eMdloti resident speaks out on letting go of a child you’ve never met
Falling pregnant was the "silver lining" for Belinda Kelly and fiance, Craig Condy who had to cancel their October wedding due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I THINK the biggest myth about miscarriage is that life goes on as normal afterward.”
These are the words of eMdloti resident, Belinda Kelly (37), who wrote a blog post to encourage others after she tragically miscarried at nine weeks.
Kelly shared her story with the Northglen News, to highlight Infant Loss Awareness Month in October.
Falling pregnant was the “silver lining” for Kelly and fiance, Craig Condy who had to cancel their October wedding due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We were both really excited, it was something we really wanted. I’m 37, so the plan was to get married and start trying to fall pregnant straight away. Because we had cancelled our wedding, we chatted to our families and they were supportive of our plan to start trying for children now and get married later. I was very lucky, I fell pregnant within two months. It seemed perfect,” she said.
Also read: ‘It was fight or flight, and I chose fight.’
On the day of their first ultrasound, the couple were left devastated by the news that Kelly had miscarried. They held a ‘letting-go ritual’ to find some closure.
“We wrote the baby a letter and put on some music and then burnt the letter. That was helpful,” she said.
As the couple grappled with the shock of their loss, Kelly faced the labour process.
“It was very draining and emotional. I have never experienced pain like that in my life, I was absolutely floored. It was crazy, but it empowered me as well, every woman who falls pregnant is thinking about what the birth will be like- now I know,” she added.
Also read: Durban North resident puts preaching into practice
What followed was a grieving period like no other. Kelly wrote of her turmoil in her blog: “The loss I have felt from this miscarriage has been like nothing I have ever experienced before and for the two weeks following I barely got off the couch as I surrendered to the myriad of grieving emotions that presented, both physical and emotional.”
Her blog, Belle Esprit boasts a collection of posts on health and wellness.
For more information, visit Kelly’s blog via: www.belleesprit.com.au.
Caxton Local Media Covid-19 reporting
Dear reader, As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19. Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za). At the time of going to press, the contents of this feature mirrored South Africa’s lockdown regulations.
You can also sign up for news alerts on Telegram. Send us a Telegram message (not an SMS) with your name and surname (ONLY) to 060 532 5532.
