But man, the scars of IF and miscarriage run deep. Like I said, I've struggled my whole life with this vice, so there are other things besides IF & m/c that I've dealt with in the past. But right now? The last few years? It's IF and m/c. 100%. I don't know if/when/how I'll find peace.
One of the major things I'm struggling with right now is family. A family member got married young, and got pregnant right away. They had their baby about 3 weeks before my miscarried baby was due. She's now about 9 months old and I recently found out they're expecting again. I guess the cavalierness of their attitude about it is what grates my nerves so much. They're all "Oh, it was unplanned" with an eye roll. Ah yes...an eye roll. Upon grilling them and their NFP practices, I find out they thought they were in the "safe zone"....using "day 10". Come to find out, they were using "day 10" from the LAST day of her period. My head almost exploded. You don't even understand when your cycle starts?!?!?? Granted, I know more about all this stuff than a lot of people, having been through what I've been through. But OMG. That's basic information!!! I wanted to scream. They're just so naive, and that, I suppose, makes my jealousy even more severe.
She also didn't even know how far along she was, but she "thought" about 3 months. Hadn't seen a doctor yet, in an entire trimester of pregnancy, and didn't have a clue how far along she was. I just can't........
Anyway, I've had a lot of people ask me assumingly, "Doesn't being pregnant make you feel better?" (about my miscarriage). Ummm...no. I still lost a child. This baby doesn't replace that baby. There are still two baby-sized holes in my heart that will never be filled until I hold them in Heaven. I'm still trying to figure out the best response to questions like that, but unfortunately I'm realizing that until people experience this loss themselves, they'll NEVER get it. Some are certainly more sympathetic than others. And some just aren't at all.
You know how sometimes you wish someone could experience something without having to go through it? I would never wish miscarriage on my worst enemy. But I so wish people could somehow experience very briefly it without it actually happening to them. Because I feel there's a severe lack of understanding and compassion with regards to m/c in our society. I haven't talked much about my experience with my own family through this process, because they do have access to this blog. But all my siblings are quite a bit younger and haven't experienced anything like IF or m/c yet (who knows if they ever will), which makes it SO hard to relate. It also makes some of their comments and "advice" rather harsh. I would have hoped they would still have some compassion for my situation, if not understanding. But unfortunately it has been a struggle.
I also struggle with some sort of twisted "competitiveness"...that I have to have more babies than "so & so" because I'm Catholic and open to life and always wanted a big family. I KNOW how sick that sounds, but here's me saying it out loud. Plus I love being counter-cultural, and since a bunch of my friends have 3 kids, I have to have 4. Or 5. Or however many I can. Don't judge...I know it's insane.
Maybe it's hormones, but these feelings have been bubbling to the surface recently. Like I said, I haven't talked much about my post-miscarriage issues on this blog. Looking back, I really wish I had. I know I would have found the support I needed here. So I'm just sort of getting around to it. At 35 weeks pregnant. Makes perfect sense, right?
In the meantime, any advice on prayers for overcoming miscarriage and/or jealousy would be much appreciated!
If you're having trouble getting friends and family to understand your miscarriage, I found this link incredibly helpful. I passed it along to a few people, in the hopes that they might understand why what they were saying, while well-intended, just wasn't helpful.
