Coronation Street actress Kym Marsh has opened up about filming stillbirth scenes for the soap, and losing her own son in 2009.
In a storyline airing on Monday 9 January, Kym's character Michelle MacDonald will suffer a stillbirth at 23 weeks - almost exactly mirroring Kym's own heart-breaking experience.
In 2009, Kym gave birth to a son, named Archie, by ex-partner Jamie Lomas. Archie was born prematurely at just 21 weeks, and tragically died shortly after.
Kym - who is mother to David, 22 and Emilie, 18, with her former partner Dave Cunliffe and five-year-old Polly with Jamie - told OK! Magazine: "I thought long and hard before agreeing to take on the challenge of this storyline. It is obviously a cause very close to my heart having lost my beautiful Archie at 21 weeks and 5 days. I discussed it with my family and friends, all of who were very supportive.
"In the end I felt it was an important story to tell in order to raise awareness of something which affects thousands of women every year. I have had to go to some very dark places in my mind whilst filming these heartbreaking scenes but my family, friends and colleagues have been incredible.
"Losing a child is something that never leaves you so to revisit those feelings as Michelle has been challenging. Coronation Street ensured that I had a counsellor on set at all times to go to after filming the scenes but for me the best tonic after a hugely emotional day was to go home to my kids and be reminded of how lucky I am to have them.
"I am very proud of what we have done with this storyline and I hope it helps raise awareness and helps people to talk about their own experiences."
According to the charity Sands, which supports families around the death of a child, miscarriage is the death of a baby in the first 23 weeks of pregnancy and sadly affects 200,000 couples each year in the UK, with most pregnancies ending in the first 12 weeks. The baby's death officially becomes a stillbirth when the baby dies at 24 weeks.
Erica Stewart, Bereavement Support and Awareness Specialist at Sands, told Metro.co.uk: "We're pleased to have been approached by the researchers and writers at Coronation Street for advice and help to ensure that this heart-breaking storyline is portrayed truthfully and sensitively.
"The death of a baby later than the 23 weeks (miscarriage), but before 24 weeks (stillbirth), raises many issues. Bereaved mothers of babies who die later in pregnancy but before 24 weeks don't have the same rights to maternity leave or pay as mothers of stillborn babies, and the baby's death is not formally registered.
"At Sands, we know how distressing this can be when there is no legal document to say that the baby ever existed. For a TV drama like Coronation Street to cover this devastating experience is a brilliant way of raising awareness of the issues surrounding a baby's death at any gestation.
"The death of a baby is rarely talked about. Many people shy away from the issue, others have a misconception that this is a thing of the past. We hope that with a TV drama as popular as Coronation Street covering this heart-breaking experience, it will help to lift the taboo, and raise awareness of all the issues that surround the death of a baby."
Coronation Street producer Kate Oates explained: "The subject of miscarriage will always be sensitive, but telling this story with Simon and Kym at the centre would always have an extra poignancy.
"Through careful writing and research, we hope we are able to encourage discussion, understanding and compassion for those viewers affected by the loss of a baby. The cast were in safe hands with our amazing and empathetic director Tony Prescott, and it has been humbling to see all the actors involved being so selfless and generous in their performances."
These scenes are due to air in the week of Monday 9 January, where Michelle will go into early labour and will tragically have to say goodbye to her and Steve's premature newborn, whom they name Ruairi.
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