With this bill the state recognizes stillbirth as a significant event that others can recognize. Read below for more information.
If you can send the below snail mail letter, it would be very much appreciated! If you forward to others, please stress that this is the only letter that can be sent to the Governor – no changes, no exceptions. Thank you!!!
We have one last request to ask of you. We need letters mailed to Governor Cuomo. Lots of letters.
Below is the letter to use. Those close to the Governor have strongly urged us to use this form letter, rather than write letters of support using personal stories. Our bill has unfairly been drawn into the pro-choice/life debate and we have made some concessions this year that has enabled it to pass both houses.
We can’t take any chances. We have one opportunity to let the Governor know how important this bill is. If he vetos the bill, we will need to start all over in January.
Once the Governor signs the bill into law, we will encourage you to write your own thank you note and share your stories, then. But for now, please only use the form letter below.
ENVELOPE:
Address and mail to: Kristin Ross, Legislative Secretary, Capitol Room 239, Albany NY 12224
On lower left corner of envelope write: “A.8178a / S.3111b In Support of Certificate of Still Birth”
LETTER:
[DATE]
Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo
Governor, State of New York
The Capitol
Albany, NY 12224
Dear Governor Cuomo,
On June 16th the New York legislature overwhelmingly passed a bill to provide a Certificate of Still Birth. Bills A.8178a & S.3111b help provide much-needed comfort, dignity, and documentation to women and their families who have experienced the tragedy of stillbirth. This public health crisis devastates more than 1,700 New York families each year, and nearly 30,000 nationwide.
In [YEAR], I [my sister, my aunt, my brother, my friend, etc] suffered the stillbirth of my [son/daughter/grandchild/niece/nephew, etc] and saw family, friends and colleagues struggle to find words of comfort. With this bill the state recognizes stillbirth as a significant event that others can recognize.
All states, including New York, require the family to pay for funeral and burial or cremation expenses, and a death certificate is issued. Although a fetal demise is considered as both a birth and a death as per NYS Public Health law, until now New York did not consider the option of a Certificate of Still Birth.
This bill will increase awareness of stillbirth, and in doing so may stimulate the allotment of research funds to uncover the etiologies of stillbirth, most of which are unknown at this time. With more information, women and families will be better prepared to maintain healthy pregnancies.
I strongly urge your support of Assembly bill A.8178a and Senate bill S.3111b. Thank you in advance for helping countless New York families who have experienced stillbirth and are eagerly awaiting your support as the bill is signed into law.
Sincerely,
Name – Address – Phone
Father’s Day (June 19th) is coming up this weekend. Celebrating often includes BBQs, baseball and families getting together. But what happens if you are the man & your wife/partner has suffered a miscarriage. You may not be in the spirit to celebrate. And that is OK.
Going with your gut instinct and doing (or not doing) what feels right for you on that day is what you should do. Only by being true to yourself about your feelings toward celebrating Father’s Day will you be able to heal. On our blog on June 7th we gave some suggestions on how to help get through the day – https://ourhopeplace.wordpress.com/
We would also like to include a link to Our Hope Place (www.OurHopePlace.com) where we have an expert talk about “Men, Women, Miscarriage & Grieving Styles” – we hope this helps – (see link below for complete information and chart)
Men, Women, Miscarriage And Grieving Styles
By: Paula Levy
Miscarriage is an emotional and confusing time for most couples. There are few societal rituals for grieving for a miscarriage and the depth of this pain is not well recognized in our culture. In addition, couples have little or no physical existence of their child (pictures, toys, memories) and therefore it becomes difficult for them to validate their loss in the usual ways. Add to this mix the
fact that women and men usually grieve differently which can cause miscommunication, hurt and disappointment between them. As a result, a mother and father can have vastly different reactions to a miscarriage. In many cases, the mother doesn’t understand why her husband is not experiencing significant grief and the father doesn’t understand why his wife is so
devastated. This can have profound implications for the marriage.
http://www.ourhopeplace.com/PaulaLevyExpert.html
Please let us know if you have a special way of celebrating Father’s Day after your miscarriage.
Miscarriage and Father’s Day. Miscarriage affects all family members. Would-be-dads, grandfathers, uncles and brothers all experience their own grief. While miscarriage is all too common, as a society we are not good at helping women or men with their loss.
Sunday, June 19th, 2011 is Father’s Day. It is a day that day can be filled with many emotions. As part of a couple we know this can be a stressful, sad day. But there are things we can do to help… we don’t have to “just ignore” it or not recognize it. We know this all too well because we are two women who have experienced miscarriages with our husbands and have gone on to heal. We created Our Hope Place (www.OurHopePlace.com) in order for friends (and family members) to help cope, hope and heal after miscarriage.
We have put together some suggestions to help you and your partner get through the day:
-Be true to your feelings. As the man, you may think it will be easier not to show how you are feeling about the miscarriage as you think your emotions will upset your partner even more. (Men & women can grieve differently.) You decide you want to stay strong to protect her but only end up feeling alone and isolated. As the woman, you were thinking of how nice it would be to buy your partner a “father-to-be” Father’s Day card and now after the miscarriage —Father’s Day is just another reminder of your loss. Take time to communicate before the day arrives. Really express to each other how you are feeling about both the miscarriage and what Father’s Day will mean to you this year.
– Realize that your emotions can sneak up on you… that you might think you will feel one way, but on the day a whole other set of emotions may set in…
-Be patient with each other. Do not criticize each other (or yourself) for how you are feeling. Grieving is a very personal process and should be respected. Do realize that everyone copes with the same loss in different ways. You may not be able to take away your partner’s pain but letting your partner know that you are there for him/her and that you love each other will go a long way.
-Plan ahead to do something meaningful for both of you. Take a walk with each other in a favorite park. Plant some flowers or a tree in your yard to remember your baby. Go to church and say a prayer. Get together and enjoy time with your extended family. Even stay home, order take-out and just enjoy each other’s company. There is no “wrong” way to spend the day.
-Don’t be afraid to say “NO”. Do what you both need to do on Father’s Day even if it means not participating in traditional family events. Explain why you would rather not participate to your family. (“Right now we are feeling too emotional to be with everyone on Father’s Day.”)
-Try to focus on the positive. Being grateful for what we already had in our lives and thinking positively is what helped us with our healing process and led us to create Our Hope Place (www.OurHopePlace.com). We decided to share our friendship, a special bracelet of hope and it’s inspiring story to help others who have also experienced miscarriage. (We have a special section for the partner/spouse to visit – http://www.ourhopeplace.com/partnertodo.html)
Only by being there for each other and celebrating Father’s Day together in your own way will you both be able to remember your loss, continue with your healing process and look to the future.
Here’s to celebrating Father’s Day your way,
Laura & Sharon
Life After Miscarriage - The "New Normal" 