For those pondering whether you should bother naming the child you lost in pregnancy, Miscarriage Moms For Life heartily recommends, “Absolutely!” For those who have already decided not to bother, we ask you to prayerfully reconsider as you keep reading below.

Some purposes of names include: 
• Readily identifying us from the crowd. While we may ignore an occasional “Hey, you,” we almost immediately recognize our name and reflexively react to hearing it. 
• Linking us to our reputation, like a brand. When a recognized name is said, others react based on the associations they make with that name. 
• Affirming our place and position in our families. Our children are ours, even though they are not physically with us. 
• Conveying a sense of dignity, respect, and recognition as humans—being made in the image of God (read Our Babies Are Made in the Image of God).

Remember the scene from…

To learn more, read our book, Other Side Of Grief.

You may already be using a nickname for your child, like little bean, blueberry, little angel, or anything else. Great! Continue to say it with all the fondness you wish to convey. But giving your child a proper name denotes a level of seriousness and respect (read What to Name Your Child) that nicknames lack. It may sound like this: “We named our son in heaven David, but I like to call him my monarch butterfly because his first movements were like flutters.”

Attend a Miscarriage Moms For Life memorial for more on this topic, or read our book, Other Side Of Grief. Find additional comfort in reading our book, When Unborn Babies Speak.