WASHINGTON — New legislation on Capitol Hill aims to raise awareness and compassion about a very personal experience that so many families share. The March of Dimes estimates 10-15 percent of all pregnancies end in miscarriage. October is pregnancy loss awareness month. Boston 25 News anchor Kerry Kavanaugh is spotlighting a Hyde Park mother’s story of loss and healing plus the legislation in the works in Washington to better support these families.
Stigma and shame
Families who experience loss while family building often suffer in silence.
“It’s an eternal pain,” says Hyde Park mother, Nneka Hall.
Hall’s daughter Annaya Marie Edwards was stillborn on August 27, 2010. 11 years later, Hall says it still feels like yesterday.
“I miss her. I miss who she would have been,” Hall said. “The scab does form over the heart. However, you always wonder who that child would be.”
Hall was at her 39-week checkup when doctors could no longer find the baby’s heartbeat.
“And not having any answers made it harder,” Hall said. “And then having people say, ‘well, what did you do’.”
Hall said it took years before she learned doctors had missed the chance to diagnose her preeclampsia. She said she had excess levels of protein in her urine, but doctors never diagnosed the condition.
“Why do you share your story,” Kavanaugh asked.
“I share my story hoping that others can share theirs. Because when you do share you, there’s always someone who hears you and they’re able to talk about it,” Hall said. “It’s a way to say to others, I’m here 11 years later, and I survived.”
Hall says she wants these stories to come out of the shadows. When she lost Annaya, she says she suffered anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and tremendous grief, and she was largely without resources and care.
The Push for Change
“Those that experienced pregnancy loss should be met with care, and compassion, and resources,” said Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-MA.
The Congresswoman is co-sponsoring the Support Through Loss Act along with Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois.
It would:
- Invest $45 million each year to the National Institutes of Health for federal research into miscarriage and pregnancy loss.
- Require federal agencies to develop and disseminate public information on pregnancy loss, prevalence, and treatment options.
- And ensure employers provide at least three days of paid leave for workers to address health needs.
“We’re talking about millions of families who have been impacted in this way, and not had access to the cultural compassion, the workplace supports,” Pressley said.
The bill would also cover families who’ve endured recurring pregnancy loss, failed adoptions and fertility treatments and surrogacy.
“It aims to shed light on these shared experiences. And then just to help ensure that those experiencing the loss of a pregnancy are fully supported with access to resources, workforce supports, and of course, patient-centered care,” Pressley said.
Non-profit organization Resolve New England (RNE) told Boston 25 News it strongly endorses the Support Through Loss Act.
“Through this legislation, Representative Ayanna Pressley and Senator Tammy Duckworth have demonstrated their understanding that losses experienced while trying to grow your family need to be honored, that the mental health of all involved is critical, and that more research about recurrent pregnancy loss is needed,” said RNE Executive Director Kate Weldon LeBlanc. “We greatly appreciate that this bill includes not only miscarriage but also unsuccessful fertility treatments, unexpected changes in adoption, or surrogacy disruptions. These all can be emotionally devastating.”
Nneka Hall says her loss forever changed her and left a permanent void in her family. New laws can’t take away the pain. But she says they can give families something she never had when Annaya died.
“Time, this bill would give a family time. So, things would slow things down. So, they did not have to rush, they would not have to rush through the process,” Hall said.
Kavanaugh will continue to follow the progress of this legislation.
If you have suffered a loss while family building and are seeking resources, help is out there.
Resolve New England | Building Families, Building Community
Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Association
American Society for Reproductive Medicine - ASRM
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