A MUM who suffered a miscarriage has revealed she brought her 12-year-old daughter into the bathroom while it was happening to show her it was “normal”.
ABC News correspondent and former co-host of The View Paula Faris, 44, explained how she wanted her daughter Caroline Grace to know that miscarriages are nothing to be ashamed of.
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The mum-of-three – who has Caroline Grace, 12, JJ, 10 and six-year-old Landon – has suffered three miscarriages since trying to have a fourth child.
Paula said: “I’m 44. I’ve always wanted four kids – maybe because I am the youngest of four. But this was my third miscarriage.”
When it dawned on Paula that she was having another miscarriage in July 2019, the television star decided to use it as an opportunity to educate her daughter.
She continued: “I brought my daughter into the restroom with me. I showed her what was going on and I said, ‘I just want to let you know, Mummy is…. the baby is probably no longer viable. Mummy doesn’t feel any guilt.”
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She then tried to reassure her pre-teen daughter by adding: “This is normal. It happens to so many women, it’s happened to me a couple of other times.
“When you get pregnant, it might happen to you, honey. And I want you to know there’s nothing you did wrong.”
The mum-of-three also argued that it’s “important to grieve” after a miscarriage but that it’s “also important to know that this happens to so many of us”.
According to the NHS, it’s estimated that one in eight pregnancies will end in miscarriage among women who know they’re pregnant.
Like Paula, losing three or more pregnancies in a row is known as recurrent miscarriages and affects roughly one in 100 women.
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Since opening up about how she dealt with her most recent miscarriage, Paula has been widely praised online.
One Facebook wrote: “I think teaching our kids about the hard things like death or miscarriage is a good thing. The more you know and when you can see and talk about the hard, scary or unpleasant things in life makes for a more emotionally capable person.”
“When you hide things from kids or sugar coat thing, it can create those feelings of fear, shame, confusion,” another added. “Children do not stay children. The whole point is to raise capable adult humans in my opinion.”
Meanwhile, a third argued: “If 12-year-olds are old enough to have a baby or a miscarriage (which a lot of 12-year-olds are) then they’re old enough to have this teaching moment.”
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Equally, others felt like it was too much to put on her daughter.
One woman wrote: “I’m sorry for her loss and it’s her choice what and how she shares this with her kids but I think that’s way too much for a 12-year-old child to experience like that.”
Similarly, another replied: “I believe in being upfront with kids but also not putting adult issues onto your children.”
“She could have explained it to her afterward,” a third said. “Some things are too much for kids, this is one of them.”
After one of Paula’s followers on Instagram feared her mother’s miscarriage would “frighten” Caroline, the star replied: “I get where you’re coming from. But, you’re further stigmatizing it. It’s normal. And I want her to know that. So, the point is, she ISN’T scared.
“And if it happens to her as it does to almost 30% of women, she’ll be kind to herself. Also, she’s 12. In middle school. And is being taught sex ed, contraception, about drugs and war. She can handle this. We don’t give our kids enough credit. Let them hear it lovingly in YOUR voice.”
In more parenting news, this mum revealed she fell pregnant with triplets after a one night stand with her ex and now spends eight hours a day breastfeeding.
And pregnant mum-of-21 Sue Radford has given a glimpse inside her chaotic family home as she showed off her baby’s new pram.
Plus new mum Amy Willerton has been slammed for wearing a waist trainer three weeks after giving birth as she posed in a breast pump.
