{"id":37487,"date":"2017-04-24T10:49:44","date_gmt":"2017-04-24T02:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/?p=37487"},"modified":"2017-04-25T22:05:06","modified_gmt":"2017-04-25T14:05:06","slug":"child-bereavement-help-and-support","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifestinymiracles.com\/2017\/04\/child-bereavement-help-and-support\/","title":{"rendered":"Offering Help and Support When A Child Dies…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dedicated to our friends who came and helped.<\/em>
\n You know who you were.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cNo parent should have to bury a child … No mother should have to bury a son. Mothers are not meant to bury sons. It is not in the natural order of things\u2026\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

– <\/em>Stephen Adly Guirgis, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018Need your help\u2026David\u2019
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

The text came quite abruptly in the night. My colleague had just received news that a close friend’s baby had died, and she was feeling clueless how to render support. Like many, my colleague had never experienced pregnancy complications, much less child-losses. But like many too, she knows of people who have. Among them us.<\/p>\n

This was not the first time we were approached to render help to those who have suffered child-losses. As a married couple, we have experienced multiple miscarriages, two stillbirths and one infant child death. These are \u2018accolades\u2019 we\u2019d rather not have but we believe in God\u2019s sovereignty<\/span> that this is the path He has chosen for us to walk. Now that we’ve made it to \u201cthe other side\u201d of child-loss, we want to reach back across the fence and grasp the hands of all those in the same plight \u2013 to steady them, comfort them and journey along them – until their own healing begins.<\/p>\n

You would think after a decade, surely it is easier to talk about our child-losses. It isn’t.<\/p>\n

Different But Deeply Intense:<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are many forms of child losses, from unborn miscarriages to stillbirths, neonatal deaths, early infant deaths and teenage suicides. However different they are, they carry the same intensity \u2013 that deep searing heart-gutting pain which takes a long time, if ever, to heal.<\/p>\n

The experience of losing a child is very different from that of losing an adult loved-one. When an adult passes-away, we have their memories to fall back on to remember them. Sometimes, surviving friends and family members summon comfort and strength to carry on the unfulfilled desires of the dearly departed.<\/p>\n

But to a parent, when a child dies, the future dies. A future which you and your spouse have envisioned, seeing your kid take his\/her first step\u2026utter his\/her first words\u2026sending the kid to his\/her first day of school\u2026This sense of loss is immeasurable and will surface in any corner: at playgrounds, birthday parties, at the beach, at the park, at the hospital, anywhere. In addition, the couple may be wrought with guilt and anger. \u2018Why me?\u2019 \u2018Why us?\u2019 \u2018Why, God? Why?\u2019 Hence, psychologists believe that losing a child is possibly the most difficult loss to accept and resolve.<\/p>\n

These intensely painful moments are often too complex for ordinary folks to fathom. Sometimes in their good intention to \u2018help\u2019 bereaved couples, they may come across as being insensitive or non-emphatic.<\/p>\n

Help\u2026from the Husband and More<\/strong><\/p>\n

The following perspective is mine – from a husband supporting my grieving wife, and as a couple who survived multiple child-losses.<\/p>\n

1. The Doctor<\/strong>: We were fortunate to have a very caring gynecologist \/obstetrician with excellent bedside manners. I know it may sound strange that I start with this point but if you suspect yours is a high-risk pregnancy that may complicate delivery, getting a good doctor who emphasizes really helps. Heaps.<\/p>\n

2. Focus on Your Wife<\/strong>: \u201cDavid, as expected, the baby did not survive. Now your wife needs you. Focus on her.\u2019 With these words, our gynae, Dr. Foong LC, greeted me solemnly as he stepped out of the O.T (Operating Theatre). His words set the tone for this young grieving Dad to be in control of his own emotions so that in turn, I can support my wife.<\/p>\n

Men are naturally wired to be problem-solvers but when confronted with a mixed bag of conflicting emotions \u2013 the precious baby is dead and the wife is fighting for her life\u2026 I find my mind darting back and forth. It helped that the doctor set the focus right for me in his firm, assuring voice. I channeled my attention to my wife while the good doctor tended to her medically. We were all focused on saving her from post-emergency C-section septicemia.<\/p>\n

As a friend: Offer your condolence (say something along the line of ‘I am so sorry for your loss….’) but yet give space for the bereaved couple. At the opportune time, you may want to ask if there\u2019s anything you can help (e.g. bring a change of clothes, order food delivery, babysit their pets or older kids etc.). The couple\u2019s emotions are raw and they may not be ready to face visitors or they simply want time alone to grieve for their baby so please don’t feel offended if they prefer not to meet. Instead try sending them a ”Thinking of You’ Care Package comprising of simple everyday items which might cheer them up – coffee, tea bags, flowers, ice-creams, music CDs, books etc.  Alternatively, you may offer to be the couple\u2019s point of contact to update their friends\/family so they can be spared from of replying the slew of text\/FB\/WhatsApp\/email messages.<\/p>\n

3. Beyond Words<\/strong>: No words. No, not even Bible verses will help at this point. They ring empty. In fact, I was thankful for friends and family members who were sensitive enough NOT to say, \u2018Everything will be OK.\u2019 Or spew some Bible verses to the same effect such as \u2018All things work for the good of those who love God\u2026\u201d.<\/p>\n

As a husband, I knew no amount of words can bring back my dead child but what I say and do, can make or break my fragile wife. I chose to be by her side as she wept. We embraced a lot. We held hands a lot. We were silent a lot but I made sure I was physically there with my wife in the hospital (slept on the hospital floor in sleeping bag nightly) and back home.<\/p>\n

As a friend: Be physically present but be silently supportive. If you should talk, be sensitive of the couple\u2019s feelings. What worked for me was that a friend or two came around and were just there. In fact, my ex-colleague, Aleric, came late in the middle of the night to the ward after news broke\u2026He himself was a father of two very young kids but he came. We sat there quietly. He bought me coffee\u2026we chatted sporadically but by and large, he just let me recount our struggles and verbalize my confusion. He let me talk. When it got a bit too late, I urged him to go home to his family. He offered to help me with aspects of work which I appreciated. Al\u2019s wife, Karen, came the next morning. She held my wife\u2019s hands by her bedside and allowed her to sob, for hours. Till today, we owe both of them that gratitude for validating our grief process and for being there at ground zero to share our loss.<\/p>\n

We also remember the relatives who took turns to deliver home cooked food and replenish fresh flowers in the ward while my wife was hospitalized on complete bed rest trying to save our twins. We remember kind Pastor Philip Heng and his family who visited us to pray for Ashley before she was taken away to the mortuary.<\/p>\n

Me and my wife, we remember.<\/p>\n

4. Stop the Speculating<\/strong>: This is NOT the time to speculate on what happened with the \u2018Whys\u2019, \u2018What-ifs\u2019 and \u2018If-onlys\u2019. Please. Not as a husband and definitely not as a friend.<\/p>\n

In such situations, the grieving couple (mostly the wife) would inadvertently blame themselves for the loss. Guilty thoughts would be darting aimlessly in their minds, affecting their well-being.<\/p>\n

For me, I focused on helping my wife navigate this confusing, depressing period\u2026holding her, embracing her and praying with her. There is no need to play the blame game or wish to turn back the time. It is futile and counter-productive.<\/p>\n

As a friend: The couple does not need any form of \u2018advice\u2019 on how to conceive again\u2026really. Leave it to the real experts \u2013 the doctors. At this crucial time, your presence and listening ear will suffice. Try not to trivialize the couple\u2019s loss by saying things like \u201cYou can always try again…\u201d or \u201cAt least you already have one child\u2026.\u201d or “Maybe it’s God’s will that you won’t have kids…”.  We know you mean well, but a loss is a loss. We just want you to acknowledge that our baby is dead and not make it seem less important or any less painful that it is.<\/p>\n

5. Necessary Evil<\/strong>: Amidst taming our frenzied minds and emotions, there are administrative formalities to see to when your child dies. Here are some admin tasks where the husband needs to be stoic enough to complete:<\/p>\n