Empty Arms: Coping After Miscarriage, Stillbirth and Infant Death (Paperback)

by Sherokee Ilse (Author) "If your baby has died, it is natural for you to be unprepared, in shock and to feel a wide range of emotions from disbelief..." (more)
Key Phrases: pregnancy loss, medical care provider, empty arms, Mother's Day

Editorial Reviews

Review
I wish the hospital had given me Empty Arms to read immeditately; instead I finally found it and opened it a month later. If someone had read it to me right then, especially the section 'Decisions You Might Face Right Away,' my regrets would have been so much less. Sherokee's gentle words and advice could have guided us to make better decisions after Bryce died and would have informed us of options that we didn't even know about. Her comforting messages touched us, and we felt less alone and crazy during our grief journey. -- --Lori Martini, bereaved mom/stillbirth advocate<br /><br />Thank you for your lovely book, which we were given before our baby was even delivered. It gave us the courage to make the hard decisions that proved to be the medicine to mend our broken hearts. -- --Debbie Crippen<br /><br />This book was a tremendous inspiration to my patients. I feel you have done a great service to bereaved parents --Stephen Larson, M.D., Ob-Gyn

Thank you for your lovely book, which we were given before our baby was even delivered. It gave us the courage to make the hard decisions that proved to be the medicine to mend our broken hearts. -- --Debbie Crippen

This book was a tremendous inspiration to my patients. I feel you have done a great service to bereaved parents... -- Stephen Larson, M.D., Ob-Gyn

This book was a tremendous inspiration to my patients. I feel you have done a great service to bereaved parents --Stephen Larson, M.D., Ob-Gyn

Product Description
Surviving the First Hours and Beyond

Revised and updated! This classic book is one of the first given to newly bereaved parents to offer guidance in decision-making after their baby's death and to assist caregivers as they support families. Empty Arms encourages families to meet their babies and say hello before rushing to say goodbye. With compassion that comes from Sherokee and David's experience of having lived through the death of their son Brennan, the book offers guidance and practical suggestions for the decision-making at the time (including why and how one might see, hold, and memorialize one's baby) and over time (such as how to handle such times as anniversaries, holidays and the birth of other babies in the parents' close circle.)

Family and friends can learn how to understand the loss and be supportive of the bereaved families.

It offers ongoing support about subjects such as returning to work or to life, couple grieving, surviving children, feeling guilty, having another child or not, and feeling lonely.

With over 300,000 in print, this book touches the hearts of families at the time of their loss and over time as they heal.

An excellent bibliography and resource section are included.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Wintergreen Press, Inc.; 20th, Revised & enlarged edition (October 30, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0960945660
• ISBN-13: 978-0960945665
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #122,502 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Simple format makes it helpful, February 2, 2002

By A Customer

This is a good book if you want something simple. It is in the question, answer format and fairly short. You can easily find what you are looking for without having to search through the other stuff you don't want to think about right now. It would have been extremely helpful right when my son died. It would be good for the hospitals to give out. It didn't have as many stories of other couples (they do help you to feel less alone) as I would have liked, though. There is some advice on how to go on and answers to questions I would not have even thought of, though so I do recommend it. It shouldn't be the only book you buy on loss, but if you can afford more than one, get this one.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative and supportive., November 9, 1999

By	ANGIE STORZ ([e-mail]) (United States) - See all my reviews

This book has it all. It covers real emotions from someone that's "been there." It helped me to understand and accept my own feelings. It also helped my family and friends understand what I was going through. I have talked with several grieving parents and have recommended this book to each one of them.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars when no one else understood, December 28, 2001

By A Customer

Sherokee Isle wrote this wonderful book that touches on all that I went through. I have recommended it to many friends with similar experiences and it has helped them cope with the loss of their little Angels too. I even wrote to her (her address is in tha back of the book) to thank her for helping me, and she sent a hand written personl note back to me telling me how sorry she was for my loss. There are many things she suggests doing to help you through this hard time. She validates your feelings and discusses her personal stories. She is a voice of experience.