Awareness Month

October is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month

If you or someone you care about has lost a child to stillbirth, miscarriage, SIDS, or any other cause at any point during pregnancy or infancy, please join us in raising awareness this October for Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month.

Tens of thousands of families across the United States are devastated each year by the death of their baby. But the grief of these families and the value of their babies’ lives are very rarely acknowledged. In 1988, US President Ronald Reagan declared October as a month to recognize the unique grief of bereaved parents in an effort to demonstrate support to the many families who have suffered such a tragic loss. Promoting awareness of pregnancy and infant loss not only increases the likelihood that grieving families will receive understanding and support, but also results in improved education and prevention efforts which may ultimately reduce the incidence of these tragedies. Learn more about why raising awareness is critical in Star Legacy Foundation Executive Director Lindsey Wimmer’s blog post here.

Star Legacy’s October #NeverBeStill campaign seeks to break the silence surrounding stillbirth and other pregnancy/infant losses by not only educating the public about ways to support bereaved families but also empowering expectant mothers to have a healthy pregnancy – because every pregnancy deserves a happy ending!

In October, and always, we honor all babies amongst the stars, including those memorialized on our website as Our Stars.  Please help us remember these beloved babies by reading their stories.

Here are a few other ways you can help:

Obtain a proclamation from your city/state for Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness

While a Federal Proclamation was achieved in 1988, you can work with your city or state officials to obtain a local proclamation.  Sometimes they can be permanent and other times they are for the one year only and need to be re-established each year.  Be sure to check with your local officials offices. Click here to download a guide to obtaining a proclamation.

 

October 15th – World Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day

On October 15th, participate in the International Wave of Light by lighting a candle at 7 pm local time to honor all babies gone too soon. Keep your candle lit for at least one hour to create a continuous “wave of light” across all time zones covering the entire globe!

Support Bereaved Parents

There are many ways to support the bereaved parents in your life/community, including:

• Read our resources for How Friends & Family Can Help and order free brochures from Our Store
• Invite parents of a stillborn baby to create a free Star or Memorial Page on our website
• Ask your town to proclaim October 15th Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Day – contact us for a sample proclamation and request letter
• Make sure your local hospital/doctors (and anyone else in your community who interacts with expectant mothers!) are familiar with our resources for families and providers, Parenting in Pregnancy guide to healthy pregnancy, and free brochures about grief and after loss care available in English & Spanish
• Perform an Act of Kindness in memory of baby gone too soon (full page printable cards here)
• Send a letter to your elected officials urging them to support legislation and policies designed to prevent stillbirth and other poor outcomes and provide improved support for families – 
  contact us for a sample letter to get you started
• Share our #NeverBeStill posts on social media (see below)

Change Your Social Media Profile Frame

Raise awareness with the click of a button by applying our Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month Facebook Profile Frame.

To Update Your Profile Image on Facebook:

1. Login to your Facebook account and navigate to https://www.facebook.com/profilepicframes (or open your own profile page, click on your profile image, and choose “Add Frame”)
2. At the top of the window, search for “NeverBeStill” or “Star Legacy”
3. Select the frame and reposition your profile photo as needed
4. At the bottom of the window, set how long you’d like your frame to stay active (recommended: through 10/31)
5. In the description box at the bottom, write a note about why you decided to change use this frame, for example:
   • October is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month.  I’ll #NeverBeStill in honor of [baby’s name] and all babies gone too soon.  If you or someone you care about has lost a baby at ANY stage of pregnancy or infancy, please join us in raising awareness by clicking the “Try It” button below!
6. Click “Use as Profile Picture” to complete
7. After submitting, your profile picture will be updated and a notification will go out the News Feed

Frame is also available for use on other platforms (Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest) through www.twibbon.com (search for “NeverBeStill”)

Social Media Graphics & Video

 This is just a small selection of Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month graphics and videos that will be shared on Social Media as part of the #NeverBeStill campaign.  To find more, login to your favorite platform and search #NeverBeStill!

Note: click the graphic/video to view full size in high-resolution and download/share.