In this episode, we speak with Dad Raj about the loss of his baby son Riaan and the long search for answers after his death at seven months old. He shares the medical issues Riaan faced, the events of the night he died, and the recent understanding that Riaan had a very rare genetic condition.

Raj shares how he started Sands United FC Nottingham to provide support for other dads who have lost a baby. Raj explains the purpose of the charity he set up with his wife Sharan in honour of their son Riaan Remembers and how the charity supports bereaved families and provides training to NHS staff to better support parents in baby loss. In Raj’s role as a trustee he recently delivered a letter to Downing Street to call for action to improve the racial inequality in baby loss.

Raj talks about the football sessions, peer support for bereaved dads and how often the dads are overlooked and we need to be more open in conversation to better support Dad’s as well as the Mums in baby loss.

In this podcast episode we speak with Lucy from Ellie’s Gift about how the service began after the loss of her baby daughter Ellie and how that experience shaped support for families facing baby loss. Lucy talks about Ellie’s birth plan and their hypnobirthing approach, which helped create a calm delivery and a precious chance to say hello and goodbye.

Lucy explains how she later trained as a hypnobirthing teacher and adapted those ideas into Ellie’s Gift, a free app used in the NHS and internationally, with resources such as audio tracks, journaling, yoga and aftercare support. We also cover the organisation’s work for families experiencing TFMR (Termination For Medical Reasons), its mindfulness and grief course, the companion book, and the importance of language, collaboration and support during pregnancy after loss.

Lucy Livesey, Ellie’s Gift, baby loss, support, birth plan, hypnobirthing, NHS app, grief, TFMR, stillbirth, miscarriage and mindfulness

In this podcast we chat with Vanessa May, a bereaved parent, author, grief and spiritualist life coach about supporting bereaved parents and her books 'Love Untethered: How to Live When Your Child Dies' and 'When Grief Takes Everything: A Survival Guide to Devastating Loss’. We discuss her son Harry, the shock of his death, and how writing became a way for Vanessa to process her grief.

We also talk about the physical effects of grief and trauma, including sleep, digestion, anxiety, and nervous system dysregulation, as well as the value of self-care, breathwork, journaling, nature, and support from other bereaved parents. Vanessa reflects on continuing bonds, spiritual beliefs, signs, and the comfort she found in research about mothers carrying cells from their children.

Finally, we discuss Vanessa’s later losses, including her husband of 30 years and her father, and how these experiences shaped her understanding of complex grief and trauma and how she wrote her third book during this time. Vanessa speaks about taking things one day at a time, finding small pleasures, and accepting that grief changes rather than ends.

Vanessa May, bereaved mother, grief coach, grief educator, grief, bereaved parents, Love Untethered, When Grief Takes Everything, trauma recovery, continuing bonds