Meghan Markle, Who Addressed Her Miscarriage Publicly, Speaks of 'Stigma' amid Reversal of Roe v Wade

Duchess Meghan once addressed her miscarriage publically, months after it happened. After the Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade ruling, she spoke about how such changes affected people negatively.

Duchess Meghan and her husband, Prince Harry, were parents of a son Archie and a daughter Lilibet in 2022. She welcomed little Archie, her first child, in 2019, before showing him off after birth at St George's Hall in Windsor.

While speaking to the press during that occasion, she described becoming a first-time parent as amazing and magical. She addressed the media alongside her husband and revealed how happy she was.

The Duchess of Sussex joyfully noted, "I have the two best guys in the world, so I'm really happy." Later after Archie's birth, his parents went on an official tour where Meghan spoke more candidly about becoming a mother.

While speaking to a fellow mother and the chief executive of Cape Innovation and Technology, Lara Rosmarin, the duchess, admitted: "It must be a lot to juggle. We're only five months in right now."

Meghan continued, "Being a working mum and traveling as well with a baby, my goodness it's a lot, but it's all so exciting." When the duchess and her husband welcomed their daughter, they shared the news via their Archewell website.

They revealed the little girl was welcomed on June 4, 2021, and described her arrival as a blessing. In November 2021, while on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," Meghan noted how people always spoke about what it was like for the second child to adjust to being added to a family.

However, she said no one spoke about what it was like for the first child when the second one came. The royal thought her children had a moment of realizing how fun it was to have each other and acknowledge that things were now different.

She also shared how someone had told her and the Duke of Sussex that having one child was a hobby, but parenting began when a second child came. As happy as she is now to be a mother, the journey was difficult.

MEGHAN'S STRUGGLES WITH HER FIRST PREGNANCY

While pregnant with Archie, Meghan had suicidal thoughts per her March 2021 CBS tell-all interview with her husband and Oprah Winfrey. Sadly, she feared telling Harry because of the loss he'd suffered.

The duke lost his mother, Princess Diana, when he was a child. Meghan told him about her dark thoughts because she knew that if she hadn't, she would be tempted to act on them.

When the duchess was six months pregnant, she and Harry visited Cirque du Soleil. Before they went, Harry warned her that he didn't think she should go, but she told him it wasn't safe for her to be left alone.

In the image taken from the event, the couple's knuckles were white from being gripped tightly as they tried to hold things together. The pair appeared smiling and happy as they posed for images, but the truth was much scarier.

What stopped Meghan from taking her life was that she realized it would be unfair for Harry to lose another woman in his life, especially one that was carrying his child. For his part, Harry said he was ashamed of how he handled the whole thing.

He put their responsibilities ahead of his wife's mental health needs. The pair put on a brave face in front of the media while dealing with that dark secret, but Harry felt helpless because they couldn't just decline to go to events without explaining why.

When Meghan went to someone in the Royal Family seeking help with her mental health, she was turned away. The couple ended up speaking publically about the suicidal thoughts because they wanted to help other people who were struggling privately.

MEGHAN'S MISCARRIAGE WITH HER SECOND CHILD

In November 2020, the duchess wrote a shocking piece for The New York Times where she revealed that she'd suffered a miscarriage after having Archie. She revealed that the incident occurred in July 2020, a day that began ordinarily like any other but was etched in her memory.

A pregnant Meghan made breakfast, fed their dogs, took her vitamins, and found a missing sock. She picked up one of Archie's crayons that had landed under the table and threw her hair in a ponytail before getting the little boy from his crib.

The royal changed her son's diaper and felt "a sharp cramp" afterward that caused her to drop to the ground with Archie in her arms. She hummed a lullaby to calm them both down, but she was aware something wasn't right, noting:

"I knew, as I clutched my firstborn child, that I was losing my second."

Some hours later, Meghan held her husband's hand as she lay in a hospital bed. She kissed Harry's knuckles that were wet from the tears they shed and tried to imagine how they'd heal from the loss.

Both parents were devastated by the loss of their second child. The duchess recalled a moment in 2019 when she and her husband were in South Africa finishing up their tour.

At the time, Meghan was breastfeeding Archie, who was then an infant, and she was trying to look brave in public. A journalist happened to ask, "Are you OK?" leading her to answer him without reservation, saying:

“Thank you for asking. Not many people have asked if I’m OK.”

At the time, she didn't know her response would resonate with new and older mothers or anyone who was suffering silently. Meghan found solace in the question from the journalist and noted how asking if a person was okay was the first step in helping them heal and be seen.

HOW DISCUSSING HER LOSS HELPED OTHER PEOPLE

In June 2022, after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Meghan was interviewed about her opinion by Vogue. The royal confessed that she felt "fortunate" to have both her children, adding:

"I know what it feels like to have a connection to what is growing inside of your body."

She noted how the things that happened in a woman's body were "deeply personal" but sometimes led to "silence and stigma." Meghan shared that she knew what a miscarriage felt like and felt normalizing talking about such things was essential.

She felt women had to speak about the things that affected their bodies and lives so that others could understand why certain protections need to be put in place. Being brutally honest about her experiences with her miscarriage has helped many people.

In 2020 after Meghan's article was published, a woman named Anita Singh spoke up about her own experience via Twitter. Singh recalled how she scoured the internet for articles written by women who'd had miscarriages after having her own.

The duchess [Meghan] revealed that she and [Prince] Harry had spoken about the topic a lot since and that he's a feminist.

She shared how reading about it made her feel not alone, comforted, and helped her. Singh concluded her message by thanking the duchess for writing about something "so difficult."

Harper's Bazaar even dedicated a piece to applauding the Duchess of Sussex for helping break the stigma around miscarriages. A specialist midwife, Sophie King, said the royal's editorial was felt by many before noting:

“It’s still a real taboo in society. So mothers like Meghan sharing their stories is a vital step in breaking down that stigma and shame.”

THE SUSSEX'S REACTION TO THE REVERSAL OF ROE V. WADE

During her Vogue interview, Meghan said the reversal of Roe v. Wade was a physical safety issue for women, about individual autonomy, economic justice, and "who we are as a society."

She felt no one had the right to be forced to make a decision they didn't want to make that was unsafe or put their lives in jeopardy. People deserved to have choices whether they weren't ready for children or a couple deserving of planning their family accordingly.

She also encouraged men to start becoming vocal about supporting women's reproductive rights because they affected families, relationships, and communities. Meghan felt the Roe v. Wade reversal currently targeted women, but the consequences would affect everyone.

The Duchess revealed that she and Harry had spoken about the topic a lot since and that he's a feminist. The royal shared her husband's reaction was "guttural," just like hers and that it was the same for other women.

Meghan noted how there was also a "sentiment of despair" about the ruling. The Duchess of Sussex urged people to come together and not wallow in the trauma of the verdict and get to work!

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org.