Carol McMurrich is the founder and director of Empty Arms Bereavement Support in western Massachusetts, and she is also a mom of 5. Her first daughter, Charlotte Amelia, died during labor in 2003, and she went on to have 4 more living children. She is one of the first people Alina reached out to after Quinn died, and she met her with an extraordinary amount of compassion and care.
In this interview, we talk about how to support the newly bereaved, discuss common threads Carol has witnessed throughout over a decade of working with bereaved parents, and reflect on support groups and their important purpose in the grief process.
A content note: this episode does not contain anything more explicit about infant death than our normal podcast fare. But, if you would like to hear more of Carol and Charlotte's backstory, we've released it as a separate episode. Please take good care of yourself and know that if you would find discussion of the circumstances of Charlotte's birth too triggering, we honor your needs and ask that you skip that episode and only listen to this one. Judith, Alina, and Carol all understand the importance of setting boundaries around what comes into your eyes and ears after loss.
Empty Arms provides education for healthcare providers, offers support in the hospital setting for newly bereaved parents, and continues with ongoing support as parents integrate the loss into their lives. Ongoing support groups include infant loss, miscarriage and early pregnancy loss, termination for medical reasons (TFMR), twin loss (while parenting a surviving twin), infertility and loss, pregnancy after loss, parenting after loss, support for dads and non-gestational partners, and a brand new group for people of color in the Springfield, MA area in recognition of the unique challenges faced by this demographic.
Click here to learn more about Empty Arms!
Thank you all for listening! You can reach Carol at emptyarmsbereavement@gmail.com.
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Click to hear Carol's other episode:
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Things we talk about in this episode:
As Long As I'm Living - The Episode Is Stuffed!
Empty Arms support group and events calendar
Alina and Quinn's story for Empty Arms
Click here to support Team Quinn at the Syrup Stampede fundraiser for Empty Arms
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Follow As Long As I'm Living on Instagram at @aslongasimlivingpodcast, send us an email at aslongasimlivingpodcast@gmail.com, or visit us at anchor.fm/aslongasimliving! We would love to hear from you.
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As Long As I'm Living is a podcast about life, love, and laughter after infant loss. Judith and Alina are rebuilding Happier Ever After one day at a time despite excruciating grief and trauma and offering support to grievers of all flavors, but especially those who have lost a baby to SIDS, infant death, birth accidents, stillbirth, TFMR, ectopic pregnancy, or miscarriage.
