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Parliament Moved by Emotional Speech on Miscarriage

Mark Griffin MSP has spoken in the Scottish Parliament about the impact of miscarriage on his family.

In a deeply personal and moving address to MSPs, Mr Griffin, who has three children, revealed that his wife, Stephanie, has also suffered four miscarriages.

The remarks were made during an important debate on the new Changing Miscarriage Care campaign, which seeks to break down the stigma regarding miscarriage and pursue practical changes to the provision of miscarriage services in Scotland.

Mr Griffin said:

“My wife and I are blessed with three healthy, happy children, but Stephanie has also suffered 4 miscarriages. Each one was devastating and had a tremendous impact on our lives, from the physical pain Stephanie suffered, to the enduring sense of grief, guilt and loss, anguish, helplessness and trauma.

“Before the first miscarriage, we did not have a proper comprehension of the number of parents impacted by the loss of a pregnancy and how common it sadly is. That is, in part, because of a stigma that continues to envelop the subject and the strange wall of silence that parents are often encouraged to hide behind. There also remains a significant lack of medical understanding about miscarriage and insufficient support services for parents who endure such a tragedy.

“It is important that more is done to break down this stigma, improve the support available for families and build on the existing medical services. I wholeheartedly back this campaign.”