Faces of Loss, Faces of Hope

For the first few weeks after Olivia was born, while I was recovering from my c-section, all I did was lay on the couch with my computer on my lap. Kurt was working nights, so while he was gone, I would watch tv and scour the internet for support. I didn't know what I was looking for, I remember googling "infant loss", and "premature babies who die in the NICU", and "preemie loss", and then going down the lists of search results, trying to find something or someone that I could identify with. Eventually, I found a wonderful message board which has basically been serving as my support group for the last seven and a half months. But it took me awhile to find it. I was completely new to the blog world, and didn't really know how to connect with people like I do now. I remember talking to my mom on the phone about how I wish it was easier to find women who were dealing with the same thing I was... because most things on the internet dealing with babies and moms are for moms whose babies are alive, and home with them.

A few weeks ago, I started following a blog called "Dear Stevie... ". It's written by Kristin, a beautiful woman whose daughter Stevie Joy was stillborn on May 8th. Yesterday, Kristin started an amazing project that I'm really excited about. She too, felt lonely after she lost Stevie, and wanted to get her hands on anything and everything she could that was baby-loss related. She found out, just like I did, that if you search in the right places, there are A LOT of us. There are lots of moms who lost their babies, that want to tell the stories of their lost little ones, share them with other women who understand, and begin frienships with those women who just get it.

Kristin's new project, Faces of Loss, Faces of Hope, was designed to bring all of us together. She wanted to create a place where we could all share our stories in one common place, and have the opportunity to communicate with women whose stories we identify with...  without having to spend hours upon hours googling and searching, just to find someone who understands. She is also hoping that Faces of Loss, Faces of Hope will help raise awareness for issues related to pregnancy loss. I love her passion for wanting to help other women feel less alone, and I think this project is something that's certainly needed.

I know there are lots of Baby Loss Mamas that read my blog, and I want to encourage you all to visit Kristin's new blog and share your stories!