"It is estimated that one-in-five pregnancies, in the UK, ends in miscarriage." 

However, despite this shocking regularity, the occurrence of a miscarriage, whether shaped by British prudishness or driven by British attitudes of remaining resolute and unemotional in times of adversity, is rarely spoken about. Recently, tides have changed somewhat, with celebrity tweets about miscarriage leading to more  "me too" conversations. However the stigma surrounding miscarriage is still a strong one.

Having seen my wife go through a miscarriage, I have experienced the emotions that accompany such an event. The feelings of helplessness, the 'what-if' thoughts and the shame of feeling upset because it is so common!

Fortunately, Tommy's is a charity that understands this suffering. The charity carries out invaluable research into the causes and prevention of pregnancy complications, miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth and neonatal death and provides support to families who have experienced baby loss. They are often at the forefront of what later becomes national guidance, evidenced by their recent studies linking vitamin D deficiency to miscarriage:

Vitamin D deficiency linked to higher risk of miscarriage | Tommy's (tommys.org)

I was introduced to Tommy's by my friend Anj, an ardent support of the charity. Anj and her husband, Jamie, are two of my closest friends and two of the most inspirational people I know. Their daughter, and my goddaughter, Summer, was born on 9th March 2020, at just under 20 weeks. Despite this, Summer lived for an hour, showing incredible resolve, stamina and stubbornness; all traits she'd inherited from her parents. In the difficult period that followed, Anj channelled her grief into a blog that has become a wonderful tool for people navigating the complicated emotions of baby loss (feel free to take a look via the link below).

Mumoirs – This is my story

I am running for Tommy's in memory of Summer to not only raise money for a wonderful charity, but to help raise awareness of the issues faced by too many parents who often suffer in silence.

Thank you for visiting my JustGiving page and please give generously.