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Challenge: Pregnancy and Infant Loss

Pregnancy after Loss

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I’m Pregnant!!! BUT I have had miscarriages so….

After the third time of actually hearing myself make this announcement out loud, I realized what I was doing. Not only was I protecting myself from completely attaching to this new little life inside of me but I didn’t want others to react too positively either. I don’t want them to get overly excited because of the what-if, righ

Levi and I struggled for years to conceive a baby. After a successful infertility treatment, I thought there is no possible way we could struggle so much to get here only for something to happen now that we are actually pregnant, right? I mean my mom had 4 babies with zero complications in her pregnancies. No one in my family had miscarriages, they just popped out kids all the time. We were on top of the world, totally felt like we had gotten through the hard part of actually getting pregnant. Now we were on to enjoying pregnancy and counting down the days until we got to meet our precious baby.

A couple of weeks later on my way to pick Levi up from work, I received a phone call from my doctor. My numbers (hormone levels) weren’t multiplying as they should and this wouldn’t be a viable pregnancy. As Levi opened the door to get in the car I couldn’t throw up the words fast enough. I literally saw the heartbreak in his eyes as he processed the news I just shared with him.

Since that first miscarriage, I have been blessed to deliver a perfectly healthy little boy. But (I know here comes the but again) I also had another miscarriage a year later. There is no sugar coating it, being pregnant after a miscarriage can be the most nerve-racking 40 weeks of your life. Just like after your first heartbreak in love, you have your guard up the next time around. The trust, naivety, and blind bliss just isn’t there anymore.

These days I find myself offering a lot of reassuring self-talk. Trying to ease my worried mind I convince myself I have a pattern: miscarriage, baby, miscarriage…so this time it is baby. Or “I made it to 18 weeks I have never been this far along without having a healthy baby so we totally have this in the bag.”

Yet every time, every freaking time, I use the restroom I’m petrified I am going to see blood.

As doctors’ appointments linger on the horizon I feel my stress level rise. The anticipation of the moment we will hear (or not) the heartbeat. I want to freeze time listening to the perfect rhythm knowing all is ok with the baby. I seem to be on a high for a couple of days after doctor appointments. Then as days pass inevitably the anxiety builds up counting down the time before the next appointment.

I know that each day of the next 21 weeks of this pregnancy will be a struggle. Constantly balancing my fears and excitement for what is to come. But I also know that as I look at my kiddos every day I can see perfect little creations. Miracles do happen. To anyone else that may find themselves in a similar situation, I wish you peace. Know that you are not alone, I totally get it. It’s hard.

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xoxox Kileigh

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