Getting the news involved

Today I decided that I want my voice heard.  I want people to know we are out here.  So, I wrote to the news stations in my area.  I wrote to FOX, ABC, NBC and Good Morning America to try to get Pregnancy and Infant awareness month out there.  I thought I would share my email here.

Hello,

My name is Jen  and I am writing in regards to a story that I think should be out there.  The month of October is not only breast cancer awareness but also in 1988 President Ronald Regan proclaimed October as Pregnancy and Infant loss awareness month.  On October 15^th grieving families across the world will be lighting candles for babies that are no longer with us.  We call them our angel babies. 
 

Did you know?

·         There are about 4.4 million confirmed pregnancies in the U.S. every year.

·         900,000 to 1 million of those end in pregnancy losses EVERY year.

·         More than 500,000 pregnancies each year end in miscarriage (occurring during the first 20 weeks).

·         Approximately 26,000 end in stillbirth(considered stillbirth after 20 weeks)

·         Approximately 19,000 end in infant death during the first month.

·         Approximately 39,000 end in infant death during the first year.

·         Approximately 1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage; some estimates are as high as 1 in 3. If you include loss that occurs before a positive pregnancy test, some estimate that 40% of all conceptions result in loss.

·         Approximately 75% of all miscarriages occur in the first trimester.

·         An estimated 80% of all miscarriages are single miscarriages. The vast majority of women suffering one miscarriage can expect to have a normal pregnancy next time.

·         An estimated 19% of the adult population has experienced the death of a child (this includes miscarriages through adult-aged children).

My husband and I are  one of these statistics.  We lost our baby girl Lydia at 27 weeks gestation due to an appendicitis.  Most pregnant couples do not know how common it is for a pregnant women to experience an appendicitis during pregnancy.  When the fact is, an Appendectomy is the single most common surgery in pregnant women in the US today. 
Many people don’t know:

·         1 in 766 pregnant women experience an Acute Appendicitis. If during the first and second trimester 33% lost their babies, 14% went through premature labor and of these Leaving only 53% had no negative results at all. If an appendix ruptures 1 in 3 women die and 2 of 3 babies.

When this happened to me I had no idea what the warning signs were.  So when I was misdiagnosed I didn’t think anything of it.  Here are the signs

• Sudden pain that begins on the right side of the lower abdomen
• Sudden pain that begins around your navel and often shifts to your lower right abdomen
• Pain that worsens if you cough, walk or make other jarring movements
• Nausea and vomiting
• Loss of appetite
• Low-grade fever that may worsen as the illness progresses
• Constipation or diarrhea
• Abdominal bloating

I’m not really sure what needs to be done to get a story like this out there but I figured I would start here.  We in the US have all been trying to bring awareness to diseases like Breast Cancer, AIDS, ALS, it is time that these grieving families get the awareness they deserve too.  Bring awareness to October 15^th for these precious babies lost too soon.  Let their families voices and stories be heard. 

I would love to talk to someone further about this all.  Please contact me via email at xxxx or I can be called on my cell phone at xxx-xxx-xxxx

Thanks,
Jen