Please be aware Chloe has chosen to share a pregnancy picture with her story.

My personal connection to ‘baby loss’ stems right back from birth. My twin brother Jordan and I were born three months prematurely in 1996. Sadly, due to our premature birth, Jordan passed away at 11 days old.

Despite defying all odds, I truly count my blessings every day, and know I am very lucky to be here. The loss of my brother has definitely been a driving force throughout my life; maybe it’s because in some ways I feel like I’m living for both of us?

In 2017, at the age of 21, I graduated Plymouth University with BSc (Hons) in Tourism Management. I went into work straight out of university and started my first full-time job as a Teaching Assistant at a local secondary school. 

I was lucky enough to marry my best friend Patrick in 2018, and we immediately decided that we wanted to start a family of our own. 

Little did we know at the time, the journey we were about to face. In July 2020, I ended up losing my fourth consecutive pregnancy, my daughter Evelyn, during the second trimester. She passed away due to complications linked to Down Syndrome, and it was after losing her I connected with my local Sands group where I attended monthly meetings.

So, by 24, I was a mum of four, and although you couldn't see my children, I got to carry them in my heart instead. People rarely talk about the grief, devastation and heartbreak after losing a baby. Therefore, as a way of coping and connecting with my feelings, I started to write poetry, which has resulted in the creation of my poetry book Footprints On My Heart.

Since then, I have given birth to two healthy babies, Percy in November 2021, and Hugo in July 2024. Hugo’s birth was a bit bittersweet as he was born a week before Evelyn’s birthday, so they are both July babies, but we try and look at that as a positive thing.