Former Strictly Come Dancing contestant Laura Whitmore has discussed her devastating miscarriage last year.
The Irish TV presenter endured a short unplanned pregnancy with her boyfriend, but after giving up alcohol and transforming her daily life over the first 12 weeks, Laura was eventually given the shattering news by a London doctor.
Writing for Hot Press, she reflects candidly about how she felt post-miscarriage.
"I wasn't sure how I was supposed to react. Should I cry? Was I allowed be emotional for something unplanned?" she notes. "The things that go through your mind: actually, I had just spent two hours planning with the midwife earlier that day.
"Then the strangest thing happened. The doctor went out to the reception and brought in a puppy. She offered it to me. It was a new puppy that happened to be in the clinic that day – not a usual circumstance. But she hoped it would make me feel better. When in doubt, get the puppies out."
The 34-year-old, who's dating Love Island narrator Iain Stirling, adds: "Miscarriages happen to 1 in 3 women. I didn't know this, because most people just don't talk about it. Now I'm part of that statistic," before discussing how she handled this awful loss.
"I felt I had to be sad alone: apart from a handful of people, no one knew. I had to deal with high intensity work situations without anyone around me knowing what was really going on inside my head. Although maybe that made it easier to deal with – because I wasn't actually dealing with it."
Laura then offers some advice to anyone going through similar emotions: "When you feel sad, may I recommend reaching back to 1985 and blasting a bit of 'Chain Reaction'.
"Diana Ross makes everything better."
Sands supports anyone affected by the death of a baby. You can contact the Sands National Helpline on 0808 164 3332, or email helpline@sands.org.uk.
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