom of others who have been there and found that God’s comfort is real. Having experienced three miscarriages and the death of an infant son, Kathe Wunnenberg knows the deep anguish of losing a child. Grieving the Child I Never Knew was born from her personal journey through sorrow. It is a wise and tender companion for mothers whose hearts have been broken–mothers like you whose dreams have been shattered and who wonder how to go on. This devotional collection will help you grieve honestly and well. With seasoned insights and gentle questions, it invites you to present your hurts before God, and to receive over time the healing that He alone can–and will–provide. Each devotion includes: * Scripture passage and prayer * ‘Steps Toward Healing’ questions * Space for journaling Readings for holidays and special occasions also included

Healing Relationships with Miscarried, Aborted and Stillborn Babies – Sheila Fabricant, Matthew Linn, Dennis Linn, S.J

The loss of a child through miscarriage, abortion, or stillbirth is a deep hurt. Healing happens as parents share their grief with Jesus and experience how they can continue to give and receive love and forgiveness with their child in prayer through Jesus. 

Healing Together: For Couples Grieving the Death of Their Baby – Marcie Lister & Sandra Lovell

This compact book covers ideas for a memorial service to talking together. Information on how men and women grieve differently and how to strengthen your relationship after the loss of your baby.

Help, Comfort & Hope – Hannah Lothrop 

Help, Comfort & Hope after Losing Your Baby in Pregnancy or the First Year, is warmly written for those who have lost a child through miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, SIDS or termination of pregnancy. In the first part of the book, Hannah Lothrop offers practical coping suggestions for families and gently suggests what has helped other parents survive the crisis of losing a child. In the second part of the book, she provides specific information for caregivers — hospital staff, ministers, funeral directors, support group leaders — who work with grieving families. An extensive resource section helps identify additional sources of support.

Holding on to Faith – Audrey McDonald Careny. 

Audrey McDonald Careny lives in the town of Shepherdsville, KY. She is a licensed professional counselor who earned her master’s degree in mental health counseling from Indiana University Southeast. Upon building her dream of having children, she encountered an emotional turmoil she never expected to experience. Over a seven-year period, from 1998-2004, she and her husband experienced a total of five pregnancies. Of the five, they experienced the loss of two babies by miscarriage, the loss of one by a tubal pregnancy, and through faith, they gave birth to two precious babies. This is a story of her personal experience while trying to conceive. It is the sharing of a story while trying to fulfill the dream of motherhood. Holding On To Faith is a story for those who have experienced the loss of their unborn child. It is a journey that offers hope and faith for a future conception.

How to Expect What You’re Not Expecting – Jessica Hiemsta and Lisa Martin-Demoor

One size fits all does not apply to pregnancy and childbirth. Each one is different, unique, and comes with its share of pleasure and pain. But how does one prepare for an unexpected loss of a pregnancy or hoped-for baby? In How to Expect What You’re Not Expecting, writers share their true stories of miscarriage, stillbirth, infertility, and other, related losses. This literary anthology picks up where some pregnancy books end and offers diverse, honest, and moving essays that can prepare and guide women and their families for when the unforeseen happens.

How to Survive the loss of a Child: Filling the emptiness and Rebuilding Your Life– Catherine M. Sanders

It is only through experiencing grief that bereaved parents ultimately heal. Moving through the phases of grief, the bereaved person works toward restoration. Understanding these phases, knowing what to expect, and learning what they can do to help themselves give parents greater assurance and comfort. 

Dr. Sanders, a bereaved parent herself, offers grieving parents practical help and emotional support. This book also helps family members, friends, and caregivers relate to grieving parents and aids them, too, in understanding the process of healing through grief.

Invisible Mothers: When Love Doesn’t Die – Emily R. Long 

Invisible Mothers gives voice to the experience of love and loss for mothers whose babies have died during pregnancy or infancy. It chronicles the journey of mothers without any living children who must learn to continue living while grieving. Their arms are empty, but their hearts are filled with a love that does not die. Invisible Mothers shines a light into the unimaginable loss and sorrow as well as the courageous love of these amazing unseen mothers. For bereaved mothers, it brings comfort and compassion to let them know they are not alone in this journey. For family, friends, and professionals, it lights a pathway to gain a clearer understanding of how they can support and love the grieving mothers in their lives.

Life Without Baby : Surviving and Thriving when Motherhood Doesn’t Happen – Lisa Manterfield

“What if I never get to be a mother?”

When this doubt first takes hold, it can knock you completely off your feet. You feel cheated, frustrated, and no longer sure of your place in society, your family, or your circle of friends. Now…imagine you could spend time with someone who really understands how you feel, who lets you express all the things that once seemed whiny, self-indulgent, or just plain crazy, and who confides that she once felt that way too.

Life Without Baby founder, Lisa Manterfield, once stood where you are and not only survived, but thrived. Now she shares what she learned from her own experiences and from the women of the community she created. She’ll help you:

– Know when it’s time to cut your losses and let go of your dream
– Give yourself permission to grieve the loss that few others can truly understand
– Learn some emotional aikido moves to handle social challenges, such as baby showers, Mother’s Day, and the dreaded “Do you have kids?” question
– Rediscover your passion and find joy again, without enduring a complete life makeover
– Get pragmatic about aging without children and building a new kind of family

Based on her small-group workshops and popular ebook series, this book offers a combination of hard-won lessons, gentle queries, and real-world suggestions. Manterfield is a comforting and supportive companion who will guide you gently down your own path to making peace with being childfree-not-by-choice and thriving in a new happily ever after.

Loving Your Baby – Shari Morash 

A gentle and practical guide to parenting through miscarriage, stillbirth and infant death. Designed to help parents and professionals navigate the first moments surrounding a child’s death. 

Making Loving Memories– Mary Lou Eddy and Linda Raydo

Most young couples have never had to plan a funeral.  Suddenly, at a time when thinking clearly is so difficult, you are faced with decisions you never dreamed you would ever have to make. You face pressures that no parent should ever have to face. Although you may feel it would be easier to let someone else take over and make decisions for you, planning a service and caring for your baby right now can be one of the most important things you ever do. It is an opportunity to do something special and meaningful for your baby, a unique and touching chance to serve as a special parent.

Mommy Please Don’t Cry, There Are No Tears in Heaven – Linda DeYmaz

is a book of love and comfort for mothers who have experienced the deep sorrow of losing a child. Each page is like opening a gift…bright, beautiful, joyful illustrations and gentle, poignant words describe heaven from a child’s eyes. It is a message of hope and healing

Naming the Child: Hope-filled reflections on Miscarriage, Stillbirth and Infant Death – Jenny Schroedel

Hope and healing for those who suddenly find themselves in the most terrible sort of grief 

For those who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth, or the death of a child within the first year, this gentle resource offers:

stories of hope and wisdom; 

practical advice and guidance, based on the experience of many; 

comfort and ways to honor and remember. 

Naming the Child creates a community of love and support for bereaving parents and siblings, written with a light touch and sensitive spirit.

Navigating the Unknown: An Immediate Guide When Experiencing the Loss of Your Baby – Amie Lands 

“How does a grieving parent survive when their beloved baby has died? Bereaved families often find themselves navigating an unknown world of grief after experiencing stillbirth or infant loss. When faced with this unimaginable situation, this is the book that families need immediately to help guide them through their loss.”

Navigating the Unknown, An Immediate Guide When Experiencing the Loss Of Your Baby is a handbook for bereaved parents, those who love them, and the medical staff who care for them. This book has been written to serve and guide families when they receive a life-limiting diagnosis and in the days immediately following the loss of their precious baby. It is a book that all parents hope they will never have to read, created to support those who have been thrust into a world in which their baby will never come home.

This book encompasses everything that you need to know about navigating the unfamiliar journey of grief. It covers all the unexpected decisions that need to be made when a parent faces such devastating news, and follows through the first year and after, including:

*informing others

*experiencing grief

*taking care of oneself

*asking for help

*how to re-enter into the world

*having “grocery store conversations”

*holidays, birthdays, anniversaries 

*how to memorialize, honor and celebrate your precious baby

Whether the loss is recent, beyond the first year, or you are simply the loved one of a grieving parent, Navigating the Unknown will gently walk with you through this devastating experience.

Newborn Death: for parents experiencing the death of a very small infant – Joy and Marvin Johnson with Chaplains James Cunningham and Sarah Ewing and RN’s Dale Hatcher and Carol Dannen

This book is for you if you’ve experienced a miscarriage, a stillbirth or had a baby who died shortly after birth. It’s hard to say “death” when you’ve scarily had time to say “birth”.

She Was Born She Died– Marion Cohen

A book of tremendously powerful by well-known poet, Marion Cohen. Expresses grief, anguish and anger extremely well.

Single Parent Grief -Sherokee Ilse

Whether a teen or more mature parent, the pain and anguish of having a child die is overwhelming. The experience of grieving can be complicated and lonely for single parents who have no partner to be there for them. Single Parent Grief is a gentle and empowering guide that reaches out to parents who may need extra care and support in their bereavement. Practical suggestions and information offer hope and help. A good resource section is included. Author Sherokee Ilse shares her insights after working for many years as a bereavement speaker and trainer.

Something Happened – Cathy Blanford 

Something Happened is a book for children whose parents have experienced pregnancy loss. The author uses a direct, yet easily understood, approach to infant death. One of the things that makes the book unique is the small box on each spread that contains helpful information for parents–ranging from explanations of what a child might be thinking to explaining why particular illustrations or words were chosen to explain the topic being addressed

Surviving the Loss of a Child: Support for Grieving Parents– Elizabeth B Brown

Nothing can steal peace and joy and undermine the very foundation of someone’s life like losing a child. It is devastating on a level that most of us can’t imagine. Written after the loss of the author’s own child, Surviving the Loss of a Child offers encouragement and hope to those who may think they will never be able to live fully after such tragedy. Bereaved parents, as well as friends, counselors, pastors, and caregivers, will find this book a source of comfort and discover coping mechanisms as they move through their grief. Revised and updated, it has short chapters that are easy to take in, perfect for people going through this difficult time.

The Invisible Pregnancy: Give Birth to Healing – Heidi Faith

So much more occurs during the experience known as “pregnancy loss”. So much feels stripped away, physically and spiritually leaving a mother feeling barren and raw. The Invisible Pregnancy challenges the way we care for mothers, the way we validate mothers and serves to explore the possibility that through pregnancy and infant loss, a grief pregnancy is gestated. It is when we identify this grief pregnancy, this invisible pregnancy, that we learn to nurture and discipline the space we are left with, and we begin to labor toward finding our healing. Complete with journal space, The Invisible Pregnancy is a thoughtful gift to present to any mother who has ever experienced pregnancy and infant loss. The invisible pregnancy in your life is an undeserved gift. It is an invokation to explore the physical and the spiritual potential in grief. In the book The Invisible Pregnancy, Heidi shares the most intimate aspects of her sacred space while pregnant with grief, and dares you to explore the tools around you to help you cultivate the richest, most abundant garden of your soul. With a forward by Toni from One World Birth, this is the book every midwife, doula, nurse and obstetrician should have available to guide mothers who are led from being pregnant with child, to becoming pregnant with grief.

This Little While – Joy and Dr S M Johnson

Full of information beginning with hearing the bad news, This Little Whileis full of information parents want and need to know. Includes lots of gentle suggestions on things that should be considered for remembrances and encouragement to not miss opportunities that cannot be replaced later.

Threads of Hope, Pieces of Joy – Teale Fackler and Gwen Kik

This pregnancy loss Bible study entitled, Threads of Hope, Pieces of Joy, ministers to individuals and small groups who have experienced a loss through miscarriage, stillbirth or any form of early infant death. Some of the questions discussed during the 9-week study include: “where do I go from here?” “where is my child now?” “can I ever understand why?” and “how can God help me deal with losing my baby?” A wonderful resource for those seeking strength and comfort through a better understanding of Biblical readings. 

To Linger on Hot Coals: Collected Poetic Works from Grieving Women Writers – Stephanie Page Cole, Catherine Bayly, Dr Joanne Cacciatore 

“The poems in to linger on hot coals are like the babies who inspired them: small but profoundly significant, and imprinting those they touch with both delicious sweetness and heartbreaking pain. They will speak to those whose grief is new as well as to those whose losses have receded in time but not in memory, as well as to counselors, medical professionals, and allies of bereaved families. A breathtakingly beautiful collection.” – Janel Atlas, Editor They Were Still Born: Personal Stories about Stillbirth “Most of the time, we consider grief ugly, and most of the time it is. But, sometimes you find something that moves that kind of loss beyond horror to something clear and pristinely honest – beautiful … Stephanie Paige Cole and Catherine Bayly have collected a deeply beautiful gift of poetry in to linger on hot coals.” – Melissa Miles McCarter, Editor Joy, Interrupted: An Anthology of Motherhood and Loss “to linger on hot coals is a collection of beautiful, personal poetry by women who lay bare their experiences of loss and love, reminding me again that what is the most personal is the most universal. These works will linger in your mind, break your heart, and touch your soul.” – Sean Hanish, Writer/Director/Producer “Return To Zero”

Unspeakable Losses: Healing from Miscarriage, Abortion and Other Pregnancy Losses – Kim Kluger-Bell

This comforting and healing book is a must–not only for women who have at one time experienced pregnancy loss but also for their parents, sisters, daughters, brothers, and friends. Kim Kluger-Bell’s extensive fieldwork as a therapist specializing in the psychodynamics of reproductive crises strips away the shrouds of silence surrounding pregnancy losses and abortions, giving new voice to these “unspeakable losses.”

Filled with in-depth stories of those who have experienced losses and solid, practical advice with mourning rituals and services, Unspeakable Losses is a necessary companion to all those who have experienced pregnancy loss and those who care about them.

This soothing book is a must–not simply for women who have experienced pregnancy loss, but also for their partners and those who care about them. Kim Kluger-Bell, a therapist specializing in the psychodynamics of losing a child before birth–whether to abortion, miscarriage, or other loss–strips away the shrouds of silence surrounding this unique pain. She gives new voice to these “unspeakable losses,” in a culture that has rendered its discussion taboo.

Walking the Labyrinth of My Heart : A Journey of Pregnancy, Grief and New born Death – Dianna Vagianos Armentrout

Walking the Labyrinth of My Heart: A Journey of Pregnancy, Grief and Infant Death breaks the lonely, silent suffering of bereaved mothers facing infant and pregnancy loss. Dianna Vagianos Armentrout details her pregnancy journey with her daughter, Mary Rose, who died an hour after birth of trisomy 18, a random genetic illness described as “incompatible with life.” For five long months of pregnancy, she knew that her baby would not live and thrive, planning a funeral and seeking hospice for her unborn daughter. The heaviness of this grief, which most women bear alone, is shared here and will comfort mothers who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth and infant death. Through journal entries, essays and poetry, Dianna invites the reader to process grief and honor the life of the child, no matter how brief. In addition, readers will learn how to support the bereaved by remembering the baby and pregnancy. With eloquent language, fierce honesty and a record of the rawness of grief, readers in the midst of their own suffering will recognize the path that bereaved parents walk. Dianna’s experiences with infertility, motherhood, infant loss and miscarriage infuse her writing with compassion for all women. Finally there is a book to honor the pregnancy, baby and loss, loving the children past their death, loving the wombs that nurtured them and accepting the sacred path of mothering children whose bodies are broken, but whose souls are intact and perfectly whole. This book shines with love and the knowledge that even the briefest life is holy. Read it. Share it. Spread the word. We no longer have to grieve our infants and pregnancies alone.

When a Baby Dies – Nancy Kohner, Alix Henley

Every year in the UK over 10,000 babies die before birth or shortly afterwards. For the parents, the grief is hard to bear. In this book, parents who have lost a baby tell their stories. They speak about what happened, how they felt, how they have been helped by others and how they helped themselves.

Using letters from and interviews with many bereaved parents, Nancy Kohner and Alix Henley have written a book which offers understanding of what it means to lose a baby and the grief that follows. When a Baby Dies also contains valuable information about why a baby dies, hospital practices, the process of grieving, sources of support, and the care parents need in future pregnancies.

When a Baby Dies – A Handbook for Healing and Helping – Rana K. Limbo & Sara Rich Wheeler

Helping families heal, and health professionals provide support, is what When A Baby Dies: A Handbook For Healing and Helping, is all about. The stories of families who experienced losses and the professionals who assisted them, help parents understand that others share their 365 thoughts and feelings. Authors Rana K. Limbo and Sara Rich Wheeler introduce each chapter by warmly conveying a story from the perspective of those involved, followed by clinical information the caregiver will need to effectively respond to the situation. The comprehensive, yet succinct checklists for one-to-one helpers, physicians, funeral directors and clergy are an added bonus.

When Hello Means Goodbye: A Guide For Parents Whose Child Dies Before Birth, At Birth Or Shortly After Birth – Pat Schwiebert, RN, Paul Kirk, MD

This combines comforting poetry and practical advice to create a sensitive guide for grieving parents. The books speaks to issues ranging from emotions and keepsakes to funeral home and financial considerations.

When Love and Sorrow Embrace – Beth Forbus 

You can’t see. You can’t hear. You can’t breathe. You can’t feel anything but sorrow. You can’t imagine how you’ll ever survive the loss of your baby. If you have suffered the loss of a baby to miscarriage or stillbirth, this book is written for you. The sorrow of such a loss can be debilitating. The sweet strains of a lullaby plunge into a funeral dirge, and then the music of a lifetime is over. Dancing has turned to mourning. Many let their hope, their marriage, or even their faith die along with their baby. With God’s grace, you will survive this great sorrow. You will live again. You will laugh again. You will sing again. And whatever the song God has chosen for you, you will dance again. In this, her second book, Beth Forbus addresses sensitive issues surrounding miscarriage, offering Biblical truths, hope, and encouragement in When Love & Sorrow Embrace: The Sufficiency of God’s Grace Through the Heartache of Miscarriage. Appropriate for anyone touched by miscarriage, including clergy and support groups

When Your Baby Dies – Louis Gamino and Ann Taylor Cooney

The loss of a baby is one of the most acute losses a person can experience. This helpful book addresses both miscarriage and stillbirth and the grief implications of each. They offer comfort to mothers, fathers, and families who must find ways to recognize their bond with the child who died and then move forward with their lives.

You Are Not Alone: Love Letters From Loss Mom to Loss Mom –  Emily R Long 

This book is a simple book of love written for you, a grieving loss mom, from other loss moms who have also heard those life-altering, soul-shattering words, “I’m sorry there is no heartbeat” or “I’m sorry, your baby is gone.” In the pages of this book, we share letters of love from our hearts to yours with the hope that, maybe, in the darkest, loneliest hours of grief, you will find a little bit of comfort in the words of another mother who has been where you are now. Our deepest desire is for you to know that you are not alone. We are with you. Although we desperately wish we didn’t have a reason to, we lovingly welcome you to our community of sister-mothers of loss. Let us wrap you in love and be a light in the darkness of grief.