James Reynolds

Hello, I'm James Reynolds. Welcome to the documentary from the BBC World Service. In BBC Conversations we bring people together to share their experiences. This time we hear from two couples sharing their experiences of miscarriage.

As well as physical symptoms such as pain and bleeding, miscarriage can be deeply traumatic for couples who were looking forward to becoming parents and who instead find themselves grieving the loss of an unborn child. In our conversation, our guests discuss their experiences of miscarriage, the strain it's put on their relationships and the support offered or not to grieving couples.

Northern Ireland has just introduced paid leave for a woman and the woman's partner if the couple suffer a miscarriage. We'll hear more about that later. So let me introduce you to Vesta and her partner Leslie, now in the UK. They grew up in Europe. Their families are originally from Ghana. After multiple miscarriages, the couple now has three kids. And Josef and Katharina are in Sweden. Katharina is now pregnant after an earlier miscarriage.

Kiitos paljon osallistumisesta, ja haluamme tuoda toisemme keskustelua, Leslie ja Vesta. Kiitos, Leslie ja Vesta, että olitte olleet olleet olleet olleet olleet olleet olleet olleet olleet olleet

According to the World Health Organization, globally around one in four pregnancies ends before the developing baby reaches 28 weeks old. Earlier this month, Northern Ireland became the first part of the UK in which a woman and her partner are entitled to two weeks of paid leave if they experience a miscarriage at any stage of pregnancy.

New Zealand, India and the Philippines also have laws aimed at supporting grieving couples as they deal with the trauma of miscarriage and come to terms with the loss of their unborn child. In this, the second part of our conversation, our guests discuss the support they got after their miscarriages and the change in attitudes that they would like to see. Let's hear again then from Katharina and Josef and firstly Leslie and his partner Vesta.

Olet puhunut siihen, että tunteet onnistumista. Ja tietysti onnistuminen on fysiittinen menetelmä, joka ei ole mitään yhteyttä itselleen. Oletko voinut uskoa itselleen, että onnistuminen ei ole jotain, mitä pitäisi tuntea?

There's so many aspects around it of relation and everything else. People don't think about it when you start trying for a baby. Katharina and Joseph, you're about to have your first child. Leslie and Vesta, you do have your three beloved kids. I wonder, with each couple, what, if anything, you plan to tell your kids about the previous losses, the miscarriages you suffered?

I'm James Reynolds. You've been listening to the documentary from the BBC World Service.