In this blog, Rashida shares here experience of finding the right time to embark on another pregnancy....
When I share my story with someone who hasn't experienced the loss of a child, the most common response that I usually get is: I couldn't imagine!
“That’s true,” I say. “Neither could I.”
No one can imagine the loss of a child unless it happens to them and even then it is still hard to.
The second most common response that I get when I share my story and people see that I've had another child is: I don’t think I would have wanted to try again!
While I get why people who haven’t experienced loss would think that, to them I would simply say, you’re wrong.
The truth is, as scary as it is to even entertain the thought of trying again, after a loss there is nothing you want more than to try again.
Why? Because the moment that pregnancy test reads positive is when your life changes, not the birth. When the sperm meets the egg, being a parent literally becomes a part of your DNA. You begin to imagine what this child look like, whose personality traits they’ll have, and wonder how you will ever pick the perfect name for your tiny human. You will smile at babies in passing for no reason and unconsciously pat your belly in anticipation of one day soon being the parent holding the little one who is loved even by strangers.
Then in a moment it all changes, and the future you once dreamed about becomes the nightmare you can’t wake up from.
The thing you could never imagine happening to you just has.
And those thoughts of happiness that once occupied your mind becomes a heartache so deep that now seeing a baby in passing brings you to tears and for a while nothing is the same.
I didn't want to celebrate my birthday that year because for me it just wasn't how it was supposed to be. My previous plan for that day only included me celebrating by blowing out the candles on a small cake at home with my husband and my newborn baby.
Later that year, even a welcomed Vegas vacation that included an anticipated concert by Beyoncé who is my favorite artist of all-time was hard to enjoy because it didn't feel like we were meant to be there. If things had gone according to planned we wouldn't have been.
The thought of what “should” be consumed me, until one day a shift occurred and I begin thinking about what could be.
So when people tell me that they don’t think they would want to try again, I respond with a resounding yes! Yes, you would want to try again, not to replace what was but because of a desire to experience what you know is your destiny: Motherhood.
The next question I'm usually asked after that is, how did you know when to try again? And the answer is simple: You know you are ready when the day comes that your faith outweighs your fears. It’s the process of getting there through the pain and grief that’s the hard part.
“That’s true,” I say. “Neither could I.”
No one can imagine the loss of a child unless it happens to them and even then it is still hard to.
The second most common response that I get when I share my story and people see that I've had another child is: I don’t think I would have wanted to try again!
While I get why people who haven’t experienced loss would think that, to them I would simply say, you’re wrong.
The truth is, as scary as it is to even entertain the thought of trying again, after a loss there is nothing you want more than to try again.
Why? Because the moment that pregnancy test reads positive is when your life changes, not the birth. When the sperm meets the egg, being a parent literally becomes a part of your DNA. You begin to imagine what this child look like, whose personality traits they’ll have, and wonder how you will ever pick the perfect name for your tiny human. You will smile at babies in passing for no reason and unconsciously pat your belly in anticipation of one day soon being the parent holding the little one who is loved even by strangers.
Then in a moment it all changes, and the future you once dreamed about becomes the nightmare you can’t wake up from.
The thing you could never imagine happening to you just has.
And those thoughts of happiness that once occupied your mind becomes a heartache so deep that now seeing a baby in passing brings you to tears and for a while nothing is the same.
I didn't want to celebrate my birthday that year because for me it just wasn't how it was supposed to be. My previous plan for that day only included me celebrating by blowing out the candles on a small cake at home with my husband and my newborn baby.
Later that year, even a welcomed Vegas vacation that included an anticipated concert by Beyoncé who is my favorite artist of all-time was hard to enjoy because it didn't feel like we were meant to be there. If things had gone according to planned we wouldn't have been.
The thought of what “should” be consumed me, until one day a shift occurred and I begin thinking about what could be.
So when people tell me that they don’t think they would want to try again, I respond with a resounding yes! Yes, you would want to try again, not to replace what was but because of a desire to experience what you know is your destiny: Motherhood.
The next question I'm usually asked after that is, how did you know when to try again? And the answer is simple: You know you are ready when the day comes that your faith outweighs your fears. It’s the process of getting there through the pain and grief that’s the hard part.
Rashida McKenzie
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