The hospital bag is packed, everything ticked off on the list.
The nursery paint has dried, the cot mobile hangs in anticipation of the little one it will entertain.
The first outfit for those all-important hospital snaps has been selected and placed at the top of the baby’s bag.
And then you wait.
Those last few weeks drag on for an eternity.
As your movements get more laboured with the ever-increasing weight of the child you carry, well-meaning friends and family drop you text...
We've joined the 2.6 Challenge to raise funds to give 100 Gift Of Hope Packs to bereaved parents, in memory of the Children of Jannah. You are a hero and we're really grateful to have your support.
The idea is that participants choose a challenge, any challenge at all, related to 2.6 or 26 (the number of miles in a marathon) and then ask friends and family to sponsor them to try to make up some of the money...
I tear up as I lie in bed nursing my almost two-year-old little girl.
Her warm hands stroking my tummy while my arms blanket her as she drifts off to sleep.
I knew that weaning her would be difficult for me, and now, I find myself turning to Allah, asking Him for the strength to get us both through this weaning process.
I imagine that many mothers feel this way about weaning.
Many of them have told me that when the time comes, they just knew that it was time.
That they got to a point...
Allah, Al-Warith, remains after the extinction of all beings.
He inherits everything after the death of everyone and everything. He is the heir on the Day of Judgement; it will be loudly called out,
“To whom does the Kingdom belong this Day? To Allah, the One, The Subduer (of all).” [Qur’an, 40:16]
Allah, Al-Warith, The Ultimate Inheritor is the inheritor of us all.
Allah, Al-Ahad, is unique in every way and He tests us all in unique ways.
From His wisdom, He tests some of us through obvious hardships, like the loss of loved ones.
Others, He tests through the giving of blessings.
Each test and blessing presents us with an opportunity to strengthen our faith and earn reward.
The experience of a miscarriage can completely floor a couple and have a devastating impact on a marriage.
Following the excitement and joy of a pregnancy announcement, the stark realisation that a much longed for baby has actually died, whether early or late into pregnancy, can be utterly heartbreaking and place massive stress on a relationship.
The death of any child, at whatever stage of their development is tragic and has a significant impact on a relationship.
Lost dreams and love...
When I come across someone going through their own hardship, be it bereavement, illness, struggles in a relationship, or financial loss, I often say to them,
“life is not meant to be easy, so don’t be too harsh on yourself if you are struggling to cope”.
Monday, January 14th 2008, 8.30am, marked a moment that changed my life forever; my second pregnancy resulted in my baby girl being stillborn.
I can remember every single second of that day.
Those...
Sometimes one of the hardest things to deal with as part of your grieving process can be uncomfortable or insensitive questions.
No matter how well meaning, when you are trying to cope with the loss of a child, questions from outsiders can cut deep.
Some people ask very personal, unnecessarily nosy questions, such as:
“Why don’t you have any children?”
Questions like this can sour the conversation, make the situation tense and even sting you when they take you...