Parents often feel guilty after a miscarriage

American research published in Obstetrics and Gynaecology this week indicates that many parents experience guilt following a miscarriage.  Parents were surveyed using a voluntary online questionnaire and the 1,084 participants were aged 18-69 years from all across the United States.  47% of parents surveyed felt guilty, 41% reported feeling that they had done something wrong, 41% felt alone, and 28% felt ashamed following a miscarriage.

Other results found that a there was a lot of misunderstanding about the subject.  Such as about how common miscarriage is (the majority of respondents significantly overestimated how rare it is, thinking it occurred in less than 5% of pregnancies whereas in reality it occurs in about one in four pregnancies).  Also there were many widespread misconceptions about the causes of miscarriage, including stressful events (76%), lifting a heavy objects (64%), previous use of an intrauterine devices (28%), or previous use of oral contraceptives (22%).

Some respondents highlighted the importance of hearing from others who have gone through the same experience. Almost half said they felt less alone when friends disclosed their own miscarriage and 28% stated that celebrities’ disclosure of miscarriage had eased their feelings of isolation.

Dr Zev Williams, the director of the programme for early and recurrent pregnancy loss, said: “The results of our survey indicate widespread misconceptions about the prevalence and causes of miscarriage. Because miscarriage is very common but rarely discussed, many women and couples feel very isolated and alone after suffering a miscarriage. We need to better educate people about miscarriage, which could help reduce the shame and stigma associated with it.”

Read the study abstract here 

A Guardian article can be viewed here