SiDS/SUID and Stillbirth – A National Research and Advocacy Symposium March 23-25, 2009

from First Candle

SAVE THE DATE!

SIDS/SUID and Stillbirth –

A National Research and Advocacy Symposium

March 23 - 25, 2009 | Embassy Suites Hotel | Washington, D.C.

Welcome and Opening Speaker – Dr. Yvonne Maddox, NICHD

Space is limited, so register early to attend this innovative meeting. Leading researchers will present updates on current research and strategies for saving infant lives. There will be interactive workshops and a networking dinner for all researchers and attendees. The symposium will conclude with visits to Capitol Hill to encourage our nation’s lawmakers to support critical legislation and programming that will help us reach our goal of a future where all babies survive and thrive.

More details on the agenda will be posted on the First Candle website as they become available.

Family members affected by stillbirth, SIDS and SUID will be given priority consideration. After January 15, registration will be open to a more general audience. A non-refundable $25 deposit will hold your spot and be used to offset your food and beverage costs during the conference.

Hotel rooms will be available for $219 per night (plus tax), but more affordable housing options are being pursued; details to follow. If traveling by air, be sure to book early to take advantage of any discounted fares!

Register Now!

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

On Oct 15th please participate in the Wave of Light to remember all the children that have died in the years past.
For more information on the Wave of light please visit October15th.com
Stillbirth Statics are tough to find and quote, but it is far more common that you may realize. I have heard everything from 1 in 125 births result in Stillbirth, to 1 in 1000. I have also read that as many as 71 infants are born still each day worldwide. I did read through the WHO (World Health Organization) 2006 Neonatal and perinatal mortality Global estimates which contained estimates of stillbirth rates worldwide. Now, I am even more sure that this is something that affect many families.

So light a candle on OCT 15th @ 7:00pm and remember all the babies; pregnancies, stillbirths and infants loss the world suffers through silently.

Research study about how parents cope with pregnancy and infant loss

please please participate.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=looH_2b6MxKaw0s0yPl5zE0w_3d_3d

Who is Doing the Study and What is it For?
The study is conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. We are trying to understand women’s experiences with a pregnancy loss or loss of a baby and how women use on-line message boards after a loss. This will help us to design on-line programs to help parents cope with this difficult event.
What are the Risks of Completing the Survey?
The main risk to mothers is simply that remembering a loss can be emotionally difficult. To protect mothers who participate, this survey is confidential. In addition, this study, like all research studies, was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board at the University of Michigan (HUM00023103). You may choose not to answer a question or may stop the survey at any point. Message board staff have given us permission to post this survey, but they will not see any of your individual answers.
What are the Benefits?
There are no direct benefits to you from completing the survey, but your responses will help us to develop programs for other parents who have similar losses in the future. It is estimated the survey will take about 10 minutes to complete.
Can I Contact the Researcher or the University of Michigan if I have Concerns or Questions about the Study?
Yes. You may email the Primary Investigator at ktgold@umich.edu (University of Michigan, Department of Family Medicine, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology) or you may contact the University of Michigan Institutional Review Board at 734-763-4768.

5 Months

Hello my little Peanut,
I can't believe today has been 5 months that I have been without you. I love you & miss you everyday! I hope you are peaceful and having fun with all your friends you have made. I will be sending you your balloons today, so keep a watch for them!!
I can't help thinking about what you would be doing if you were still here with me - rolling over, giggles, wearing pretty little outfits. I have to stop thinking about it cause it only makes me cry. I'm having a real problem seeing other little girls cause I get so jealous and I want you here so bad. I feel horrible for getting jealous and feel like I'm not showing you a good example, but sometimes I get weak and these feelings come through.
Come for a visit today as Daddy & I really need it! We miss you terribly and just wish we could turn back the hands of time and change how everything turned out. Until we figure out how to do that, we will just go on missing you and longing for you to be with us.
You are my daughter that I will never watch grow up, never hear your precious giggle, the list goes on and on. Just know that you are always in my heart and always on my mind.
I love you peanut!
Love, Mommy!

Happy Mother's Day angel Mommies...

I don't know if this poem has been shared, and if so, it's always a good one to see again I guess,a friend of mine emailed it to me, so I thought I would share with you guys..........



Dear Mr. Hallmark,
I am writing to you from heaven,
and though it must appear
A rather strange idea,
I see everything from up here.

I just popped in to visit,
your stores to find a card
A card of love for my mother,
as this day for her is hard.

There must be some mistake I thought,
I saw every card you could imagine
Except I could not find a card,
from a child who lives in heaven.

She is still a mother too,
no matter where I reside
I had to leave, she understands,
but oh the tears she's cried.

I thought that if I wrote you,
that you would come to know
That though I live in heaven now,
I still love my mother so.

She talks with me, and dreams with me;
we still share laughter too,
Memories are our way of speaking now,
would you see what you could do?

My mother carries me in her heart,
her tears she hides from sight.
She writes poems to honor me,
sometimes far into the night

She plants flowers in my garden,
there my living memory dwells
She writes to other grieving parents,
trying to ease their pain as well.

So you see Mr. Hallmark,
though I no longer live on earth
I must find a way to remind her
of her wondrous worth.

She needs to be honored,
and remembered too
Just as the children of earth will do.

Thank you Mr. Hallmark,
I know you'll do your best
I have done all I can do;
to you I'll leave the rest.

Find a way to tell her,
how much she means to me
Until I can do it for myself,
when she joins me in eternity