Perinatal Bereavement

When you have experienced the loss of a baby, there is no comparable grief. To help you cope as you mourn, there is caring and educated support for you and your family. 

About perinatal bereavement

Losing a baby is devastating and carries strong emotions such as sadness, anger, and confusion, and every family member will grieve differently. While nothing can take away the pain of your loss, you do not have to go through this overwhelming time alone. The perinatal bereavement team at Main Line Health is here for you to provide options, resources, support and guidance in a way that respects your cultural and spiritual beliefs at no charge.

Guidance and support

Many of our perinatal bereavement staff members are trained in Resolve Through Sharing, the gold standard in bereavement education. They have special skills and extra education to offer compassionate and sensitive care for you and your loved ones experiencing grief.

Every October, we hold a Perinatal Loss Service of Remembrance for grieving parents and loved ones to honor their babies gone too soon. Anyone who has experienced perinatal loss is welcome to attend each year, no matter how much time has passed.

For more information about Main Line Health perinatal bereavement services, please contact us at perinatalloss@mlhs.org.

Grief support resources

Grief counseling and support

Main Line Health providers

Main Line Health Women’s Emotional Wellness Center (WEWC)
Main Line Health Newtown Square
3855 West Chester Pike, Suite 160, Newtown Square, PA 19073
1.888.227.3898

King of Prussia
 120 Valley Green Lane, Suite 660, King of Prussia, PA 19046
1.888.227.3898

Main Line Health HomeCare & Hospice Bereavement Program
 240 North Radnor Chester Road, Suite 100, Radnor, PA 19087
484.580.1550

Other providers

Post-Partum Stress Center
 1062 Lancaster Avenue, Rosemont, PA 19010
610.525.7527

Springfield Psychological
 Offices in Havertown, King of Prussia, Lansdale, Sinking Springs, Springfield and West Chester
Intake: 610.544.2110

Council for Relationships
 Offices in Blue Bell, Bryn Mawr, Exton, Oxford Valley, Paoli, Philadelphia, Wynnewood and Voorhees (New Jersey)
Central intake: 215.382.6680

Conshohocken Center for Emotional Health
 12 East Second Avenue, Suite 100, Conshohocken, PA 19428
484.534.9686

Turning Point Psychotherapy Associates, LLC
 558 West Uwchlan AvenueSuite 100, Exton, PA 19341
484.879.4292

Maternal Wellness Center
 67 Byberry Road
Hatboro, PA 19040
215.649.9916

The Center for Loss and Bereavement
 3847 Skippack Pike
Skippack, PA 19474
610.222.4110

Whole Heart Maternal Mental Health
 255 S. 17th St Suite 1008
Philadelphia, PA 19103
215.840.3554

The Center, LLC
 20134Valley Forge Circle
King of Prussia, PA 19406
(Locations also in West Chester- Telehealth)
610.878.9330

Penn Center for Behavioral Wellness*
335 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104
215.573.8886

*Accepts Medical Assistance

Local support organizations

For support at a location close to you, there are organizations who are dedicated to helping you and your family find comfort through the overwhelming time after a loss. Find extra care and support when you need it.

  • The Adalyn Rose Foundation— Provides comprehensive support for families grieving the loss of their babies through miscarriage, stillbirth or during infancy.
  • Butterfly Baskets— Provides comfort, creates connection and offers community for those impacted by pregnancy challenges, miscarriage, stillbirth and infant loss.
  • Three Little Birds— Provides immediate and long-term advocacy and support of families experiencing the loss of a pregnancy or baby.

Online support

When you need guidance, online support groups and organizations are available to you for specialized grief support.

  • Compassionate Friends offers comfort, hope and support to every family member experiencing the death of a child, sibling or grandchild.
  • First Cradle is for parents, families and professionals seeking information and support on miscarriage, stillbirth and SIDS. Offers online access to support groups on Facebook with grief support available 24/7.
  • Grief Net offers email support groups, online memorials and more.
  • Grieve Out Loud offers support online for grieving families touched by pregnancy loss, stillbirth, or infant loss
  • March of Dimes — Loss and Grief provides definitions of loss, ways to honor loss and additional resources.
  • MISS Foundation offers access to counseling resources and grief support to all family members following infant loss.
  • Mommies Enduring Neonatal Death (MEND) provides hope and healing to families who have suffered the loss of a baby through miscarriage, stillbirth or early infant death.
  • Postpartum Support International (PSI) offers peer support groups for parents grieving the loss of a baby.
  • Return to Zero: HOPE provides compassionate and holistic support for anyone touched by loss including miscarriage, termination for medical reasons (TFMR), stillbirth, infant or toddler death, loss through surrogacy and failed adoption. Offers a variety of virtual grief support groups.
  • Share Pregnancy & Infant Loss Support offers an online community for anyone who experiences the tragic death of a baby.
  • Sisters in Loss is dedicated to replacing silence with storytelling around pregnancy and infant loss and infertility of black women.
  • Star Legacy Foundation supports research, education and advocacy regarding pregnancy loss and neonatal death. Offers live online support groups and grief counselors are available 24/7 at 952-715-7731, ext 1.

Support for Dads

Live support groups

It can feel lonely when experiencing grief after the loss of a child. Peer to peer grief support groups provide community and connection with others who have been touched by infant loss. Find a group who can help you.

Find a Unite Support Group

Support for specific loss

Sometimes, you need perinatal bereavement support that is more personal. These groups help specific family members as they navigate their emotions during a time of great loss.

  • Heartbreaking Choice offers information and support for those who have terminated a much-wanted pregnancy for medical reasons.
  • Carrying to Term provides support, resources and tools for women and families who are facing a prenatal diagnosis of a life-limiting condition.
  • Trisomy 18 Foundation offers decision-making help, support, research, awareness and education.

Reading resources for bereavement support

We hope you find these books to be comforting resources through your heartbreak. With recommendations for specific members of your family, finding personalized guidance and information can help the grieving process. 

For grieving parents

For grieving fathers

For grieving grandparents

For grieving children and teens

Children:

Teens: