I don’t want any expectant father to endure the same feelings I experienced during my family’s difficult delivery or the pain my partner and I continue to carry.
The experiences surrounding the births of my children inspired my advocacy work. The guide I created for my daughter’s delivery evolved into a program called Dads to Doulas. While I hope we won’t always need initiatives like this, for now, they are essential.
Content Warning: The following narrative includes personal experiences of miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss.
By James Thompson, shared with the help of Mariah Maddox
For our “Dadvocates” series, we highlight parents who have made significant efforts to support others by sharing their remarkable stories.
It was just a couple of days before Christmas in 2017 when my partner began experiencing contractions with our twin babies. We rushed to the hospital, filled with excitement as first-time parents. However, the events that unfolded were traumatic and still feel overwhelming to discuss. Our first baby boy was stillborn. Although the doctors managed to save the second baby initially, we lost him just a week later.
Experiencing the stillbirth of your child is one of the most challenging events for expecting parents. There is no way to prepare for such profound loss. Before this experience, I had only attended one prenatal appointment and was incredibly naive about what to expect.
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In summary, my journey has led me to advocate for better support for fathers during childbirth, aiming to ensure no other father feels as unprepared or lost as I did.