Memorializing the loss of a baby can help parents grieve. Rituals like holding a ceremony, planting a tree, or gathering with friends to pray for the child’s soul can provide meaning and comfort.

Pregnancy loss is incredibly difficult. It involves loss in the present and of a future—all the potential that this person held for your life, all the dreams you had for him or her.

Walking with a loved one grieving a miscarriage is a privileged place and requires particular care. Listen, let them cry, and be present in their loss, especially around the baby’s due date. Avoid hurtful phrases that minimize the loss. Instead, offer to bring meals or help with family responsibilities, such as looking after a couple’s other children.

“Don’t try to make it easier by saying platitudes. Just be with them. Be present.”

Prayerful reflections are available for those affected by miscarriage, stillbirth, infant loss, or a life-limiting prenatal diagnosis. These reflections allow mothers, fathers, siblings, grandparents, and others to sit and reflect at their own pace on what they’re experiencing.