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Objectives: We aimed to explore the lived experiences and needs of women after a recent stillbirth event., Design: Qualitative phenomenological study., Setting: The current study was conducted in a tertiary obstetric hospital in East China between 25 January 2024 and 29 March 2024., Participants: 14 women having experienced a stillbirth within the last 6 months., Results: Researchers agreed on four key themes including individual variations in emotional reaction and recovery, physical recovery and concerns about future pregnancies, the critical role of social support systems and variations in perceptions of stillbirth as the death of a fetus versus a human being, along with related mourning rituals. These themes collectively highlight the multifaceted nature of the stillbirth experience, underscoring the complex interplay between personal, cultural and medical factors that shape women's emotional and physical responses., Conclusions: Post-stillbirth experiences among Chinese women are deeply individualised and influenced by a complex interplay of personal emotions, cultural contexts and medical interactions. It is imperative for healthcare systems to implement tailored care strategies beyond standard protocols to proactively address their varied emotional landscapes and physical concerns with an enhanced awareness of cultural sensitivities. Specialised training for healthcare providers should be devised to recognise and respond to the unique grief processes. Comprehensive support systems should be established to significantly enhance the recovery journey by providing essential resources and community connections., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Previous research indicates disparities in the care of bereaved parents and siblings following a stillbirth in the family. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the effects of interventions aimed at reducing psychological distress among parents or siblings in high-income countries after experiencing a stillbirth., Methods: The databases CINAHL, Medline, PsycInfo, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE were searched in August 2022., Results: Four intervention studies from the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), Finland, and Australia, met the inclusion criteria. The interventions comprised a perinatal grief support team; a perinatal counselling service; a grief support program; and a support package including contacts with peer supporters and health care staff. No studies of interventions for siblings were found. The results could not be synthesised due to disparities in interventions and outcome measures. The risk of bias was assessed as high in all four studies and the certainty for all outcomes was rated as very low., Conclusion: More controlled trials with rigorous methods are needed to evaluate the effect of bereavement support interventions in parents and siblings after stillbirth. Future studies should include a core outcome set to make them more comparable. Most of the studies in this review were assessed to have an overall high risk of bias, mainly due to problems with missing outcome data; thus, future studies could specifically target this problem., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest None declared, (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

In this study, we describe continuing bonds and grief reactions and assess their association in 980 parents bereaved in pregnancy, at or shortly after birth. We found that most parents experienced continuing bonds. However, they differed by type of loss. Parents losing their child due to termination of pregnancy or miscarriage experienced bonds less frequently and had the least intense grief reaction. Parents losing their child postpartum experienced bonds most frequently and had the most intense grief reaction. Continuing bonds were associated with intensified grief in parents losing their child after termination or miscarriage, while this relationship was less obvious after stillbirth or postpartum death.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented risk to the global population. Maternity care in the UK was subject to many iterations of guidance on how best to reconfigure services to keep women, their families and babies, and healthcare professionals safe. Parents who experience a pregnancy loss or perinatal death require particular care and support. PUDDLES is an international collaboration investigating the experiences of recently bereaved parents who suffered a late miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal death during the global COVID-19 pandemic, in seven countries. In this study, we aim to present early findings from qualitative work undertaken with recently bereaved parents in the United Kingdom about how access to healthcare and support services was negotiated during the pandemic., Methods: In-depth semi-structured interviews were undertaken with parents (N = 24) who had suffered a late miscarriage (n = 5; all mothers), stillbirth (n = 16; 13 mothers, 1 father, 1 joint interview involving both parents), or neonatal death (n = 3; all mothers). Data were analysed using a template analysis with the aim of investigating bereaved parents' access to services, care, and networks of support, during the pandemic after their bereavement., Results: All parents had experience of utilising reconfigured maternity and/or neonatal, and bereavement care services during the pandemic. The themes utilised in the template analysis were: 1) The Shock & Confusion Associated with Necessary Restrictions to Daily Life; 2) Fragmented Care and Far Away Families; 3) Keeping Safe by Staying Away; and 4) Impersonal Care and Support Through a Screen. Results suggest access to maternity, neonatal, and bereavement care services were all significantly reduced, and parents' experiences were notably affected by service reconfigurations., Conclusions: Our findings, whilst preliminary, are important to document now, to help inform care and service provision as the pandemic continues and to provide learning for ongoing and future health system shocks. We draw conclusions on how to enable development of safe and appropriate services during this pandemic and any future health crises, to best support parents who experience a pregnancy loss or whose babies die., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Background: India has the highest number of stillbirths and the highest neonatal death rate in the world. In the context of its pronatalist society, women who experience perinatal loss often encounter significant social repercussions on top of grief. Furthermore, even when pregnancy outcomes were favorable, adverse life circumstances put some women at risk for postnatal depression. Therefore, perinatal loss and postnatal depression take a heavy toll on women's mental health. The purpose of this study is to assess mental health among a sample of Mumbai slum-dwelling women with a history of recent childbirth, stillbirth, or infant death, who are at risk for perinatal grief, postnatal depression, or mental health sequelae., Methods: We conducted a mixed method, cross-sectional study. A focus group discussion informed the development of a comprehensive survey using mainly internationally validated scales. After rigorous forward and back-translation, surveys were administered as face-to-face structured interviews due to low literacy and research naiveté among our respondents. Interviews were conducted by culturally, linguistically, gender-matched, trained research assistants., Results: Of our reproductive age (N = 260) participants, 105 had experienced stillbirth, 69 had a history of infant death, and 25 had experienced both types of loss. Nearly half of the sample met criteria for postnatal depression, and 20% of these women also met criteria for perinatal grief. Anxiety and depression varied by subgroup, and was highest among women desiring an intervention., Conclusions: Understanding factors contributing to women's suffering related to reproductive challenges in this pronatalist context is critically important for women's wellbeing.

Background: Grief following stillbirth and child death are one of the most traumatic experience for parents with psychosomatic, social and economic impacts. The grief profile, severity and its impacts in Indian context are not well documented. This study documented the grief and coping experiences of the Indian parents following stillbirth and child death., Methods: This exploratory qualitative study in Delhi (India) included in-depth interviews with parents (50 mothers and 49 fathers), who had stillbirth or child death, their family members (n = 41) and community representatives (n = 12). Eight focus group discussions were done with community members (n = 72). Inductive data analysis included thematic content analysis. Perinatal Grief Scale was used to document the mother's grief severity after 6-9 months of loss., Results: The four themes emerged were grief anticipation and expression, impact of the bereavement, coping mechanism, and sociocultural norms and practices. The parents suffered from disbelief, severe pain and helplessness. Mothers expressed severe grief openly and some fainted. Fathers also had severe grief, but didn't express openly. Some parents shared self-guilt and blamed the hospital/healthcare providers, themselves or family. Majority had no/positive change in couple relationship, but few faced marital disharmony. Majority experienced sleep, eating and psychological disturbances for several weeks. Mothers coped through engaging in household work, caring other child(ren) and spiritual activities. Fathers coped through avoiding discussion and work and professional engagement. Fathers resumed work after 5-20 days and mothers took 2-6 weeks to resume household chores. Unanticipated loss, limited family support and financial strain affected the severity and duration of grief. 57.5% of all mothers and 80% mothers with stillbirth had severe grief after 6-9 months., Conclusions: Stillbirth and child death have lasting psychosomatic, social and economic impacts on parents, which are usually ignored. Sociocultural and religion appropriate bereavement support for the parents are needed to reduce the impacts., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Background: Historically, men's experiences of grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal death have been under-explored in comparison to women. However, investigating men's perspectives is important, given potential gendered differences concerning grief styles, help-seeking and service access. Few studies have comprehensively examined the various individual, interpersonal, community and system/policy-level factors which may contribute to the intensity of grief in bereaved parents, particularly for men., Methods: Men (N = 228) aged at least 18 years whose partner had experienced an ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage, stillbirth, termination of pregnancy for foetal anomaly, or neonatal death within the last 20 years responded to an online survey exploring their experiences of grief. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to examine the factors associated with men's grief intensity and style., Results: Men experienced significant grief across all loss types, with the average score sitting above the minimum cut-off considered to be a high degree of grief. Men's total grief scores were associated with loss history, marital satisfaction, availability of social support, acknowledgement of their grief from family/friends, time spent bonding with the baby during pregnancy, and feeling as though their role of 'supporter' conflicted with their ability to process grief. Factors contributing to grief also differed depending on grief style. Intuitive (emotion-focused) grief was associated with support received from healthcare professionals. Instrumental (activity-focused) grief was associated with time and quality of attachment to the baby during pregnancy, availability of social support, acknowledgement of men's grief from their female partner, supporter role interfering with their grief, and tendencies toward self-reliance., Conclusions: Following pregnancy loss and neonatal death, men can experience high levels of grief, requiring acknowledgement and validation from all healthcare professionals, family/friends, community networks and workplaces. Addressing male-specific needs, such as balancing a desire to both support and be supported, requires tailored information and support. Strategies to support men should consider grief styles and draw upon father-inclusive practice recommendations. Further research is required to explore the underlying causal mechanisms of associations found.

Stillbirth is a tragedy that can leave parents feeling powerless and vulnerable. Respectful and supportive bereavement care is essential to reducing adverse psychosocial impact. Initiatives of the Australian Centre of Research Excellence in Stillbirth are designed to improve care after stillbirth. At their heart are the voices of perinatally bereaved parents and support organisations and shared decision making between parents and health care providers. Priorities in future perinatal bereavement care research include ensuring appropriate care for population groups who experience higher rates of stillbirth and addressing implementation challenges to best practice in respectful and supportive bereavement care within our health systems., (Copyright © 2020 Australian College of Midwives. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: In Australia, 15-20% of pregnancies result in miscarriage, and 0.69% in stillbirth. Pregnancy loss is a distressing experience for parents, with many turning to their own parents for support. Pregnancy loss has been identified as an ambiguous loss, leading to disenfranchised grief. However little research has been conducted regarding grandparents' experiences following pregnancy loss. Much of what is known comes indirectly from family studies of grief and loss. This study aimed to explore grandparents' experiences of loss and grief, following a child's pregnancy loss., Design: A grounded theory approach using a qualitative inductive thematic analysis research design was employed. Individual participant interviews provided the data for analysis which was conducted using a six-step approach., Methods: Interviews were conducted with 14 grandmothers. Interviews were semi-structured, with open-ended questions. Thematic Analysis was applied using Braun and Clarkes' (2013) approach to analysis., Results: Five themes were identified: Pregnancy loss is a grief like no other, Excited anticipation - then nothing, Ambiguity following pregnancy loss exacerbates grief, Grief is isolating, Multiple losses, changed family relationships, and Ceremonies and mementoes: Tangible, with lasting benefits for grandparents., Conclusions: Early access to information and guidance, ongoing peer support with flexible delivery options, and involvement in memory making activities could reduce ambiguity and disenfranchisement. Increasing community education and participation in raising awareness was identified as a way for grandparents to honour their loss and support others. Further research could explore grandfathers' experiences, the longer-term outcomes for grandparents and families, and the impact of support strategies., (Copyright © 2019 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To explore the healthcare experiences of parents whose baby died either before, during or shortly after birth between 20 +0 and 23 +6  weeks of gestation in order to identify practical ways to improve healthcare provision., Design: Qualitative interview study., Setting: England through two parent support organisations and four NHS Trusts., Sample: A purposive sample of parents., Methods: Thematic analysis of semi-structured in-depth narrative interviews., Main Outcome Measures: Parents' healthcare experiences., Results: The key overarching theme to emerge from interviews with 38 parents was the importance of the terminology used to refer to the death of their baby. Parents who were told they were 'losing a baby' rather than 'having a miscarriage' were more prepared for the realities of labour, the birth experience and for making decisions around seeing and holding their baby. Appropriate terminology validated their loss, and impacted on parents' health and wellbeing immediately following bereavement and in the longer term., Conclusion: For parents experiencing the death of their baby at the margins between miscarriage, stillbirth and neonatal death, ensuring the use of appropriate terminology that reflects parents' preferences is vital. This helps to validate their loss and prepare them for the experiences of labour and birth. Reflecting parents' language preferences combined with compassionate bereavement care is likely to have a positive impact on parents' experiences and improve longer-term outcomes., Tweetable Abstract: Describing baby loss shortly before 24 weeks of gestation as a 'miscarriage' does not prepare parents for labour and birth, seeing their baby and making memories., (© 2020 The Authors. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.)

Death in intrapartum settings poses a paradox for providers, whose expertise may be limited in assisting bereaved women and families facing the trauma of stillbirth. Many providers are familiar with Kübler-Ross' stage theory of grief; however, more recent theories augment her early work in care of bereaved persons. Through an evolving case study of a couple for whom pregnancy ends in stillbirth at term, 4 theories of grief-loss of the assumptive world, the dual process model, continuing bonds, and complicated grief-are presented to assist intrapartum care providers toward more comprehensive understanding of the complexities of grief responses not fully explained by simple stage theory. These 4 theories are not prescriptive, nor are they comprehensive; however, they are highly relevant and foundational for current understanding of responses and needs of bereaved women and families for whom pregnancy ends in death., (© 2020 by the American College of Nurse-Midwives.)

Background: Stillbirth and neonatal death are one of the most stressful life events, with negative outcomes for parents. Society does not recognize this type of loss, and parental grieving is particularly complicated and intense., Purpose: The aim of this study was to describe and understand the experiences of parents in relation to professional and social support following stillbirth and neonatal death., Methods: This was a qualitative study based on Gadamer's hermeneutic phenomenology. Twenty-one semistructured interviews were carried out. Inductive analysis was used to find themes based on the data., Results: Twenty-one parents (13 mothers and 8 fathers) from 6 families participated in the study. The analysis identified 2 main themes: (1) "professional care in dealing with parents' grief," with the subthemes "important aspects of professional care," "continuing of pathways of care"; and (2) "effects of social support in parental grief," including the subthemes "the silence that surrounds grieving parents," "family and other children: a key element," and "perinatal loss support groups: a reciprocal help.", Implications for Practice: Counseling and support according to parents' requirements by an interdisciplinary team of professionals educated in perinatal loss and ethical family-centered care is needed. A social support system for families is necessary to avoid negative emotional consequences., Implications for Research: Further research is needed to analyze midwives' and nurses' experience as facilitators to improve parental grief and the difficulties experienced by the family, other children, and friends of parents with perinatal loss in providing support.

Objective: To report on research conducted on men's experiences of grief and loss following stillbirth and neonatal death in high-income, Western countries., Design: This review was guided by the following research questions: 1. The impact of perinatal death for men 2. The meaning of the loss for a father's sense of identity 3. The extent to which men were able to express grief while supporting their partners and, 4. how men's experience of grief was mediated by the support and care received by health professionals., Data Sources: We searched the following databases: Medline; PsychINFO; CINAHL to identify relevant articles published from the year 2000 onwards. The searches were run between 1/04/2018 and 8/4/2018., Review Methods: A scoping review was conducted of nursing, psychological, medical and social science databases using these key words: fathers' grief, men's grief, perinatal loss and death, stillbirth and neonatal death., Results: Studies indicated that men reported less intense and enduring levels of psychological outcomes than women but were more likely to engage in avoidance and coping behaviours such as increased alcohol consumption. Men felt that their role was primarily as a 'supportive partner' and that they were overlooked by health professionals., Conclusions: Further research is needed on men's experience of grief following perinatal death, especially on their physical and mental well-being., Impact: This review addressed the problem of the lack of knowledge around paternal needs following perinatal death and highlighted areas which researchers could usefully investigate with the eventual aim of improving care for fathers., (Crown Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Aims and Objectives: To explore the meaning of rituals that women and their families perform after a stillbirth., Background: A cultural taboo in Taiwan prohibits discussing death; thus, parents of stillborn babies have no established public mourning or burial ceremonies to perform for their stillborn children. Stillbirths are often treated as if they had never happened., Design: Qualitative descriptive study., Methods: In-depth interviews, which were transcribed and content analysed, were conducted with a purposive sample of 16 women discharged from two teaching hospitals in Taiwan after they had a stillbirth., Results: Families engaged in rituals for two underlying reasons: to benefit the deceased child and the immediate family. The meanings of the rituals for the child are presented through three themes: (i) sending the baby's spirit to a safe place, (ii) protecting it from suffering and (iii) preparing it for a better reincarnation. The meanings of rituals for the families are presented through four themes: (i) releasing parental guilt by doing their best for the deceased child, (ii) cutting bonds with the child, (iii) avoiding additional misfortune should they mishandle the funeral and (iv) praying for a successful subsequent pregnancy., Conclusions: Death-related rituals are highly culturally diverse. This study fills a gap about Asian cultures. Participating in rituals permits a mother to do something for her deceased child, helps relieve her guilt and lets her cope with the stillbirth. Rituals after a stillbirth can help a woman recover from grieving and allow her to hope for a successful subsequent pregnancy., Relevance to Clinical Practice: Health professionals should discuss with bereaved parents what rituals they would like to perform and then respect their decisions. A continuum of care and support that exists from the prenatal diagnosis through the stillbirth and beyond is recommended for parents and families during this difficult time., (© 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Aims and Objectives: To explore couples' perceptions of the effects of perinatal loss on their marital relationship, social support and grief 1 year postloss, and analyse what factors changed the severity of their grief., Background: Perinatal losses are traumatic events in the lives of families and can have serious long-term consequences for the psychological health of parents and any subsequent children., Design: A prospective follow-up study., Methods: We recruited, at a teaching hospital in southern Taiwan, a convenience sample of 30 couples whose babies either miscarried or were stillborn. At 1 month (T1), 3 months (T2), 6 months (T3) and 1 year (T4) after the pregnancy loss, all participants completed four questionnaires. To analyse the changing status of their grief and its related factors, we used a generalised estimating equation (GEE) to account for correlations between repeated observations., Results: Postbereavement grief levels fell over the four time-points. Mothers reported feeling more grief than did the fathers. Couples with a history of infertility, no religious beliefs or no living children before the loss felt more grief from a perinatal miscarriage or stillbirth. Furthermore, couples reported more grief if their marital satisfaction level was low, if their socioemotional support from husband's parents was low or if they had never participated in a ritual for their deceased baby., Conclusions: Six months postloss is the crucial period for bereaved parents after a perinatal loss. Being a mother, having no previous living children and low-level socioemotional support from the husband's parents are significant high-risk factors for a high level of grief 1 year after perinatal death., Relevance to Clinical Practice: We recommend that health professionals increase their ability to identify the factors that psychologically affect postloss grief. Active postloss follow-up programmes should focus on these factors to offer specific support and counselling., (© 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: The Perinatal Grief Intensity Scale (PGIS) was developed for clinical use to identify and predict intense grief and need for follow-up after perinatal loss. This study evaluates the validity of the PGIS via its ability to predict future intense grief based on a PGIS score obtained early after a loss., Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted with 103 international, English-speaking women recruited at hospital discharge or via the internet who experienced a miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal death within the previous 8weeks. Survey data were collected at baseline using the PGIS and the Perinatal Grief Scale (PGS). Follow-up data on the PGS were obtained 3months later. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, Cronbach's alpha, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis., Results: Cronbach's alphas were ≥0.70 for both instruments. PGIS factor analysis yielded three factors as predicted, explaining 57.7% of the variance. The optimal cutoff identified for the PGIS was 3.535. No difference was found when the ability of the PGIS to identify intense grief was compared to the PGS (p=0.754). The PGIS was not inferior to the PGS (AUC=0.78, 95% CI 0.68-0.88, p<0.001) in predicting intense grief at the follow-up. A PGIS score≥3.53 at baseline was associated with increased grief intensity at Time 2 (PGS: OR=1.97, 95% CI 1.59-2.34, p<0.001)., Conclusions: The PGIS is comparable to the PGS, has a lower response burden, and can reliably and validly predict women who may experience future intense grief associated with perinatal loss., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Planned support and interventions are necessary in the care and support of women who have experienced stillbirth. The present study was conducted to determine the effect of psychological grief counseling on the symptom severity of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in mothers after stillbirths. This interventional study is semi-experimental. The study was conducted on 100 women who had recently had stillbirths. Eligible samples were selected and randomly divided into the two groups of intervention and control. The data collection tool was the PPQ, 1 which was completed as a pre-test and post-test in both groups. The intervention group received four sessions of psychological grief counseling over two weeks, and the control group received only routine postnatal care. PTSD severity was evaluated in both groups at the end of the fourth week after the final session. The results showed that there was a statistically significant difference in the mean score of the severity of the PTSD symptoms in both groups after the intervention (P = 0.0001), which means that psychological grief counseling led to the reduction of PTSD severity in mothers. Given the positive impact of psychological grief counseling on reducing the severity of PTSD, integration of intensive psychological interventions in the maternity care system seems essential for faster transition of grief stages and for the prevention of severe cases of PTSD.

Objective: Pregnancy loss is common and can be devastating for those who experience it. However, a historical focus on negative outcomes, and grief in particular, has rendered an incomplete portrait of both the gravity of the loss, and the potential for growth in its wake. Consistent with contemporary models of growth following bereavement, this study explored the occurrence of posttraumatic growth following pregnancy loss and further assessed the role of core belief disruptions and common loss context factors across perinatal grief, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and posttraumatic growth., Method: Women who had experienced a miscarriage or stillbirth (N = 328) were recruited through perinatal loss support groups and completed an online survey that assessed core belief disruption, perinatal grief, posttraumatic stress symptoms, posttraumatic growth, loss context factors, and demographics. Hypotheses were tested via hierarchical multiple regression., Results: All hypotheses were supported. Specifically, (a) moderate levels of posttraumatic growth were reported; (b) core belief disruptions predicted perinatal grief, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and posttraumatic growth; and (c) perinatal grief predicted posttraumatic stress symptoms and growth., Conclusion: Findings suggest that pregnancy loss can be a traumatic event, that core belief disruptions play a significant role in posttrauma outcomes, and that other factors may contribute to grief, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and posttraumatic growth following pregnancy loss that warrant further research (e.g., rumination). Despite potential methodological and sampling limitations, the use of validated measures to assess posttraumatic growth in a large sample represents a robust attempt to quantify the occurrence of posttrauma change following pregnancy loss. (PsycINFO Database Record, ((c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).)

Background: Low- and middle-income countries in Africa have the highest rates of stillbirths in the world today: as such, the stories of the grief of these women who have had a stillbirth in these settings need to be told and the silence on stillbirth needs to be broken. In an attempt to fill this gap, the aim of this study was to describe the experiences of Muslim Somali mothers who have lost their babies at birth., Method: Qualitative interviews with ten Somali women one to six months after they experienced a stillbirth. Data were analyzed using Giorgi's method of phenomenological description., Results: In the analysis, four descriptive structures emerged: "a feeling of alienation"; "altered stability in life"; "immediate pain when the sight of the dead baby turns into a precious memory"; and "a wave of despair eases". Together, these supported the essence: "Balancing feelings of anxiety, fear and worries for one's own health and life by accepting Allah's will and putting one's trust in him"., Conclusions: This study makes an important contribution to our knowledge about how stillbirth is experienced by women in Somaliland. This information can be useful when health care providers communicate the experiences of stillbirth to women of Muslim faith who have experienced an intrauterine fatal death (IUFD) resulting in a stillbirth., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Childbirth is often understood as a paradigmatically "happy" event where good outcomes are expected and the process anticipated as a reason for celebration. Yet the narratives in this volume reflect sadness and grief, even when a healthy child is born. In this essay, I interrogate the genesis of and our relationship to grief in birth. To the extent such grief is a product of the chasm between the imagined ideal and what women experience, we may redress such grief by orienting around a more robust and woman-centered notion of the "good birth". Yet there is a way in which grief is also intrinsic to birth, and turning away from the loss that birth by its nature entails may compound the suffering of childbearing women. Beginning with the observation that the one narrative in which grief is accepted and attended to-a full term stillbirth-also stands out for the exemplary care provided, I consider the possibility that making space for grief in births, including those with good outcomes, will lead us to better ways of thinking about birth and providing care for childbearing women.

Stillbirth (SB), death of a fetus in late stages of pregnancy or during birth, usually leads to extended and intense grief among women. However, their grief is often disenfranchised and they are denied the social right to mourn their loss. Constructivist theories recently assuming a central place in bereavement studies inform this article, which aims to identify the meaning that women who experience SB ascribe to their loss in general and to the lost figure. This tack may offer the opportunity to examine the consequences of the discrepancy between personal and environmental constructions of this loss on its personal construction and to learn about the essence of the loss. Within the domain of qualitative research, the current article draws on phenomenology and the research method that has emerged from this approach. Specifically, the article focuses on in-depth interviews with 10 women who experienced SB. Its findings suggest that for these women, the lost figure and the loss in general engender ambiguity both internally-that is, within the psyche of women themselves-and externally, within the women's social environment. Thus, ambiguity, uncertainty, and doubt infused women's experience of SB. Implications for theory and practice are discussed., (© 2016 National Association of Social Workers.)

Objective: To verify the association between complicated grief and sociodemographic, reproductive, mental, marital satisfaction, and professional support characteristics in women after stillbirth., Method: Cross-sectional study with 26 women who had stillbirth in 2013, living in the city of Maringá, Brazil, and eight women who attended the Centre d'Études et de Rechercheen Intervention Familiale at the University of Quebec en Outaouais, in Canada. The instrument was administered as an interview to a small number of mothers of infants up to three months (n=50), who did not participate in the validation study., Results: By applying the short version of the Perinatal Grief Scale, the prevalence of complicated grief in Brazilian women was found to be higher (35%) in relation to Canadian women (12%).Characteristics of the Brazilian women associated with the grief period included the presence of previous pregnancy with live birth, absence of previous perinatal loss, postpartum depression, and lack of marital satisfaction. For the Canadians it was observed that 80% of the women presenting no grief made use of the professional support group. In both populations the occurrence of complicated grief presented a higher prevalence in women with duration of pregnancy higher than 28 weeks., Conclusion: The women that must be further investigated during the grief period are those living in Brazil, making no use of a professional support group, presenting little to no marital satisfaction, having no religion, and of a low educational level., Objetivo: Verificar aassociação entre o luto complicado e as características sociodemográficas, reprodutivas, mentais, de satisfação conjugal e apoio profissional em mulheres após óbito fetal., Método: Estudo transversal com 26 mulheres que tiveram óbito fetal no ano de 2013 residentes no município de Maringá, Brasil, e 18 mulheres participantes do Centre d'Études et de Rechercheen Intervention Familiale, na Universidade do Quebec em Outaouais, no Canadá., Resultados: Por meio da aplicação da versão curta da Perinatal Grief Scale, a prevalência de luto complicado foi maior nas brasileiras (35%) em relação às canadenses (12%). As características das brasileiras associadas ao luto complicado foram a presença de gestação anterior com filho nascido vivo, não ocorrência de perda perinatal anterior, depressão pós-parto e não satisfação conjugal. Para as canadenses, foi observado que 80% das mulheres sem luto utilizaram grupo profissional de apoio. Nas duas populações a ocorrência do luto complicado foi mais frequente nas mulheres com duração na gestação maior que 28 semanas., Conclusão: As mulheres que mais devem ser investigadas no estado de luto são as que moram no Brasil, que não utilizam grupo profissional de apoio, não têm satisfação conjugal, não praticam religião e têm menor escolaridade.

Infertility and perinatal loss are common, and associated with lower quality of life, marital discord, complicated grief, major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Young women, who lack social supports, have experienced recurrent pregnancy loss or a history of trauma and / or preexisting psychiatric illness are at a higher risk of experiencing psychiatric illnesses or symptoms after a perinatal loss or during infertility. It is especially important to detect, assess, and treat depression, anxiety, or other psychiatric symptoms because infertility or perinatal loss may be caused or perpetuated by such symptoms. Screening, psychoeducation, provision of resources and referrals, and an opportunity to discuss their loss and plan for future pregnancies can facilitate addressing mental health concerns that arise. Women at risk of or who are currently experiencing psychiatric symptoms should receive a comprehensive treatment plan that includes the following: (1) proactive clinical monitoring, (2) evidence-based approaches to psychotherapy, and (3) discussion of risks, benefits, and alternatives of medication treatment during preconception and pregnancy.

Background: Despite improvements in maternity healthcare services over the last few decades, more than 2.7 million babies worldwide are stillborn each year. The global health agenda is silent about stillbirth, perhaps, in part, because its wider impact has not been systematically analysed or understood before now across the world. Our study aimed to systematically review, evaluate and summarise the current evidence regarding the psychosocial impact of stillbirth to parents and their families, with the aim of improving guidance in bereavement care worldwide., Methods: Systematic review and meta-summary (quantitative aggregation of qualitative findings) of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods studies. All languages and countries were included., Results: Two thousand, six hundred and nineteen abstracts were identified; 144 studies were included. Frequency effect sizes (FES %) were calculated for each theme, as a measure of their prevalence in the literature. Themes ranged from negative psychological symptoms post bereavement (77 · 1) and in subsequent pregnancies (27 · 1), to disenfranchised grief (31 · 2), and incongruent grief (28 · 5), There was also impact on siblings (23 · 6) and on the wider family (2 · 8). They included mixed-feelings about decisions made when the baby died (12 · 5), avoidance of memories (13 · 2), anxiety over other children (7 · 6), chronic pain and fatigue (6 · 9), and a different approach to the use of healthcare services (6 · 9). Some themes were particularly prominent in studies of fathers; grief suppression (avoidance)(18 · 1), employment difficulties, financial debt (5 · 6), and increased substance use (4 · 2). Others found in studies specific to mothers included altered body image (3 · 5) and impact on quality of life (2 · 1). Counter-intuitively, Some themes had mixed connotations. These included parental pride in the baby (5 · 6), motivation for engagement in healthcare improvement (4 · 2) and changed approaches to life and death, self-esteem, and own identity (25 · 7). In studies from low/middle income countries, stigmatisation (13 · 2) and pressure to prioritise or delay conception (9) were especially prevalent., Conclusion: Experiencing the birth of a stillborn child is a life-changing event. The focus of the consequences may vary with parent gender and country. Stillbirth can have devastating psychological, physical and social costs, with ongoing effects on interpersonal relationships and subsequently born children. However, parents who experience the tragedy of stillbirth can develop resilience and new life-skills and capacities. Future research should focus on developing interventions that may reduce the psychosocial cost of stillbirth.

Background: stillbirth research is often hampered by the need to 'protect' both bereaved families as well as healthy pregnant women from distress resulting from recruitment by research staff. No studies have investigated anxiety levels of recently bereaved or healthy pregnant women participating in stillbirth research. The aim of this study was to assess anxiety levels and acceptability of women participating in a stillbirth case-control study., Method: a follow-up questionnaire was posted to all participants of the Sydney Stillbirth Study in 2012. The questionnaire assessed the anxiety level experienced by women as a result of their participation in the study. Questions related to the initial approach of the research staff; level of anxiety at time of consent and after the interview; and reasons for and satisfaction with participation. The Spielberger (STAI-6) anxiety scale and open-field responses were included., Results: 35/103 case participants and 65/192 control participants returned the completed questionnaire. The majority participated for altruistic reasons. 20/35 (cases) and 58/65 (controls) stated they disagreed/strongly disagreed that participation in the study increased their anxiety. 1 in 5 cases reported that participation in the study increased their anxiety; however this did not affect their satisfaction. Timing of interview did not affect anxiety scale responses. (F=1.2; p=0.37) 30/35 (cases) and 63/65 (controls) stated they agreed/strongly agreed that they were satisfied participating in the study., Conclusions: these findings suggest high levels of satisfaction amongst both case and control participants and no statistically significant increase in anxiety related to involvement in stillbirth research. 'Protecting' families may require further justification., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Stillbirth is a profoundly distressing event. Little evidence exists to guide best practice bereavement care in the perinatal setting., Aims: To document parents' experiences and outcomes in relation to seeing and holding a stillborn baby at a hospital with a specialist perinatal bereavement service., Materials and Methods: Prospective cohort study of 26 mothers and 11 fathers who experienced a stillbirth at the Mater Mothers' Hospital, Brisbane from September 2007-December 2008. Mailed self-report questionnaires were completed at 6-8 weeks and 6 and 13 months postloss. Validated measures assessed regret regarding the decision to see and hold the baby, parental grief and mental health., Results: Of 78 fetal deaths, 26 mothers and 11 fathers participated. Most (20 mothers; 9 fathers) chose to see and hold their stillborn infant. Little regret was reported, irrespective of the decision. For mothers, seeing and holding was associated with higher 'active grief' at 6-8 weeks (mean difference (MD) = 10.5; 95% CI = 3.3-17.8; P < 0.01), 6 months (MD = 8.0; 95% CI = 0.6-15.4; P = 0.03) and 13 months (MD = 9.9; 95% CI = 1.8-17.9; P = 0.01), but not with 'not coping' or 'despair', or mental health. Fathers reported poorer mental health but small numbers mean estimates are imprecise., Conclusions: More intense grief does not equate with poorer mental health for mothers who choose to see and hold a stillborn infant. Fathers' experiences warrant further study. Supported decision-making is important for bereaved parents, and rigorous evaluation of bereavement care is essential., (© 2015 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.)

Introduction: The sorrow caused by perinatal loss is a phenomenon of pathological mourning, a burden for the parents, their environment and the medical personnel, yet, it is a less studied field., Aim: (1) To present the applied practice in healthcare institutions, to compare the valid protocol with the effective help provided and to study how these events affect the helping personnel professionally and psychologically., Method: In-depth interviews with the involved personnel (n = 8). The authors studied the practice of the given institution; existing and wanted theoretical and practical competencies; personal attitude and the experienced difficulties., Results: Acting well professionally is a specially demanding task, with few tools to use when communicating, when helping the parents cope with sorrow, or when coping with their own feelings, all these involving a risk for burn-out., Conclusions: The results can serve to create trainings aimed at helping the patients with adequate support and improving coping strategies.

Background: Globally, during 2013 there were three million recorded stillbirths. Where clinical guidelines exist some recommend that professionals do not encourage parental contact. The guidance is based on quantitative evidence that seeing and holding the baby is not beneficial for everyone, but has been challenged by bereaved parents' organisations. We aim to inform future guideline development through a synthesis of qualitative studies reporting data relevant to the research question; how does the approach of healthcare professionals to seeing and holding the baby following stillbirth impact parents views and experiences?, Methods/findings: Using a predetermined search strategy of PubMed and PsychINFO we identified robust qualitative studies reporting bereaved parental views and/or experiences relating to seeing and holding their stillborn baby (final search 24 February, 2014). Eligible studies were English language, reporting parental views, with gestational loss >20 weeks. Quality was independently assessed by three authors using a validated tool. We used meta-ethnographic techniques to identify key themes and a line of argument synthesis. We included 12 papers, representing the views of 333 parents (156 mothers, 150 fathers, and 27 couples) from six countries. The final themes were: "[Still]birth: Nature of care is paramount", "Real babies: Perfect beauties, monsters and spectres", and "Opportunity of a lifetime lost." Our line-of-argument synthesis highlights the contrast between all parents need to know their baby, with the time around birth being the only time memories can be made, and the variable ability that parents have to articulate their preferences at that time. Thus, we hypothesised that how health professionals approach contact between parents and their stillborn baby demands a degree of active management. An important limitation of this paper is all included studies originated from high income, westernised countries raising questions about the findings transferability to other cultural contexts. We do not offer new evidence to answer the question "Should parents see and hold their stillborn baby?", instead our findings advance understanding of how professionals can support parents to make appropriate decisions in a novel, highly charged and dynamic situation., Conclusions: Guidelines could be more specific in their recommendations regarding parental contact. The role of healthcare professionals in encouraging parents to see and hold their stillborn baby is paramount. Parental choice not to see their baby, apprehension, or uncertainty should be continuously revisited in the hours after birth as the opportunity for contact is fleeting and final.

Background: Stillbirths (≥ 20 weeks' gestation), which account for about 1 in 200 US pregnancies, may grieve parents deeply. Unresolved grief may lead to persistent depression., Methods: We compared depressive symptoms in 2009 (6-36 months after index delivery) among consenting women in the Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network's population-based case-control study conducted 2006-08 (n = 275 who delivered a stillbirth and n = 522 who delivered a healthy livebirth (excluding livebirths < 37 weeks, infants who had been admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit or who died). Women scoring > 12 on the Edinburgh Depression Scale were classified as currently depressed. Crude (cOR) and adjusted (aOR) odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals [CI] were computed from univariate and multivariable logistic models, with weighting for study design and differential consent. Marginal structural models examined potential selection bias due to low follow-up., Results: Current depression was more likely in women with stillbirth (14.8%) vs. healthy livebirth (8.3%, cOR 1.90 [95% CI 1.20, 3.02]). However, after control for history of depression and factors associated with both depression and stillbirth, the stillbirth association was no longer significant (aOR 1.35 [95% CI 0.79, 2.30]). Conversely, for the 76% of women with no history of depression, a significant association remained after adjustment for confounders (aOR 1.98 [95% CI 1.02, 3.82])., Conclusions: Improved screening for depression and referral may be needed for women's health care. Research should focus on defining optimal methods for support of women suffering stillbirth so as to lower the risk of subsequent depression., (© 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Despite its prevalence worldwide, stillbirth is poorly understood and rarely discussed. Accordingly, ministers and other pastoral caregivers are seldom prepared to counsel and console parents suffering from this type of infant loss and to effectively design, propose, and lead ministries within their faith communities for this grieving population. This article addresses the immediate pastoral needs of bereaved parents and proposes first and second order responses that ministers and faith communities can employ to compassionately and effectively care for parents suffering from the trauma of stillbirth., (© The Author(s) 2015 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.)

We explored the concept of using a Mindfulness-based intervention to reduce perinatal grief among Indian women. Data were collected using mixed methods to explore concept acceptability, receptivity, modality, and feasibility of the intervention. The intervention was piloted and evaluated with measures of perinatal grief, psychosocial wellbeing, religious coping, perceived social provision of support, and mindfulness. The intervention was well received and effective in teaching skills to help women deal with high levels of grief and subsequent mental health challenges. To overcome attendance barriers modification is necessary. Partnership with a local nursing school is critical to enhance sustainability of the intervention.

The Listening to parents survey, which took place in early 2014, sought the views of parents bereaved by stillbirth or early neonatal death. The findings showed the marked variation in care provided. The low response rate may call into question the authority of the findings Research into perinatal loss seems to be unlikely to be operationalised. More qualitative research may make such implementation more feasible, hopefully making optimal care more certain for grieving parents.

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to portray the recovery process of Taiwanese women after stillbirth. Data were generated through individual in-depth interviews with 21 women selected using purposeful sampling. Three stages in an emotional journey of recovery were suffering from silent grief, searching for a way out, and achieving peace of mind and mental stability. Throughout their journey, the women's overarching concern was where the deceased child had gone and whether it was well. Together these stages composed A pathway to peace of mind, a mental journey on which women struggled to spiritually connect with the lost baby and finally sought a personal pathway to emotional peace. Findings can inform healthcare providers in providing culturally sensitive care for Taiwanese women to facilitate healing after a stillbirth., (© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

This article sets out my observations of my daughter's difficult pregnancy and late-stage miscarriage. I share this information to raise awareness that the specialist support for women going through this is not always in place and doesn't fully prepare women for this experience. Even though this can be uncomfortable for maternity professionals, the care that women receive, especially during labour and birth, has a massive impact on them and their families. There are many opportunities for midwives to make a positive difference at this difficult time. My granddaughter, Jess, died at five months gestation and was later confirmed to have Turner Syndrome. Turner Syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality that only affects girls and is related to the partial or complete deletion of the X chromosome. Not all affected girls are miscarried and an estimated one in 2000 girls born in the UK has Turner Syndrome.

Perinatal grief following stillbirth is a significant social and mental health burden. We examined associations among the following latent variables: autonomy, social norms, self-despair, strained coping, and acute grief-among poor, rural women in India who experienced stillbirth. A structural equation model was built and tested using quantitative data from 347 women of reproductive age in Chhattisgarh. Maternal acceptance of traditional social norms worsens self-despair and strained coping, and increases the autonomy granted to women. Greater autonomy increases acute grief. Greater despair and acute grief increase strained coping. Social and cultural factors were found to predict perinatal grief in India.

Objectives: To evaluate the reliability and validity of the Perinatal Grief Intensity Scale (PGIS) for identifying a woman's grief intensity in the immediate subsequent pregnancy after a miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal death., Design/setting/participants: A web-based approach was used to collect data from 227 pregnant women after each woman had experienced a perinatal loss in her previous pregnancy., Methods: Participants completed a demographic information form and the 14-item PGIS., Results: Cronbach's alphas for the PGIS total scale and subscales were high: 0.75 (PGIS total), 0.80 (Reality), 0.82 (Confront Others), and 0.80 (Congruence), which indicated good internal consistency reliability. Validity was supported by factor analysis of the PGIS, which accounted for 66.94% of the total variance. Mothers in the neonatal death group experienced more intense grief, as measured by the PGIS, when compared with mothers in the miscarriage or stillbirth groups., Conclusions: Data from this study provided initial support for the reliability and validity of the PGIS in women in their immediate subsequent pregnancies after perinatal loss as well as the concepts of the grief intensity theoretical framework., (© 2013 AWHONN, the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses.)

Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow has developed and innovative staff training course, 'Death of a Baby', which has improved the care provided to parents who have lost a baby. It is open to all hospital staff, who are taught how to communicate sensitively and how to answer parents' questions about practical issues. The course also equips staff to cope with their own feelings of distress and loss in such a situation, and to be able to support each other.

The death of a neonate can be traumatic for mothers, resulting in profound grief which ruptures their sense of coherence and identity. A narrative approach was used to explore how six Xhosa-speaking women tell stories about the death of their baby to help them understand the significance of the loss. They struggled to establish a sense of their baby as a person to be mourned, to redefine their own identity, and to find reasons for the death. Their meaning-making was influenced by the baby's father, older women in their community, and the context of deprivation in which they live.

Objectives: to describe the grief of mothers and fathers and its influence on their relationships after the loss of a stillborn baby., Design: a postal questionnaire at three months, one year and two years after stillbirth., Setting: a study of mothers and fathers of babies stillborn during a one-year period in the Stockholm region of Sweden., Participants: 55 parents, 33 mothers and 22 fathers., Findings: mothers and fathers stated that they became closer after the loss, and that the feeling deepened over the course of the following year. The parents said that they began grieving immediately as a gradual process, both as individuals, and together as a couple. During this grieving process their expectations, expressions and personal and joint needs might have threatened their relationship as a couple, in that they individually felt alone at this time of withdrawal. While some mothers and fathers had similar grieving styles, the intensity and expression of grief varied, and the effects were profound and unique for each individual., Key Conclusions: experiences following a loss are complex, with each partner attempting to come to terms with the loss and the resultant effect on the relationship with their partner., Implications for Practice: anticipating and being able to acknowledge the different aspects of grief will enable professionals to implement more effective intervention in helping couples grieve both individually and together., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: This study was designed to evaluate fathers' experiences of stillbirth and psychosocial care., Methods: Data were collected between 27 March 2008 and 1 April 2010 via a questionnaire posted on the homepage of the Swedish National Infant Foundation. The responses to the following open-ended questions were analyzed using content analysis: "Are you grateful today for anything that health care professionals did in connection with the birth of your child?" and "Are you sad, hurt or angry today about something personnel did in connection with the birth of your baby?"., Results: 113/131 (86%) fathers reported feelings of being grateful. Only 22/131 (16%) fathers reported feeling sad, hurt, or angry. Fathers expressed gratitude when health care professionals treated their newborn "with respect and without fear", "with extraordinary reverence", and when their fatherhood was validated by providers. They were also grateful when providers helped them to create memories of their baby. Fathers also reported feeling sad, hurt, or angry when providers were nonchalant and indifferent and when they perceived providers to be uncaring and disrespectful toward their baby., Conclusion: Bereaved fathers experience overall gratitude for person-centered psychosocial care in the aftermath of stillbirth, particularly when they feel validated as a grieving father and their child is acknowledged with reverence., Clinical Implications: Health care professionals should support fathers by treating the baby who died with respect and dignity and by validating and acknowledging both his grief experiences and his fatherhood just as they would for a grieving mother., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Aim:   The aim of this study was to promote changes to improve the care provided to parents who have experienced a perinatal loss through participatory action research., Background:   The birth of a child is a joyful event for most families, however, unfortunately some pregnancies end in loss. Perinatal loss creates a heavy emotional impact not only on parents but also on health professionals, where in most cases there is an evident lack of skills, strategies and resources to cope with these kinds of situations., Design:   Participatory action research is the methodology proposed to achieve the purpose of this study., Methods:   Participatory action research consists of five stages: outreach and awareness, induction, interaction, implementation and systematization. The working group will include professionals from the Mother and Child Unit for patients at a tertiary level public hospital in Spain. The duration of the study will be 3 years since the approval of the protocol in January 2011. The qualitative techniques used will include group dynamics such as the SWOT analysis the nominal group technique, focus groups and brainstorming, among others that will be recorded and transcribed, generating reports throughout the evolution of the group sessions and about the consensus reached. Content analysis will be conducted on the field diaries kept by the participants and researchers. This project has been funded by the Andalusian Regional Ministry of Health., Discussion:   Participatory action research is a methodological strategy that allows changes in clinical practice to conduct a comprehensive transformative action in the care process for perinatal loss., (© 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)

Stillbirth is a globally significant public health problem with many medical causes. There are also indirect causal pathways including social and cultural factors which are particularly salient in India's traditional society. The purpose of this study was to explore women's perceptions of stillbirth and to determine how issues of gender and power, social support, coping efforts, and religious beliefs influence perinatal grief outcomes among poor women in rural Chhattisgarh, India. Structured interviews were done face-to-face in 21 randomly selected villages among women of reproductive age (N=355) who had experienced stillbirth (n=178) and compared to those who had not (n=177), in the Christian Hospital, Mungeli catchment area. Perinatal grief was significantly higher among women with a history of stillbirth. Greater perinatal grief was associated with lack of support, maternal agreement with social norms, and younger maternal age. These predictors must be understood in light of an additional finding-distorted sex ratios, which reflect gender discrimination in the context of Indian society. The findings of this study will allow the development of a culturally appropriate health education program which should be designed to increase social support and address social norms, thereby reducing psychological distress to prevent complicated perinatal grief. Perinatal grief is a significant social burden which impacts the health women.

Background: Pregnancy loss is common, but its significance is often minimized by family, friends, and the community, leaving bereaved parents with unmet need for support. This study sought to describe demographics, usage patterns, and perceived benefits for women participating in Internet pregnancy loss support groups., Methods: We requested permission to post an anonymous Internet survey on large and active United States Internet message boards for women with miscarriages and stillbirths. The study purposefully oversampled stillbirth sites and included both closed- and open-ended questions. The University of Michigan Institutional Review Board approved the study. Closed-ended questions were summarized and evaluated with bivariate analysis. We performed a qualitative analysis of open-ended data using an iterative coding process to identify key themes., Results: Of 62 sites queried, 15 granted permission to post the survey on 18 different message boards. We collected 1,039 surveys, of which 1,006 were complete and eligible for analysis. Women were typically white, well educated, and frequent users. They noted message boards helped them to feel less isolated in their loss and grief and they appreciated unique aspects of Internet communication such as convenience, access, anonymity, and privacy. Pregnancy loss message boards are an important aspect of support for many bereaved mothers. African-American women seem to be substantially underrepresented on-line despite being at higher risk for stillbirth., Conclusion: Internet message boards serve a unique function in providing support for women with miscarriage and stillbirth. The benefits are often significantly different from those encountered in traditional face-to-face bereavement support., (Copyright © 2012 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)