A woman has spoken out about her traumatic experience following a miscarriage, highlighting a significant gap in care and support from health services. Shelley Romaniuk, 33, shared her story after enduring years of infertility struggles. During a routine 12-week scan, she was informed that her baby no longer had a heartbeat, a heartbreaking revelation that marked the beginning of her distressing journey through loss.
Despite the emotional toll, Romaniuk reported feeling abandoned by the healthcare system. “After that scan, we were just put into a room, given a leaflet, and left until someone came to ask what we wanted to do,” she recounted. She expressed a desire for a surgical procedure known as dilation and curettage (D&C) to remove the fetus but was told she would have to wait a week due to a lack of available appointments. “There was no offer of support, no therapy, no counseling, and you’re walking away carrying your baby who’s no longer alive,” she said.
While waiting for the D&C, Romaniuk experienced painful cramps and had to go to the Accident and Emergency department. Tragically, she ended up losing the baby naturally before she could undergo the procedure. “Even after that, I was sent on my merry way, and there was zero support. I was depressed for a long time after that,” she explained.
After 12 difficult years with infertility, Romaniuk and her husband opted for private fertility treatment and are now expecting a baby girl in just a few weeks. However, she believes the absence of mental health support during her initial loss contributed to her struggles with conception. “We were asking for help continuously, but there was nothing,” she stated. The trauma from the missed miscarriage, she argued, continues to affect her, particularly during subsequent scans, which revive painful memories of her loss. “Maybe if I had support to deal with that and move forward, things would have been different,” she added.
Research conducted by Fertility Network UK, Cardiff University, Cardiff Metropolitan University, and Queen’s University Belfast reveals that infertility-related trauma is more prevalent than previously understood, with over 60% of women reporting that the care they received either caused or exacerbated their trauma. The study found that 41% of respondents across the UK reported experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after infertility struggles.
Dr. Catherine Hill from the charity emphasized the significance of the findings, stating, “This research is very important because it confirms what those working in the fertility sector have suspected for a while—that infertility-related trauma is very common and remains largely unaddressed in our society.”
In Wales, many respondents indicated that they received only a single counseling session during their fertility journey, which Dr. Hill argued is inadequate. “One session tends to not even scratch the surface, and many clinics offer more than that,” she noted. Furthermore, long waits for fertility tests and investigations are exacerbating the distress experienced by individuals seeking treatment.
Lead researcher Dr. Sofia Gameiro from Cardiff University noted that while some patients reported receiving compassionate and skillful care, over 60% indicated that their experiences were marked by a lack of empathy, conflicting advice, and inadequate support when faced with bad news.
In response to these concerns, a spokesperson for the Welsh government acknowledged the mental health impact of infertility and treatment delays, stating, “Two rounds of NHS IVF treatment are available to qualified patients, as per criteria set by the NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee.” They assured that the committee works to ensure high-quality, safe, and cost-effective care for patients undergoing fertility treatment.
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