Loosing my dad whilst pregnant

Hey everyone,

Yesterday we were told they would no longer be able to treat to cure my dad. He had one round of chemotherapy, which he reacted badly too and it led to numerous infections. He has an aggressive form of Esophegus cancer and we have now been told the prognosis is 3-6 months with short term radiotherapy starting tomorrow.

I have always been so close to my dad and he was so fit and well until June this year. I also found out I was pregnant with my first child at the start of July, exactly the same date we got told it might be cancer. I can't sleep, I just keep crying all the time and wondering how I can possibly face having my baby without my dad. I'm currently 19 weeks pregnant. Cancer is so cruel and I don't feel I can be happy or excited now about the baby. I never saw this coming, he's far too young. How do you possibly handle bringing a child into the world whilst your loosing the one person who has always been there for you and who has always loved you unconditionally? 

  • Hello I'm so sorry to hear that,I know it's difficult but the time you have with your dad now is precious,try to keep strong for him,you will cope with it all and talk about your pregnancy with him,cancer is a horrible disease I also lost my mum and sister to it so I do understand.My father passed away 2 years ago and after losing him I was diagnosed with cancer myself.So just keep strong for your dad,try not to stress too much x

  • I'm so sorry. I was pregnant when my mum was diagnosed with cancer. I found out about it on the same day I heard my daughter's heartbeat for the first time. Mum made it through three years of my daughter's life but I became pregnant a second time (a huge surprise as we had ivf to have our daughter) when she was terminal. She knew about my son but never met him. He is 14 months now and I miss her every single day. I think that, just as you say, it's alnost incomprehensible to face losing someone so important to you at the same time as welcoming a baby. I found sometimes that I almost forgot I was pregnant in the midst of caring for my mum as dhe died. At other times I almost resented being pregnant because it just felt like such a bad time to have to deal with it. All I can say is that somehow you will get through it. Contrary to what a lot of people want to think, a baby does NOT compensate for losing a parent. They are simply two major life events happening simultaneously and I really resented the way some people seemed desperate to have me focus on the happy event of a new baby and almost seemer to be want me to 'move on' from mum's illness and then death because of that. I felt I had no time to grieve mum, because my son was born four months after she died. It's only now, 18 months since her death that I am starting to feel able to examine some of the many emotions I buried at the time because there just wasn't the space then. So please do try if you're able to allow yourself to feel sadness / anger / pain even though you're pregnant. You matter just as much as your baby. But at the same time, try to enjoy the pregnancy where you feel able. I was so swept away by the gargantuan event of mum dying that my pregnancy almost passed without me noticing and I now find that quite sad. There is so much going on and a lot of it will feel very conflicting but know that whatever you're feeling is legitimate and necessary. And do take care of yourself. Again, easy to overlook if you're caring for a beloved parent and growing a new life. But you need all the love and tlc too. Good luck and lots of love.