Lindsey M. Henke | The Motherhood Therapist

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Anxious woman - 6 Signs of PTSD from Pregnancy Loss

6 Signs Of PTSD From Pregnancy Loss

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Hard Parts of Motherhood
Heartaches of Motherhood
Expecting After the Heartaches of Motherhood

The Motherhood Therapist

Your motherhood story matters.

Remember the bereaved father this Father’s Day.

Remember the bereaved father this Father’s Day. His heart is aching while his arms are empty. A bereaved dad is still a dad. He is the one who loves, misses, and remembers his deceased child everyday day.
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#fathersday #bereavedfather #bereavedparent #pregnancyloss #griefandloss #griefislove #afatherslove #afathersgrief #babyloss #infantloss #stillbirth #childloss #miscarriage #SIDS #TFMR #lossdad #infertility #tryingtoconceiveafterloss #pregnancyafterloss #parentingafterloss

If I was an ordinary postpartum mom with a baby at

If I was an ordinary postpartum mom with a baby at home, other moms would understand my postpartum struggles. They would get it, being a mom themselves.

But trying to face life after your child’s death: the milk that engorged my breasts for my baby that my body doesn’t know it’s missing, the fat left around my edges and extending my middle that wouldn’t go away even though there was no baby to hold, the ache in my heart keeping me awake at night over not having sleepless nights of nursing a newborn.

The “normie” moms didn’t understand this and clearly, sometimes, weren’t trying to.

Honestly, I didn’t want them to either, because the only way one could comprehend this torment was if their child died too. And I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.
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#griefandloss #griefislove #amotherslove #amothersgrief #thisismotherhood #pregnancyloss #babyloss #infantloss #stillbirth #childloss #miscarriage #SIDS #TFMR #bereavedmother #lossmom #postpartum #postpartumafterloss #lifeafterloss #parentingafterloss

My heart is breaking for the families of Uvalde, T

My heart is breaking for the families of Uvalde, Texas. Bereaved parents, if you are asking these questions today, you are not alone.

"How do we give over our rainbow babies, children we worked so hard to bring into the world with their hearts beating, over to a world that won’t protect them? That won’t value them? That doesn’t show an ounce of love for them? I sometimes can’t breathe at the thought of how callous a society we’ve become, in a world where guns matter more than kindergarteners."

My baby born after a loss is a sibling, not a repl

My baby born after a loss is a sibling, not a replacement!

I don’t believe in the idea of a replacement child.

The idea of a replacement child or the replacement child syndrome was coined in the 1960s by psychologists that were concerned the subsequent child would be at risk for psychopathology if the parents had not sufficiently grieved the child that died.

But, it is one of many myths about bereaved parents that we now know to not be true.

If researchers would listen closer to grieving parents they would have known this.

If anything, bereaved parents often make space for a baby born after the loss of another, as the sibling of their child who died.

Your baby born after your other died is a sibling, not a replacement.

📣 Sibling - Not a Replacement

💗 Ways to bond with baby born after loss 💗

5 ways when pregnant:
💗 Monitor baby’s movements
💗 Read, sing, talk to baby
💗 Name your baby
💗 Take bump photos
💗 Buy something for baby

5 ways to bond after birth
💗 Feed and hold baby
💗 Rock baby
💗 Sing & read to baby
💗 Wear baby
💗 Baby massage

Note on bonding: Know that it can be normal for PAL parents to struggle with bonding with their baby born after loss, either during a subsequent pregnancy or even after birth.

Be gentle with yourself and let the baby lead the way. The bonding will come.

If you feel like you need more help with connecting, reach out to your partner, provider and possibly a perinatal therapist for more support.

Find a therapist at https://www.postpartum.net/
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#pregnancyafterloss #expectingafterloss #parentingafterloss #pregnancyaftermiscarriage #pregnancyafterstillbirth #pregnancyafterTFMR #pregnancyafterinfantloss #pregnancyafterbabyloss #rainbowbaby #rainbowpregnancy #postpartumsupport #4thtrimester #supportmoms #lifeafterloss #griefandloss #hopeafterloss #hopeoverfear #bondwithbaby #babyloss

On 💐 Mother's Day 💐 Remember Mothers who ar

On 💐 Mother's Day 💐 Remember

Mothers who are yearning to be mothers
Mothers who have lost a pregnancy
Mothers who have lost a baby
Mothers who have lost a child

Because a mother is defined by the children she holds in her heart, not in her arms. ❤️
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#mothersday #bereavedmothersday #griefandloss #griefislove #amotherslove #amothersgrief #thisismotherhood #pregnancyloss #babyloss #infantloss #stillbirth #childloss #miscarriage #SIDS #TFMR #bereavedmother #lossmom #infertility #tryingtoconceiveafterloss #pregnancyafterloss #parentingafterloss

A mother is born when the idea of a baby is born w

A mother is born when the idea of a baby is born within her heart.

Mothers don’t hide this love.

We share it from the moment we squeal in delight when telling our partners we are going to be parents.

We share it by taking bump photos with fruit and posting them on social media for all to see.

We parent our babies yet to be born by attending appointments and passing on sushi and soft cheeses.

We parent our babies yet to be born by painting nurseries and purchasing them baby clothes.

We parent our babies yet to be born by taking birth and breastfeeding classes.

But when the bough breaks….

And the cradle falls…

And the pregnancy test never turns positive

And the red blood trickles down our leg

And the ultrasound stays silent

Our hearts break

When our baby dies or is never conceived.

But our love never dies.

Our love lives on.

Our grief is a symptom of our love.

And we don’t need to hide our grief, as we did not hide our love.
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#griefandloss #griefislove #amotherslove #amothersgrief #thisismotherhood #pregnancyloss #babyloss #infantloss #stillbirth #childloss #miscarriage #SIDS #TFMR #bereavedmother #lossmom #infertility #tryingtoconceiveafterloss #pregnancyafterloss #parentingafterloss

Happy Launch Day to my friend, @jennyalbersauthor,

Happy Launch Day to my friend, @jennyalbersauthor, and her book, Courageously Expecting: 30 Days of Encouragement for Pregnancy After Loss! 🎉

I had the honor of reading and endorsing this book last summer, and I know it is going to be such an encouraging book for so many in the loss and pregnancy after loss community.

Courageously Expecting helps readers find strength in themselves and within their faith to bravely open up their mama hearts to hope and dare to believe in the possibility of bringing home a baby after a previous pregnancy loss.

This book is available today at Amazon and your favorite retailer. Congratulations, Jenny!
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#pregnancyafterloss #courageouslyexpectingbook #themotherhoodtherapist #newreleasetuesday #newbooktuesday #bookstagram #booklaunch #courageouslyexpecting #courageousmama #PALSupport #PALAwareness #lifeafterloss #hopeoverfear #hopeafterloss

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