Parent Support of Puget Sound (P.S.) is a local 501(c)(3) non-profit organization for people who have lost a baby through miscarriage, stillbirth or infant loss. Our mission is to reach out and provide help and understanding to bereaved parents.

P.S. was started over 30 years ago, in the Seattle area, by a local nurse, Judie Campbell. Judie worked in labor and delivery and was also involved in a community health nursing class. One of the course requirements was to complete a project that would benefit the community. Judie chose to address the most difficult aspect of her practice: stillbirth.

Accepted medical practice at that time was to keep the mother deeply sedated, immediately remove the stillborn infant from the delivery room, allow her time for expression of feelings, and then reassure her of the possibility of healthy children. She was then either discharged from the hospital or transferred to another unit to recover. Her partner was expected to take care of notifying relatives, funeral home arrangements, and removing all evidence of the planned new arrival from the house. The expectation was that home, family, friends, and some mild sedation would help her to forget. Compassion was intended; yet Judie felt a nagging sense that something else was needed.

A search for that “something else” began with a review of available literature. Judie found little, but some concepts from early articles proved enlightening. She was familiar with bonding but learned it actually begins early in pregnancy through fantasies of the hoped-for child. Later, persistent lively kicks give evidence of life within, forming perceptions of the child’s personality. It seemed natural that a period of grief would follow a stillbirth, since the child was a real person to his parents. Further research led her to develop a model of the grief process applied to the specific situation of stillbirth. It embraced the concepts of bonding, attachment, loss and grief. Judie prepared to assemble a group of parents, teach them these concepts, and guide them through their struggles. It promised to be a rewarding twelve week project. Judie had no idea that those weeks would extend into years.

After initial weeks of probing individual struggles, the group understood its’ needs more clearly and was motivated to begin working for improved care. Parent panels took their message to every hospital in the greater Seattle area. They spoke of the need for personal choice in their treatment. Even the most skeptical audiences were touched by the courageous, forthright stories of struggles with unresolved grief presented by the parents themselves. The nursing community was particularly responsive to the goals of the group.

Over the years, P.S. has evolved to now offering several groups in the Puget Sound area as well as a lending library, special events, outreach to the medical community and a quarterly newsletter. It has also expanded its focus to include miscarriage and infant loss and changed its name from Parents of Stillborns to Parent Support. Parents continue to facilitate these meetings in an open, supportive setting.