Dr. Rick Goldstein, Program Director of the Robert’s Program recently conducted a study with bereaved parents that had lost a baby/child to SIDS. The findings are being used to help pediatricians distinguish the difference between PTSD, PPD, and depression.
“Prolonged grief disorder (PGD) is common, distressing and persistent in mothers whose infants have died from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and have lasting implications for their health and well-being.”
Alison Jacobson, CEO of First Candle and loss mom says, “Dr. Goldstein’s study demonstrates that the grief a mother experiences after the death of her baby is unlike any other.”
“As Dr. Goldstein notes in his study the painful ‘pangs of grief’ although not a mental disorder per se, are a key feature of pathological grief and the strength and severity of separation distress suggests the importance of attachment bonds between mothers and their deceased babies. This can have an impact on a woman’s bonding experience in a subsequent pregnancy or their parenting of other children.”
Please see the article on First Candle’s website here
-This article came at such a crucial time for me. I have been having a difficult time throughout the day thinking about my son, recalling memories-begging myself not to forget. A day consists of me constantly trying to talk myself out of breaking down. Trying to be “normal” (as a friend, parent, wife, etc…) is mentally exhausting. I actively try and learn how to cope in the best way possible. I cry anywhere, need timeouts, take deep breaths, count, run, sleep, take my medicine, drink a glass of wine, journal, read… nothing takes away the pain, sadness, confusion, and anxiety.
The Daily Walk: Living life without our son 