Your Questions...His Word (and a Giveaway!)

Today will be the first of a series of posts that will address some of the poignant questions/topics you have posed with regard to your loss experience. These questions were submitted anonymously at our July "Hope Meeting" as well as through the blog. Please feel free to keep the questions coming and to join in on the discussion via the "comments" section below.

**Here is where the giveaway comes into play!***

Each time you comment on the blog posts during this series, your name will be entered into a drawing for a special "Mommy Shower" basket of goodies! Included will be a Starbucks gift card, a copy of Becky Avella's new book on pregnancy loss titled "And Then You Were Gone: Restoring a Broken Heart After Pregnancy Loss", chocolate for sure, and probably some other fun things! So...read on "mommies" and comment away. This series will go for the next couple of weeks and a winner will be announced at the end of the series. Thus, there are many chances to enter your name into the drawing to win!

The first question/topic is: "How talking helps."

For many of us who have experienced loss, we often feel as if we are the only person in the world who has ever endured such a thing. In our society, pregnancy is so glamorized that we often fail to realize the prevalence of pregnancy and infant loss. In reality, approximately 2 million women in the United States alone experience pregnancy or infant loss each year. Despite these statistics, we grieve in silence, often feeling isolated and alone. Sometimes we may feel as though even our husbands/partners don't understand. Ladies, I am here to tell you that you are not alone.

What some of us have learned along the way is that talking about our loss helps. The Mommies with Hope groups are just one way of providing an outlet for women to be able to talk. We do our best to offer a safe place, guided by God's Word, for women to come together and share their story. In doing so, we are living out a command found in Galatians 6:2 where it says, "Carry each others burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." It is a blessing to have someone to "talk to." Sharing our story of our baby(ies) allows us to...

* Honor their brief, yet precious lives
* Relate to someone else who may be going through or has experienced something similar
* Create a network of support
* Find comfort from others who have "been there"

The last point leads me to a passage from 2 Corinthians, chapter 1, which serves as the foundation for the formation of this group.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."
(2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

While we may have felt at times like we are all alone in our grief, we can trust that God is there for us. Countless Scriptures remind us of His compassion and love. He understands fully our pain, as it was He who loved us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins (John 3:16). Because of the comfort we have received from God, we have been compelled to be a comfort to others. That is a part of sharing our story, don't you think? It's reciprocal...by talking about our loss, we not only feel comforted and validated in our experience, we are also comforting someone else by letting them know that they are not alone either. While none of us can know exactly how another feels, we sure have a pretty good idea. It is this shared experience of loss that creates a bond among us.

"And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort."
(2 Corinthians 1:7)

What do you all think? Have you had the chance to talk about it? How has talking about your loss helped you? Do you have any examples you'd like to share? Feel free to share your story in the comments below. We'd love to hear about your special baby(ies)!