International Bereaved Mother’s Day: Honouring the Mothers Who Carry Love and Loss

Today is International Bereaved Mother’s Day – a day that quietly acknowledges what many hearts carry every day. It falls on the Sunday before traditional Mother’s Day in the United States, offering a space for those who may find that day too painful to face. This day is for the mothers who hold both love and loss – who parent their children, even when those children are no longer here in the physical world.

Whether you experienced miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal loss, or the death of a child at any age – this day is for you.

For the Mothers Who Lost a Baby Through Miscarriage

Your pregnancy may have ended before others knew about it, or you may have already begun sharing your dreams for your baby. Either way, the grief is real. There is often so much silence surrounding miscarriage, but today we make space for you. You are a mother. Your loss matters.

For the Mothers of Stillborn Babies

You prepared for a life you never got to take home. You may have held your baby and said goodbye in the same breath. The weight of that moment – of being both a new mother and a grieving one – is something no one should ever have to carry. But if you are, today we honour that strength. Your baby’s existence will never be forgotten.

For the Mothers Whose Babies Died in NICU

This is something that is especially close to my heart.

When my daughter was in neonatal care, I noticed the purple butterflies on the walls and doors. At first, I didn’t understand what they meant. Then I learned that they symbolised that a baby had died – and sometimes, that one twin had passed away while the other had survived.

Seeing those butterflies brought everything home. I knew that behind each one was a family shattered by grief. A mother who had come into hospital hoping for hope and left with a hole in her heart. It affected me deeply – as a mother, as a twin who lost her own brother, and as someone who understands that the NICU is not just a place of survival, but sometimes a place of goodbye.

To those mothers who left the NICU without their babies: you are mothers, forever. The fight you fought alongside your baby matters. The time you had – however short – was filled with love. Your baby’s story is not forgotten.

For the Mothers Who Lost a Child Later in Life

Whether your child was a few months, a few years, or fully grown, their absence is felt in every corner of your life. People may assume that grief fades with time, but bereaved motherhood is a lifelong journey. You are still your child’s mother. That bond doesn’t break – it transforms.

Motherhood and Grief Can Coexist

Being a bereaved mother means holding both love and pain, sometimes in the same breath. It means learning to live with a part of your heart missing. But even in grief, your motherhood remains. It’s present in your tears, in your memories, in your strength to carry on.

You Are Not Alone

If today feels heavy, please know this: you are not alone. Your grief is valid. Your story is worthy of being heard. And your child’s life – however brief – made a mark on this world, because they made you a mother.

Call to Action

If you are a bereaved mother, or love someone who is, please take a moment today to honour their child. Light a candle. Say their name. Reach out and let them know they are remembered.

And if this blog has resonated with you, please like, comment and subscribe. Together, let’s build a community that holds space for every kind of parent – especially those whose children are no longer here to hold.

You are not alone.

References:

Sands UK – Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Charity Tommy’s – Pregnancy and Baby Loss Support The Compassionate Friends UK – Bereaved Parent Support International Bereaved Mother’s Day