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In her most recent journal entry, a friend referred to the sensation of "waiting for the other shoe to drop." It's a phrase that I've heard time and time again in our forums and chatroom, and for good reason -- being pregnant after having experienced infertility and/or loss prompts a lot of uncomfortable emotions.
Without wanting to sound like those of us in this community, the community of try-and-try-again, are any more concerned than the average mother about their unborn children, I think even the "fertile world" moms would agree with the sentiment of "once bitten, twice shy."
It's been over five years since my first positive HPT, yet I still freshly recall my overwhelming joy upon learning we had conceived finally. There is nothing like naive bliss! Aside from the successful arrival of my firstborn three years after that first pregnancy, I literally cannot think of a happier time in my life.
After such an incredible high, that subsequent first loss could only be described as devastating and traumatic. My world, my life, was forever changed by an embryo that didn't live beyond seven weeks.
The same sense of harsh reality can be felt by those who have tried and tried for months or years to no avail, until finally...
In Shelley's case, the "other shoe" scenario played itself out in the recent unexpected death of her dog while she is pregnant with her second child. Both she and her husband were left with the discomforting thought that perhaps they were "being prepared" for more bad news, or that losing their beloved pet was the price they were paying for a healthy baby.
Such thoughts, while they are based on emotion more than fact, are nevertheless common among our community's members.
© Tracy Morris
