16 Sad Poems About Miscarriage or Stillbirths

Updated

We would like to offer our deepest condolences if you recently experienced a miscarriage or stillbirth. While this article is not about how to cope with a miscarriage, you might find a bit of comfort from reading some of the poems we suggest. Most were written by people who lost a child.

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You may also want to visit some online or in-person support groups to help you with your suffering. You may also want to read about the grieving process so you know whether you need assistance from a professional grief counselor.

Search for the full text of the following miscarriage poems online.

Sweet Poems About Miscarriage or Stillbirth

Losing a child changes your life forever. Some parents choose to write about this traumatic event in an effort to make sense of it all. Others write about their sadness so that others understand they are not alone in their suffering.

Here are some sweet poems about losing a child through miscarriage or stillbirth.

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1. “My Dear Baby” by Unknown

While the speaker in this poem mourns the death of her child, she admits that she learned from the traumatic event. Suffering from the miscarriage taught her to be stronger, more anchored in her faith, and more grateful for her blessings.

While many poems about death speak of the negative aspects of grief, this poet writes of how she became stronger through it. 

2. “My Little Angel” by Rhonda

This poem was published on a website that supports families who have stillborn children. The last stanza of the poem offers hope of reunification. It reads,

“I will come with you someday —
only now is not my time. Then we will be together again, again you will be mine.”

You can read many poems about how a child waits for their parents to join them in heaven.

3. “Stillborn But Still Born” by Unknown

This same website published this piece by an unknown poet. She describes feeling the baby moving inside her, wriggling, kicking, and turning, and then the baby became still.

You may also connect with the message in this poem, as the last line reads, “you are in our hearts forever.” 

4. “I’ll Be There” by Unknown

The deceased child is the speaker in this poem. The child reassures the parents that their spirit continues. The poem begins, “Daddy, please don’t look so sad, Mama, please don’t cry. ‘Cause I am in the arms of Jesus, and he sings me lullabies.”

5. “These Are My Footprints” by Tamara Barker

This poem is very similar to the funeral poem “Do Not Stand At My Grave and Weep” by Mary Elizabeth Frye. The speaker in this poem is the infant who promises to show up in nature. 

For example, one stanza reads, “You will see my tiny footprints in the rustle of the leaves. I will whisper names into the wind and call each one that grieves.”

Sad Poems About Miscarriage or Stillbirth

It seems impossible that these poems won’t exude sadness because they are about the loss of a child. However, the poems in this section focus on the grief that parents experience when undergoing this traumatic event. 

6. “Stillbirth” by Laure-Anne Bosselaar

The speaker in this poem hears a name being called while she stands on a train platform: “Laetitia,” the name she had planned to use for her baby, who was stillborn. The speaker says, “I was told not to look. Not to get attached,” an impossible task. Hearing the name of her unborn child jars her to her core.

7. “We Assume: On the Death of Our Son, Reuben Masai Harper” by Michael S. Harper

From the poem’s title, we can assume that Michael S. Harper’s poem is his autobiographical account of losing a child. The baby in question lived for 28 hours, during which medical professionals worked hard to save him.

Michael S. Harper has published several books of poetry, including “Images of Kin,” which was nominated for the National Book Award.

8. “Written on the Due Date of a Son Never Born” by David Wojahn

A baby was due on the summer solstice — June 21. Instead of laboring at a hospital, the mother labors in her garden early that morning. The speaker, presumably the father, writes to his unborn son, “Tell us how to live for we are shades, facing caged the chastening sun.”

9. “The Miscarriage” by Amit Majmudar

A father describes coming home from the hospital empty-handed in “The Miscarriage.” The speaker describes seeing reminders of their loss everywhere — even in the lid of a pop bottle that said, “Sorry — Try Again.”

This poem gives us a view of how hard it is to be a partner of a woman who has lost a child. The speaker is uncertain how to console and says, “I had no words that night.”

10. “My Child Did Exist” by Unknown

The speaker in “My Child Did Exist” utters the phrase, “I’ve lost a child” to a friend. Saying this phrase gives the speaker comfort because it verifies that her child did exist. The person who she was speaking to sadly turns and walks away.

Some families choose to create a miscarriage memorial to honor a life cut short. 

11. “A Letter to My Unborn Child” by Kaitlyn

One of the good things about online communities is that they give people a chance to publish their writing without any cost or hassle. This “A Letter to My Unborn Child” appears on a website for amateur poets. It is written by a woman who lost an eight-week-old child in utero.

Take some time to peruse amateur poetry websites to give you comfort. 

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Poems About Miscarrying Twins

The loss of any child is devastating. These poems are specifically about the death of twins. Most are written by amateur poets who self-publish on websites that support grieving parents. 

12. “Losing the Twins” by Kathryn

Those who have never suffered a miscarriage may learn a lot by reading “Losing the Twins.” You’ll learn what to do and what not to do when someone loses a child (or two children).

In this poem, the speaker says that she “hasn’t learned to take it well,” and describes the hurt she suffered when nobody offered condolences for her loss. 

13. “To Edison and Emerson” by Cynthia

The speaker in this poem found on a miscarriage support website describes how proud she was to be labeled the “mother of twins.” Sadly, both twins passed away before they were born, and the mother shares how her arms ache to hold them both.

There are many miscarriage keepsake ideas for those who lose children through stillbirth or miscarriage. You might want a fingerprint or footprint, a lock of hair, and a photograph of your stillborn baby.

14. “The Tiny Rosebuds” by Unknown

This poem is written from the Christian perspective and describes how God chose the tiny rosebuds (twins) for his heavenly bouquet. The poem ends with the following lines: 

“So think of your darling with the angels above
Secure and contented and surrounded by love
And remember that God blessed and enriched your lives too
For in dying, your darling brought heaven closer to you.”

15. “Two Little Stars” by Unknown

The mother of Michael and Nicholas wrote this sweet poem about the loss of twins. They are described as two heavenly stars as they “shine down your bright lights on me.”

16. “Angel Whispers” by Unknown

Those who have lost children know that it is possible to love children who are never born. This love is described in “Angel Whispers.” 

“For death cannot take away your love. 
It will only continue to grow.
Time and distance cannot erase,
a love and bond so deep.”

Saying Goodbye is Hard

Grieving the loss of one you loved may be one of the most significant challenges of your life. Please understand that you are not alone in your sorrow.

Thankfully, people are now more open about what it feels like to lose a child. In fact, October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. This increased awareness has made resources more widely available for grieving parents. 

Consider sharing your story on social media or grief support websites. You may also consider writing your own poetry about your loss and sharing it with others.

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