Backstory: we found out our much-wanted baby had severe abnormalities which would have severely affected her quality of life. We had a TFMR at 19 weeks. After a 3-day labour, she was born alive, somehow. She passed away a few hours later.
Slowly, we’ve been coming to terms with what happened and the future ahead of us (conceiving a healthy child is unlikely). While we are doing ‘normal’ things, the pain is still there.
The due date is approaching - it’s less than a month away. Next week, I would have been beginning maternity leave. The emotional pain is worsening for me (especially as I have a close friend whose baby is due just a few weeks after ours should have been). DH is reluctant to talk about it at all and I feel so alone. I go to counselling every three weeks and am glad of an outlet. However, my last session is next week and I feel worried about burdening my friends with this as I’m aware friendship is a two-way street. They were great at the beginning but I don’t want to drain emotional energy from them. I want them to want to spend time with me the same way that they did before all of this happened.
To all of you who are or have been in a similarly difficult position, how did you cope with what should have been your final weeks of pregnancy?