Married at First Sight star Jamie Otis took to her Facebook page on Monday to share a heartbreaking tribute to her son in honor of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. Otis, who suffered a miscarriage in June, posted a photo of herself and her husband, Doug Hehner, with their son.
"October is pregnancy and infant loss awareness month," she captioned the photo. "I can't sleep well tonight so I blogged about my sweet boy, Johnathan Edward."
She continued: "I realize there is a great stigma associated with sharing photos of your baby who was born too early and has already gone to heaven so I want to say sorry if this offends you," she wrote. "However, if there's one thing my husband has taught me it's this: 'Don't live life trying NOT to offend anyone and trying to please everyone.'"
Otis went on to say that she hopes that by sharing the photo, she can help to alleviate some of the stigma surrounding "offensive" photos of miscarriages. She also hopes that it helps others who have suffered miscarriages to know that they aren't alone.
"I've realized that there are SO many women who have experienced a similar loss and feel so isolated from it," she told Entertainment Tonight. "It wasn't until I blogged [that I realized that] so many women feel the same way as me. It's taboo to share photos and talk about miscarriage."
Otis is right — discussing miscarriages still carries a social stigma, which can leave women feeling unprepared if a miscarriage does happen to them.
"I really want to desensitize this topic," she said. "I want to show [other women who have miscarried] that they aren't alone, and I want to give them a space where they can share their sweet baby who was taken from the world too early. I hope by me sharing my story and my son, Johnny, it helps women who have gone through similar circumstances or who are going through a loss now."
Since she posted it on Monday, Otis' photo has received positive responses from fans, and some other Facebook users have even commented with photos from their own experiences with miscarriage.
"You have made it so much easier for me to open up by sharing your story," one user commented. "Thank you so much for being so strong and doing what you and Doug do to bring awareness to this."