Moving On After Losing Your Baby

It is crucial to take time to deal with the trauma of having a miscarriage

- Bonolo Sekudu

THE loss of a pregnancy is devastating and may leave you feeling depressed and in irreparable pain. Dealing with the loss may be emotionally and physically draining. Experts Dr Sophie Mokoka from the Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria and life coach, Rudzani Mashige from Mason Consultancy, give tips to help you cope and move on after a miscarriage or delivering a stillborn.

PREGNACY LOSS

Dr Sophie says it doesn’t matter if the baby was planned or not, learning that you won’t be a mother anymore is very painful.

“A miscarriage is the natural death of a foetus before it is able to survive on its own, while a stillbirth is the birth of a baby who is born without any signs of life,” says Dr Sophie.

A miscarriage happens before 26 weeks of pregnancy and after that, it is considered a stillbirth.