Sheffield MP Olivia Blake to appear in miscarriage documentary alongside Myleene Klass

The documentary, Miscarriage & Me, will see Myleene, who has had four miscarriages, speak to women around the UK who have also had a miscarriage to understand the effects it can have on mental and physical health.

It also follows Olivia, MP for Sheffield Hallam, who had a miscarriage during the Coronavirus pandemic, and presented research and proposals for improving healthcare provision for families who have had miscarriages to parliament.

Olivia said: “What I’m really hoping that this documentary will do is raise awareness with people about some of the issues that currently exist within miscarriage support. For example the three miscarriage rule which means that many women and people who experience miscarriages and partners don’t get access to any support. They have to have got their third miscarriage which could have been preventable in order to get some basic support.

"I wasn’t planning on speaking about my own experience. But having heard the heartfelt and very deeply moving accounts from colleagues about their experience of baby loss and miscarriages that weren’t in the pandemic I just felt I had to share my experience. I wanted to raise the profile of how important it is to have someone with you when you are getting the news.

For much of the pandemic, there was a blanket ban on accompanied hospital appointments, meaning that many women, including Olivia, were on their own with a doctor when they learned they had had a miscarriage.

Olivia explained that there were many failings surrounding miscarriage care, including a lack of clear data on the number of women who experience miscarriages, and a lack of support for women who have miscarriages at 23 weeks or earlier.

She added: “I think there’s a lot of taboo around miscarriages. I went back to work straight after having mine. I didn’t get offered any support from the NHS. Fortunately I was able to access some counselling through my work place but a lot of people don’t have that support. There are also campaigns happening at the moment to have statutory time off for both partners involved in the pregnancy.”

Miscarriage & Me will air on channel W on October 14, 9pm-10pm.