You may never know the woman next to you in church had a miscarriage.
Pregnancy loss happens to as many as one in five pregnant women before the 12th week. Yet researchers have found the topic remains a social taboo, often considered almost a nonevent because of the lack of status accorded to a developing child in the early stages in the womb.
Add to that a general ignorance about abnormal cell development and other causes of most miscarriages, and many women would rather not suffer the victim blaming inquiries of whether they lifted something heavy or smoked during the pregnancy.
There is some hopeful news, however, for couples grieving over the loss of an unborn child they already envisioned as part of their family.