The Empty Arms Podcast -- real stories of miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss.

Amber joins the podcast to talk about her daughter Nash, the precious one she lost at birth. Amber talks with me about her pregnancy, the devastating diagnosis Nash received while in utero, the ways she coped with navigating the grief that news brought as well as her experience delivering and ultimately saying goodbye to the daughter her heart longed to keep. Amber bravely talks about how her and...

Jenny Davidson joins me on the podcast. In addition to making BBC's 100 Women in 2018, Jenny is a fierce advocate for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and aged-out foster youth. This passion for making the world a better place for the children that get to stay comes deep from within her own heart and soul as she too carries several babies in her heart and not her a...

Misha is no stranger to the havoc pregnancy loss and infertility can wrek on a woman and a marriage. Misha joins me on the podcast to share her own experience of walking through storm after storm as her and her partner began the process of starting their family. After years of unsuccessfully getting pregnant on her own, she began walking through IVF, a decision that came with many reservations and...

Though Ryan came into this world at a mere 2 lbs, he sure took up a tremendous amount of space in his families heart. Deb Dilworth, a fellow loss mom and current board member of Empty Arms of Greater Bangor comes on the podcast and shares her story of navigating the birth of a child with Trisomy 18. Ryan lived 5 weeks and in that time, changed the course of Deb and her husbands life. Deb shares wi...

This week, for a special Father's Day episode, I chat with Rob, Chris & Jay. These guys are the founders and the heart and soul of The Sad Dad's Club. The Sad Dad's club is a non-profit based out of Southern Maine that helps fellow bereaved fathers navigate life after loss by nurturing a supportive community and providing access to mental health services.  We talk about each of these guys' respect...

From the beginning of her career, Elise has been drawn to families experiencing pregnancy and infant loss. Her innate ability to nurture and comfort others in their grief has guided Elise through many different positions in the nursing field, including postpartum labor and delivery as well as working in the NICU. On this episode, Elise opens up about her experience with helping families navigate l...

Loss mom, it has been an honor and privilege reading these letters to you this week. I am so profoundly touched at the love and hope so many loss moms wrote in with. I am so touched by the kindness and healing written from the hearts of moms who at one point in their journey didn't think they could take another breath. Loss mom, if nothing else sticks from this series, please let this stick. You a...

Today, we think about and hold tight the mothers who might be experiencing Mother's Day for the first time without her precious baby in her arms. I want to share with you some comfort that I have found along the way as you prepare to face your first mothers day without your baby. No matter how long or short you carried your baby in your womb or in your arms, you are that Childs mothers. Tune in as...

One thing that struck me about the letters that I received was how many I got from loss moms making special mention or thanking the loss moms who came before us. Today's episode is dedicated to the mothers who paved the way, the grandmothers who pioneered what it meant to be 1 in 4.  One of the letters read on this episode was taken from a beautiful book that we hold dear at the non-profit. The bo...

Be sure not to miss this 6 part series as we lead up to Mother's Day. Surviving the loss of your child is a pain unlike most that people experience in their life. It is not only the tangible loss of your child but the dreams and hopes that you have for your life and that baby, gone too. Not many understand what it feels like to mourn the loss of a future but you do. You know what it feels like to...

Be sure not to miss this 6 part series as we lead up to Mother's Day. I know this deep pain leading up to Mother's Day because my own arms ache in the absence of our babies that were taken from us too soon.   For three years, mothers day has represented emptiness on a day in which the fullness of motherhood is intended to be celebrated. Instead of immeasurable joy, I wake feeling insurmountable pa...

Be sure not to miss this 6 part series as we lead up to Mother's Day. Loss is a thread that ties generations of women together. Our mothers before us, our friends and sisters beside us and our daughters ahead of us - none immune from loss. And because of this beautiful bond we share as loss mothers, I have asked our sisters and mothers and grandmothers amongst us to write us love letters. The lett...

Join us as I - the host of the Empty Arms Podcast - share my story. Erin Hatch joins me and we switch seats as she interviews me and asks me deep questions about loss, about grief and about purpose.  After TWO heartbreaking back to back losses, I found myself in a place where I could either drown from the pain or use it to bring forth light and healing into the lives of others like me who hold a b...

Taryn's daughter June was diagnosed with Stage IV HR MYCN amplified neuroblastoma when she was just 8 months old after many months of sleepless nights and a mother's instinctual worry. Taryn recounts the early days of the diagnosis, the rollercoaster of emotions she felt along the journey and then openly discusses the depths of grief she experienced after her daughters passing as well as the tumul...

Kayla's son Milo was diagnosed with a massive tumor on his neck while in utero. It was determined during testing that Dr. Christopher Hartnick, an Otolaryngologist who specializes in pediatric care, would be a part of the amazing team working to save the life of both Kayla and Milo.  While determining the roadmap in which to safely bring Milo into this world, it was decided that Milo had to make i...

Laura found out 16 years ago that she was carrying a son whom she named Willows. Her and her then long distance boyfriend (now husband) found out pretty early on in their pregnancy that Willows had a heart condition that would ultimately result in his devastating death. Through deep introspection and strength, Laura and Eric decided that they would carry this son to the end or whatever time that a...

There is no world in which Alyssa could have imagined living in without her daughter, Mariana. But at 38 weeks pregnant, Alyssa had to say goodbye. In this episode, Alyssa talks about the moments leading up to finding out there was no heartbeat as well as the devastating process of delivering her daughter stillborn. Alyssa also talks about her incredibly traumatic birth and how that has impacted h...

After Brittney and her husband got married, they pursued starting a family like so many others. Little did they know that their journey to parenthood would be filled with several early misscarriages as well as the decision to medically terminate their daughter who was diagnosed with a terminal illness in utero.  Brittney talks with me about the early losses and they ways those impacted her early o...

Deb Neuman joins me on the podcast! Deb is the President & CEO of the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce. Her list of professional accomplishments is long and for good reason. Deb is a remarkable woman in the Bangor Region and has found success in leading others while serving causes greater than herself.    It's been 35 years since her losses and Deb still remembers the clothes she was wearing and...

In this episode I interview Kat Sodawasser. Kat is a two-time loss mom who lives in Nebraska. Many years ago, Kat and I crossed paths through a mutual friend. Nine years later we reconnect over two parallel losses and a rainbow baby. Kat opens her heart and shares with us the details of her first miscarriage along with the sadness that followed. Her and her husband would try for another baby and g...

In this episode, I spend time with Erin Hatch as together we tackle the unimaginable heartache that comes from carrying a baby in your heart and not your arms. Erin has walked through the loss of her twin boys, Mason & Marshall in 2015 with several subsequent losses thereafter. We discuss the suprise adoption of her son Maddox as well as the gift of her daughters and the rollercoaster of pregnancy...