Sharmila is one of our hospital volunteers in Wales.

25/05/2023

This is Sharmila's story:

"My name is Sharmila and I have been volunteering with Aching Arms since 2018. We sadly lost our baby when I was 36 weeks pregnant. It was totally unexpected as all my scans and check ups had been normal.

I can remember feeling so empty and lonely after leaving the baby with nothing. I became involved with Aching Arms when a colleague kindly sent me a comfort bear during my rainbow pregnancy. This bear meant the world for me as it offered me comfort and I felt that I was not on my own, it gave me courage to carry on. I was lucky to be blessed with a baby boy in 2018.

Since then, I have been volunteering with Aching Arms in many ways. My role involves preparing comfort bears so that they can be delivered to hospitals, training midwives on how to give out bears in a sensitive manner that meet the needs of bereaved parents and attendance of network meetings to promote the amazing work that Aching Arms does. Writing the name on the labels is a beautiful way of remembering all the babies.

Recently, I have been working with Leanne in delivering training to professionals working in the substance use field. The experience was both emotional as so many participants in the group shared their experiences of miscarriage and stillbirth. I am very proud to be a volunteer of Aching Arms and every time I volunteer for Aching Arms, I feel like I am doing something for my baby.

The support from other volunteers and Leanne has been amazing! So, a big thank you to Aching Arms from the bottom of my heart!"

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