There are few things more painful in life for a mother than losing a child. If her baby is stillborn, it can be particularly agonizing. There are no words that can take the pain away, and every mother must give herself time and grace to heal from the unimaginable grief.
One mom who recently gave birth to her baby sleeping has found a unique way to deal with both the emotional and physical loss of her baby boy. Cora Bryant shares her journey on her TikTok page @weylynsmama, where she details her daily sorrow and attempts at living a life she never expected.
One thing that has brought her comfort is a weighted teddy bear that she wears in a baby carrier when she wants to feel the physical presence of her son, Weylyn, who was born sleeping. It’s a unique way to honor her son and to help fill a void in her heart.
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Her loss was a shock.
In a series of TikTok videos, Cora shares that Weylyn was born sleeping at 37 weeks' gestation. She went in for an ultrasound and found out that her son had no heartbeat. She was shocked at the news, and everything that she had prepared for came crashing down.
In one video, she explains that instead of babywearing, she now practices bearwearing to feel closer to Weylyn. She says that before giving birth, she likely would have judged someone carrying around a weighted bear, but not anymore. “Grief is weird, and you do weird stuff when you’re grieving,” she explains.
She wears the teddy bear when she is upset.
In a viral video with five million views, she explains that she wears the bear when she can’t stop crying, and the bear “regulates my nervous system so much that I’m unable to cry anymore.” She calls herself a babywearing pro and cannot wait to try all her carriers when she has another human baby.
Her videos have touched the hearts of many people.
So many parents have experienced the loss of an infant or child, and Bryant’s videos are helping them.
One person wrote, ”My older brother was stillborn a year before I was born. We still all celebrate his birthday and visited the cemetery routinely as kids. He’s definitely a part of our family .”
Another mom shared her experience, commenting, “My sweet daughter Isabella who was also stillborn at 37 weeks and I have my weighted Molly bear that is SO special to me. There’s no timeline on grief.”
“My best friend had a stillborn we got her a weight reborn the ht&w of him. 3 kids later and she still has him and keeps him in a little baby chair,” someone else shared.
TikTokers offered her well-wishes.
People wanted Bryant to understand how proud they were of her for sharing her story.
“Hang in there. Remember you’re allowed to cry and grieve. There’s no set schedule in when you’re supposed to be ‘finished’or ‘better,’” one person wrote.
Many encouraged the mom. “You’re definitely a pro at this ❤️that wrap is so comfortable and comforting – I’m so glad you’re experimenting ❤️You’re doing a good job, promise,” someone else wrote.
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The pain may never go away, but Bryant is not alone.
Bryant understands that life will never be the same again, and she is doing her best to share her story so other parents who have experienced a stillbirth will know they are not alone. She explains in a TikTok that many people don’t understand how common stillbirth is, and no matter how far along a woman is, the heartache is palpable.
“Any level of stillbirth is so traumatic and so horrific, and none of us are prepared for it and nobody talks about it,” she says. “If I'm going to scream this from the rooftops, you are not alone if you’ve gone through it, and I’m so sorry.”
