Latest news with #pregnancyloss
ABC News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Newborn baby dies from rare genetic condition which scans failed to pick up
Moments after Dylan and Rochelle Evrard were pronounced husband and wife, they were showered with pink confetti. Cyndi Lauper's Girls Just Want to Have Fun played over a loudspeaker as they celebrated with family and friends. WARNING: This article includes information and images relating to pregnancy loss and neonatal loss, which some readers may find distressing. The newlyweds were expecting their first baby and their Gold Coast wedding in March 2023 doubled as a gender reveal. Rochelle was 22 weeks' pregnant. Milli Rose Remidy Evrard was conceived naturally after years of trying. Rochelle had severe endometriosis — when tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows outside the uterus, affecting a woman's ability to conceive. Surgery paved the way for pregnancy. The Evrards' baby daughter was born by caesarean section in the Pindarra Private Hospital at Benowa, on the southern Gold Coast, about four months after their wedding. Their tiny, much-wanted, baby girl had two broken arms and two broken legs after the delivery. Scans and tests during the pregnancy had failed to pick up Milli had an extremely rare genetic condition, despite Rochelle complaining about failing to feel her moving during the pregnancy. "My whole pregnancy, I was expressing that I was a bit concerned," she said. "I never had a kick count." Within hours of her birth on July 14, Milli was transferred to the Mater Mothers' Hospital neonatal critical care unit (NCCU) in Brisbane. She opened her eyes and locked them onto her dad Dylan as she was placed in an ambulance for the drive north to Brisbane. Milli died in her parents' arms six days later. Amid the grief, they feel blessed they had almost a week with her. "She was beautiful," Rochelle said. "When we touched her, she reacted. She couldn't move her body but her little toes would go or her little fingers. The Evrards' home at Mudgeeraba, in the Gold Coast hinterland, had been meticulously prepared to take their baby home. They had a baby capsule in their car, a baby bath in the bathroom and a nursery decorated in pink. "I remember years ago somebody saying, 'No one ever prepares you for an empty capsule in the car when your baby dies,'" Rochelle said. "When we were in the last day with Milli, I just said, 'Someone needs to go find our car and remove the capsule.' "And so, someone did, and for months I didn't even know who had it and I didn't care but I just did not want to drive home with an empty car capsule." Rochelle was 37 at the time and unsure whether she would be able to have any more children. "Things were not on our side fertility-wise." Before she died, doctors took skin biopsies from Milli for genetic testing. Months later, the tests revealed she had nemaline rod myopathy, a musculoskeletal disorder that affects about one in 50,000 live births. Further testing of both Rochelle and Dylan found neither carried the genetic variant that resulted in Milli's condition. Queensland Children's Hospital clinical geneticist David Coman said her disorder was caused by a mutation in the ACTA1 gene. Rather than being inherited from her parents, Professor Coman said the genetic variant was known medically as a "de novo mutation" — a gene that spontaneously changed at the point of conception or during early cell division. "If you can figure why that happens, you'll win a Nobel prize for genetics," he said. Milli had what was effectively a small spelling mistake in her DNA with big consequences. Her muscles were so weak she had to be put on life support soon after her birth. Professor Coman said her bones were also affected. "Babies who don't move in the womb often have really thin bones," he said. "It's kind of like the equivalent of osteoporosis. It you have surgery, and you lie in bed for six weeks, you lose a lot of bone density." Professor Coman said sophisticated genetic sequencing did not always pinpoint a cause of death, but it was important to try. "In a third of rare presentations, we don't get an answer … so, we do have families that are in limbo," he said. "But for this family and families where we get an answer, even if it's a life-limiting answer, there is still what we call dignity in diagnosis. It gave them information. That's really important for the grieving process as well, an understanding of what happened and why. Armed with the knowledge they had not passed the disorder on to their daughter, the Evrards began in vitro fertilisation (IVF) about four months after Milli died. After a miscarriage and further endometriosis surgery, Rochelle fell pregnant again in September last year. Huey Hendrix Evrard was born in the Gold Coast Private Hospital on May 2. Rochelle, who has a tattoo on her right leg in memory of Milli, admits she struggled through Huey's pregnancy after losing her first-born. "Even though I knew he was healthy, and he didn't have Milli's condition, I just kept saying: 'What if he dies? What if he just dies?'" the 39-year-old said. "I wasn't guaranteed that he was going to be here at the end, and it was very stressful. "At one stage, I was going in three times a week. I was going in very panicked, quite often for reassurance … just into the maternity ward. I'd go sit in there for a few hours. They would check his heart rate and his oxygen and just kind of reassure me." Not even three months into their life with Huey, Rochelle is relishing the constant feeding routine — even the late night and early morning wakeups. "He sounds like a goat in the middle of the night. He's very loud," she said with a laugh. "Last night, we were up probably every two hours, but I just love it. You appreciate it a whole lot more when you didn't have it last time, you really do. "Huey's been very healing — more than I could have imagined."
Daily Mail
22-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Christian mommy blogger with 11 children sparks backlash for bizarre miscarriage video
A Christian parenting influencer with 11 children is facing backlash after sharing a since-deleted video of her children pushing on her belly after she suffered a miscarriage. Karissa Collins, who boasts over a million followers online, first announced her pregnancy loss last month in an emotional post. In the post, the 41-year-old revealed that she decided to continue carrying the foetus despite miscarrying. 'I went to the ER due to a lot of bleeding over a month ago. The ER told me I was miscarrying and had a blighted ovum. (A pregnancy where the baby never forms. I've had one before with a terrible miscarriage.),' she explained. 'They also informed me that I had a large hemorrhage. I spent the next week mourning the pregnancy. I found an amazing OB that would see me a week later just to follow up on what I'd been told. I finally got to see the sono and i saw a baby. But there was no heartbeat,' she continued. I've spent the last 3 weeks praying over this baby day and night. I just left the OB. The baby still has no heartbeat and is smaller than before. So I'm still pregnant but will miscarry soon.' She then opened up about her decision to continue carrying the foetus. 'I opt to let my body do it on its own. It would be easier to schedule the surgery rather than walk around carrying a baby that isn't alive. But I want this baby to have a peaceful exit,' she said. 'Some things people might not know. Miscarriage isn't as simple as you bleed and it's over.' A few days prior to the post, Collins came under fire for sharing a video of some of her younger children pushing on her stomach. 'My kids saw my stomach and they just died laughing, they were squeezing it like slime and Squishmallows. It was the funniest thing. I never wanted to forget that moment of them finding so much joy in my belly,' she explained. She then admitted that her four-year-old daughter may have hit her stomach a little 'too hard'. 'I did say "ow" in the video, but they were not hurting me," she insisted. 'They were not hurting anything inside of me.' Collins also drew criticism for a comment she made in the deleted video in which she compared her pregnant belly to a 'sensory toy' for her children to play with. The Christian momfluencer, who has had a total of four miscarriages, has been attacked by followers on both TikTok and Instagram over her recent comments. 'Hi Karissa. Please understand that refusing miscarriage care is putting you at serious risk of developing sepsis. For the sake of your own health (and as a result, your family's wellbeing), please accept the medical interventions being recommended by your OB/GYN,' one fan begged. 'Maybe your body is trying to tell you ENOUGH,' wrote another. 'Holding onto a miscarriage for 6 weeks is not natural. That's why God gives us medicine. a third commented. 'You really need to stop. Your body can't handle any more babies. You need to be around for your children,' wrote a fourth. Karissa and her husband Mandrae Collins launched their family YouTube channel in 2017. However, she ended up finding more success on TikTok, where she currently boasts more than 800,000 followers. The couple have previously admitted to wanting 'as many children as the Lord wants to give' them. Collins homeschools all of her children and is a devout Christian who has served as a worship leader in multiple churches over the years.
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Why Influencer Karissa Collins Is Letting Her ‘Body Do Its Thing' During Miscarriage Amid Backlash
Parenting influencer Karissa Collins is detailing how she is coping with pregnancy loss in the midst of online backlash. 'I am currently, possibly, still pregnant with a missed miscarriage baby,' Collins, 41, said in a Thursday, July 17, TikTok video. 'I have not fully miscarried the baby, which I found out about a month ago. I have been carrying this miscarriage … anywhere from four to six weeks.' She added, 'The baby passed six weeks ago, but it takes a long time for your body to figure it out.' Karissa announced in a since-deleted TikTok video earlier in July that she and her husband, Mandrae Collins, were expecting their 12th baby. She later revealed that she had suffered a pregnancy loss, her fourth miscarriage overall. Influencer Karissa Collins Apologizes for Video of Her 11 Kids Hitting Her Stomach Amid Miscarriage 'I found out in the ER about six weeks ago that there was no baby. I spent a lot of time mourning,' Karissa recalled. 'I mourned this pregnancy for a while. I took a good two weeks off, got really close to God … and you want to know if you did anything wrong. I went through all those feelings.' Karissa then went to visit her OB-GYN, who claimed 'there was a baby,' but it did not have a heartbeat. The fetal tissue subsequently started to 'disintegrate.' 'It takes your body a while to figure out that you don't have a viable pregnancy and to expel [the tissue],' the social media personality explained. 'There are three options that doctors give you. They give you the option of letting your body do what your body does, [which it] will expel the pregnancy … [or] the abortion pill, and the third option is a D&C.' Karissa, who had several D&Cs in the past, opted to allow the fetal tissue to pass on its own this time. Celebrity Rainbow Babies: Pink, Nicole Kidman and More Stars Who Welcomed Children After Miscarriages 'I always opt for letting my body do its thing,' Karissa said. 'Miscarriage is not cut and dry. It's not black and white. I think people think that when you miscarry, it's [like], 'Oh, it's all gone and it's done, and you go on with your life.' But, you don't. A lot of women have missed miscarriages. … It can go weeks and months.' She continued, 'At all costs, I say, 'Always let your body do what it was meant to do. Don't do any interventions unless an emergency is necessary.' … I just believe the healthiest option is to do what your body was created to do.' As Karissa dealt with her pregnancy loss, she shared a since-deleted video of several of her younger children playfully hitting her belly, which sparked widespread backlash from social media users. 'I apologize. When I posted that video, what was on other people's minds was not on my mind at all,' she said on Thursday. 'I never thought of it that way. It was a cute moment with me and my children. I didn't think anyone would even watch it.' Karissa noted that her kids had been squeezing her belly 'like Slime and Squishmallows' as if it were a sensory toy. 't was the funniest thing. I never wanted to forget that moment of them finding so much joy in my belly,' Karissa said. 'They were not hurting me. They were not hurting anything inside of me.' Solve the daily Crossword
BBC News
11-07-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Miscarriage: 'Don't tell me my baby wasn't meant to be'
"There was probably something wrong with your baby", "you could always try again", "it wasn't meant to be".These are just a sample of the comments Siobhan Gorman experienced when her baby died 16 weeks into her pregnancy."It's not out of malice, I found a lot of people just don't know what to say," said the teacher from 35, was home alone when she went into labour and gave birth to her baby experience has left her with both post-traumatic stress disorder and a determination to educate others about the reality of miscarriage, as well as how to support those who experience it. Warning: Article contains graphic description of miscarriage which some readers may find upsetting. On 23 January last year, Siobhan began experiencing sickness, pains in her bump and blood loss so went to an emergency gynaecology a urine test she was told her symptoms were most likely signs an infection and was sent home with antibiotics. With her partner away in Italy she stayed home to rest but the following evening felt a shooting pain in her bump so intense that it made her drop to the floor."And then my waters broke and I ended up giving birth on my bathroom floor alone," she said. Unable to reach her phone she tried yelling for her neighbours, but her shouts went she could do was remain in the bathroom, holding her tiny baby. "My baby was alive but 16 weeks is too young," she said through tears."I'm holding my baby and I could tell that there was nothing I could do."My baby had 10 tiny fingers and toes and eyes and ears and was perfectly formed but was just tiny, the size of a pear." She was eventually able to get to her phone and call her mother who was nearby. "I didn't even say what happened, I just said 'you need to get to the house'," she said. An ambulance was called for but there was a long wait so her father drove her to the nearest hospital."I stood in A&E with my baby in a towel," she said. "I was told that my baby had died and my world just changed." Siobhan said she was able to find support from charities including Morgan's Wings and Petals. She said her school were amazingly supportive and she was able take 16 weeks sick she welcomed news that parents who experience a miscarriage before 24 weeks of pregnancy will be entitled to bereavement leave under a planned change to the Employment Rights Bill."I wasn't ill, my baby had died," she said. After a six-month wait for a post mortem, which did not provide any answers, they were able to have a funeral. Birth certificates are not issued for babies born before 24 weeks England, parents who lose a baby before 24 weeks of pregnancy can receive a certificate in recognition of their loss but no equivalent is available in means the only paperwork Siobhan has to show Archie existed is a cremation months on, Siobhan can't believe how naïve she was about miscarriage until it happened to her. "I assumed that you would bleed and you'd be told that there's no heartbeat, I didn't even consider the multiple other forms of baby loss that are out there," she said. If a baby dies before 24 completed weeks of pregnancy, it is known as a miscarriage but Siobhan prefers the term baby loss to describe what she went through."I had a baby and my baby died," she said. Jenni Whitmore, 41, from Brynna in Rhondda Cynon Taf, has an 11-year-old daughter and has had three also feels uncomfortable about some of the terminology."When you're told that your pregnancy can't progress anymore, you're not advised 'I'm really sorry your baby's died', you're just told your pregnancy is not viable, which yes in medical terms is correct but the terminology used needs improved," she said."We never refer to our miscarriage as a foetus, it's always 'our baby', 'my daughter's sibling'."Jenni's first two miscarriages were in October 2018, at six weeks, and in March 2019, at 10 weeks, following fertility treatment. Her third miscarriage was in February 2023 after becoming pregnant was 13 weeks pregnant when she was told there was no heartbeat and chose to stay at home and let nature take its course."It is like going through labour," she said."You're just left to deal with that at home with the advice to take paracetamol which doesn't touch it, obviously, and then once it has happened, you physically have to flush that toilet and basically flush what is referred to medically as 'product' away."But of course, mentally we know that that was our baby... and I don't think that ever leaves you." Like Siobhan, she has also experienced hurtful comments from those around her."We were met with comments of 'at least it was an early loss' and 'you can try again' but we knew it was the end of the road for us, which I think was quite difficult to process," she said. How did these comments make her feel?"It's anger, just anger," she said. "I think it's just ignorance to be honest."From the minute you've seen that pregnancy test with the two lines, you've prepared your next 10, 20, 30 years. You've planned out the rest of your life."Other people in her life just stayed away."That was quite hard because you just crave that little bit of support," said. So what is the right thing to say to someone who has had a miscarriage?"We had friends that turned up and said nothing but gave us hugs, which was really appreciated," said Jenni. "Or for someone to just say 'this is totally rubbish, I can't change it for you, but I'm here and if you need anything you know where the phone is'."Siobhan said the comment that she found the hardest was: "It wasn't meant to be.""It's the baby that has made me a mother and I don't have my child, but I am a mother," she said would prefer people simply admitted that they did not know what to said seeing other women's pregnancy announcements, gender reveal parties and baby showers on social media had been hard."I'm still able to be happy for them, you can have emotions that run alongside each other so you can be happy for somebody else, but still sad for yourself," she said."It's really hard to see what could have been but it also made me realise what a miracle it is." Details of help and support with miscarriage and pregnancy-related issues are available at BBC Action Line
Irish Times
09-07-2025
- Health
- Irish Times
Senator shows Seanad picture of her seven-week scan as ‘only evidence' pregnancy existed
Holding up a picture of her seven-week scan in Seanad Éireann, Sinn Féin Senator Nicole Ryan said it was the 'only evidence' that her ' pregnancy ever existed'. The scan was taken after she began bleeding and she was relieved there was a heartbeat at the time, she said. However, two days before her 12-week scan she 'knew something was wrong' when she found her sheets covered in blood. She learned later in hospital that she had had a miscarriage. Ms Ryan was among a number of senators who spoke in the Seanad on Wednesday about their experience of miscarriage. They shared their experiences as part of a debate on Sinn Féin's proposal to introduce paid leave for pregnancy loss. READ MORE The Bill would entitle women to at least five days of paid leave and their partner to 2½ days. The proposed legislation would also lead to the establishment of a confidential opt-in register of pregnancy loss. [ Woman who suffered six miscarriages says employers' response ranged from empathy to pressure to return to work Opens in new window ] There was Opposition criticism of the Government's move to defer the Bill by a year while it develops similar legislative proposals of its own. Ms Ryan argued that to 'delay this Bill is to traumatise even more women'. She said the proposed pregnancy loss register is 'incredibly important' as the State does not recognise losses of pregnancies under 23 weeks' gestation. She said 'pregnancy loss is one of the most common forms of bereavement and yet one of the least recognised in both society and law'. Fine Gael Senator Linda Nelson Murray praised Ms Ryan for bringing the proposals, saying: 'As someone who has suffered miscarriages myself, including my eldest daughter's twin, I know what that ache is like for thousands of women across Ireland.' She said pregnancy loss is often treated as 'something that is silently endured'. However, she supported the Government's argument that Sinn Féin's plan to amend a working time law was not the best way to bring in the new leave entitlements. Amending family leave provisions or introducing standalone legislation 'would form a more suitable legal basis', she said. Labour Senator Nessa Cosgrove also commended Ms Ryan on the Bill, saying she too has suffered a miscarriage. Sinn Féin Senator Joanne Collins said she suffered a miscarriage when she was in a job that did not give her the option to leave her post. 'I miscarried while I worked, because there was no other option,' she said, adding that there was 'no system, no cover'. Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke said his officials believe there are 'significant policy challenges' to the operation of the Bill as drafted. The Seanad passed his motion that gives the Government 12 months to develop legislative proposals in line with the principles of the Sinn Féin Bill. 'I fully recognise the need to introduce leave for those who experience pregnancy loss,' he said.
