This guide is written to be read at your pace. There is no right amount of detail to want, no right tone to want, and no right time to read it. If you arrived here because something has happened, we are so sorry.
NestWise treats pregnancy loss the way the better Australian bereavement services do — discreetly, calmly, and without ceremony. We don't surface this content on the main dashboard. It lives here for when you go looking.
The kinds of loss, by week
Pregnancy loss in Australia is grouped by gestational age. The medical language is precise rather than warm — that's a constraint of the paperwork, not a judgement of the experience.
| Type | When | Approximate frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Chemical pregnancy | Very early loss, often before a scan confirms pregnancy | Up to half of all conceptions, many never noticed |
| Miscarriage | Before 20 weeks of gestation | About 1 in 4 known pregnancies |
| Ectopic pregnancy | The embryo implants outside the uterus (usually the fallopian tube) | 1-2% of pregnancies — needs prompt medical care |
| Stillbirth | From 20 weeks of gestation onwards | About 1 in 135 pregnancies |
| Neonatal death | A baby born alive who dies within 28 days | About 2.5 per 1,000 live births |
The 20-week mark is where the paperwork shifts. Loss before 20 weeks does not usually trigger formal birth registration. Loss from 20 weeks onwards is registered as a stillbirth — there's a separate guide on what that process looks like state by state.
What tends to happen, practically
Every clinical pathway is different. The picture below is what most parents in Australia describe, drawn from Sands Australia and Pregnancy Birth Baby. None of it is universal — your team will guide you through what applies to your situation.
Early miscarriage (before about 12 weeks) is often managed at home or in a day-hospital setting. Choices typically include waiting for the body to complete the miscarriage naturally, taking medication that helps the process along, or a procedure called a dilation and curettage (D&C). Your GP, midwife, or obstetrician will talk through what fits your situation.
Later miscarriage and stillbirth are usually managed in hospital. Most Australian maternity units have a dedicated bereavement room or area, separate from the general maternity ward. Practices that many hospitals offer (and that you can ask for if not offered) include time with your baby, hand and footprints, photographs, a lock of hair, and a memory box. A social worker, chaplain, or bereavement midwife is typically available.
Ectopic pregnancy is a medical situation that needs prompt treatment — usually medication or surgery — because the embryo cannot grow safely outside the uterus. If you have severe one-sided pain, dizziness, or shoulder-tip pain in early pregnancy, contact your GP or call 000.
The first few days and weeks
There is no normal way to feel. Grief after pregnancy loss does not follow a tidy timeline, and the feelings do not always match the gestational age. Sands Australia and Red Nose Grief and Loss have decades of experience walking with parents through this.
The shape that many families describe over the first weeks:
- The first few days, the body is doing physical work. Pain, bleeding, breast changes, and fatigue are common.
- The first month, the world keeps moving while you may not feel able to. People may not know what to say.
- The first anniversary, especially around the due date or the date of loss, is often harder than expected.
You can call a counsellor or peer support line at any of those points. They expect you. None of the AU bereavement services have a time-since-loss cut-off.
Where to go from here
- For practical financial help — Parental Leave Pay, Newborn Supplement, employer leave entitlements, and bereavement payments are covered in Financial help after pregnancy loss.
- For state-by-state stillbirth registration — see Registering a stillbirth in Australia.
- For the support services themselves — see Bereavement support services in Australia.