Customer Reviews

A Guide For Fathers: When A Baby Dies

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nelson simply explains from a father's perspective, what a man and a Dad encounters as he goes through the steps of caring for his family and experiencing the devastating loss of his baby. Some of the books topics are how to explain death to children, making arrangements, going back to work, guilt and blame, anger, getting support outside of your family, communication, future pregnancies and going on in life. One topic I found important is the one on anger. Nelson addresses the issues surrounding anger and the importance of being patient with oneself. It is an easy read for busy fathers.

It's hard to know what is normal in abnormal situations. The death of a child is (if all goes well) a very abnormal situation for which few people are prepared. And while this guide does not do the impossible (help you and your spouse quickly get over the grief) it does let you know a few important things. First, most of what you are feeling is normal, so just go with it and don't worry about what anyone else thinks. Second, you can't solve your spouse's grief so your best bet is to be supportive and watch out for things you might do that will make things worse (things that you may think are actually helpful).

This book does not attempt to explain the psychological underpinnings of what we do in stressful times; that's not its purprose. It merely offers perspective on what the author and his wife experienced, some of the mistakes he made, and offers proof that life does go on, though certainly it will not go on as it did before.

Because it clearly was not written to climb the bestsellers lists you will not find diagrams, catchy buzzwords or any Mars and Venus stories. This is just one guys story that he hopes will help others- and after reading it, I can say it will do that.

I bought this for hubby after we lost our son. He got a lot out of it. It helped him with his feelings and also helped him deal with me and my feelings. Its an easy simple read that says a lot in a short format. I highly suggest this to bereaved fathers.

This is a great book and yes it is short but it is geared toward men and no grieving man is going to sit down to a 200 page book on his feelings. Each topic is covered by a man who has been there and therefore you can relate. I got a lot out of this, too, even though I am a woman, but it is helpful to really see where your husband may be coming from. While this book does specifically target stillbirth, as that is what the author experienced, I think you can still get something out of it for miscarriage if you just look at the parts about how you may be feeling and how to deal with the grief. The most helpful part of the book for me is the reference pages in the back that list other books and websites. It is worth it to get this book.

If the title of the book speaks to you, get it. You won't be sorry.

If the title makes you think of someone else, give it as a gift. It can be a good help.

If you have sadly experienced the loss of a baby through miscarraige, stillbirth or in the first months of life, whether you are the mom or the dad this book is a must have. This book is a fast read, but don't let that under-estimate the power of this book. The very straightforward insights brought an amazing amount of comfort and understanding for both my husband and I. The author speaks from the heart and is honest about his feelings, which most men will find right on target. I co-founded a non-profit charity with 4 other moms that provides support for families who have experienced the loss of a baby and we have MANY copies of this book in our lending library. We strongly encourage our members to check it out. To date, I have not had anyone who did'nt find this book a tremendous help.

Good luck.

Hospitals, funeral homes or child loss support groups should provide this book to fathers who have just suffered a stillbirth, late miscarriage or infant loss. The information mostly covers the first few weeks after a loss. I don't think it would be helpful for a father who's loss was more than 6 months ago.

I is a pocket sized pamphlet. Very short but provides many good details about the normal early stages of grief.

I bought this book for my husband after I had a miscarriage. I thought it would be helpful. It really was not geared towards miscarriage at all, it was for someone that experienced a still birth or had an infant die soon after birth. It might be helpful in those situations. Even in those situations, I'm not sure how great it would be. It is a very short book, can be read very quickly.

I purchased this book so that I could use it as a reference for families who suffer such a loss. Sorry to say I have not yet had time to read it myself. It is such a brief book. It must say a lot in a few words, which is usually how men want such things. Many of the people who call are suffering from post-abortion trauma. Men who call are usually looking for ways to save the baby their wife or partner is planning to abort. We can only tell them they have no rights and refer to them to an attorney who will tell them the same thing. Sometimes if we can help them tell the mother of their child that we will help her with referrals to social servie agencies and practical assistance, she changes her mind.
Thank you.
Helen