Rebecca Adlington opens up about ’emotionally hard’ pregnancy in heartfelt post – two years on from tragic miscarriages
REBECCA Adlington has opened up about her “emotionally hard” pregnancy in a new post ahead of welcoming another little one.
The Olympic swimmer is already a mum to son Albie, four, and daughter Summer, ten, but has heartbreakingly suffered two miscarriages.
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Rebecca Adlington has opened up about her “emotional” pregnancy as she prepares to welcome another little one into her broodCredit: Instagram
The Olympian is already a mum to Summer and AlbieCredit: Instagram/@beckadlington
Rebecca announced in September that she’s set to become a mum again with some sweet ultrasound snapsCredit: Instagram / @beckadlington
In 2023, Rebecca lost her daughter Harper, who was stillborn.
The loss came a year after she suffered an early miscarriage at 12 weeks.
Now, Rebecca and her husband Andy Parsons are preparing to welcome another little one into the family, but the former admits it’s not been an easy ride.
She wrote in a new Instagram post: “This pregnancy has been completely different. Not many photos, no gender reveal, no baby shower.
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“This isn’t because I’m not excited, it’s because I’m fearful. Anyone who’s had a rainbow pregnancy will likely understand.
“Mentally and emotionally, this has been my hardest pregnancy. After a counselling session with @petalscharity, I wanted to share a few things that have really helped me, in case they help someone else too.”
Sharing a selfie with her bump in the post, Rebecca continued that she has struggled with “comparing” her unborn baby to late daughter Harper.
She wrote: “I’ve really tried hard recently to not compare. After loss, comparison can feel automatic. I was encouraged to focus on the differences between this pregnancy and our miscarriages, rather than the similarities.
“We’ve given our little one a nick name, ours is Jellytot. It’s helped us stop comparing to Harper and allowed our family to start bonding with little one already too
“It took me a long time to admit I’m struggling but learnt it’s ok to admit it’s hard. Being anxious and struggling doesn’t take away from how grateful I am to be pregnant, it just means I’m human.”
Rebecca and her partner Andy announced their pregnancy news via social media earlier this year, admitting at the time that they were being “cautious” following previous heartache.
The sportswoman said at the time that they had been trying for a child for 19 months, with things finally coming together towards the end of this year.
Rebecca has been with facilities manager Andy, 31, since 2018 after meeting on dating app Bumble.
She shares her eldest, Summer, with ex-partner Harry Needs.
Rebecca says that this pregnancy is tough as she has to stop herself “comparing” it to her last one, with late baby HarperCredit: Instagram
The star and her partner Andy were trying for 19 months before getting pregnantCredit: Instagram/@beckadlington
What is a miscarriage?
MISCARRIAGE is generally the death of an unborn baby in the first 24 weeks – approximately six months – of pregnancy.
Baby loss charity Tommy’s estimates there are at least 250,000 per year in the UK and that one in every five pregnancies ends in miscarriage.
It may not be clear why a miscarriage happens but they are rarely caused by anything done by the mother or father. Usually the embryo has a genetic defect that means it cannot develop properly.
Most women can go on to successfully have healthy babies in the future.
The NHS says most miscarriages cannot be prevented but avoiding smoking, alcohol and drugs while pregnant can reduce the risk.
Some of the other most common reasons for a pregnancy to fail in the first 24 weeks are ectopic pregnancy and molar pregnancy.
Ectopic pregnancy is where a fertilised egg implants somewhere outside of the womb, usually in a fallopian tube. It cannot survive and grow there so either dies naturally or must be terminated.
Molar pregnancy is more rare but happens when a fertilised egg and/or placenta does not develop properly at the start of a pregnancy. There is no single reason why it happens and cannot be prevented, though it may be more common in very young or old mothers.
A baby who dies after 24 weeks is considered a stillbirth.
Source: NHS
