Navigating pregnancy in the midst of a pandemic

Each pregnancy is as unique as the mother. For me, this is a pregnancy after loss. My previous pregnancy ended in miscarriage. 
    

When I learned of my current pregnancy at the end of 2019, I was both overjoyed and afraid. I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to carry life inside me and terrified of facing loss again. I thought that this fear would be the extent of my pregnancy woes.
    

Enter the coronavirus. 
    

While many of my prescribed pregnancy diagnostics and treatments were coming to an end as the coronavirus reached U.S. soil, more and more uncertainties began to arise. For example, OB/GYN offices began asking that women go alone to their prenatal appointments, with the option for one person to accompany them to ultrasound appointments. 
    

We quickly realized that meant my husband would not be able to come to any appointments, at least for the time being, because he would have to watch our young daughter. We ultimately understand why this protocol was put into place, yet it has been difficult considering that his presence at appointments brought a lot of comfort, especially after our previous loss.
    

Each woman and each family facing this undoubtedly has their own stories. Some women are first-time mothers who question if they will have the time-honored experience of a baby shower. There are mothers who have complicated pregnancies that have required frequent and fearful hospital visits and stays. There are those who are delivering in the midst of the chaos, many not knowing who, if anyone, will be able to be with them. There are some who are facing loss in the same exact way.
    

As it has been so often put, these are “unprecedented” times. No one expects any of this while expecting. And, yet, there are two reassurances that I have. One is that, pandemic or not, we are not called to know the future. We are called to be with Jesus where we are, right now. 
    

It requires a great deal of courage, more than maybe any of us thought we would have to put forth. But it is worth it. Jesus asks us to be faithful, to be with him, in the midst of any adversity. He is there, even when we are asked to go places alone.
    

The second is that, as mothers, we are all in this together. We are trailblazers in a new territory. Even with our vastly different backgrounds and pregnancy journeys, we are bound together by this exceedingly unique experience.
 
These circumstances may bring a flurry of emotions, but Jesus’s love and solidarity are profound gifts, on this Mother’s Day and beyond. 
    

Megan Alfonso Lacourrege is a wife and mother who resides in Slidell. She is a native of St. Bernard, graduated summa cum laude from Tulane University with a double major in English and musical theater. She serves as youth director at St. Genevieve Catholic Church in Slidell. Megan is also the author of the children’s book, “My Sibling Still,” for children who have lost a sibling to miscarriage, stillbirth or infant death. She aims to provide resources to bereaved parents and siblings of miscarriage.