Not a book I would normally pick to read but I have followed Elle Wright on Instagram (Feathering the Empty Nest) and so I knew she had recently published a book about her story, so I thought I would give Ask Me His Name a read. Ask Me His Name is a moving account of Elle's pregnancy, Teddy's life, and what happens when a mother leaves hospital with empty arms. We were all just shouting at the top of our voices into an echo chamber of women who already know how it feels. It is written from the heart, and I’m sure will resonate with any parent who has experienced such a loss.

This is such a humbling, and heartbreaking read, it is beautifully written and at times will leave you with a hard lump in your throat or sobbing. This is a book that anybody can read, whether you have lost a child yourself, know someone who has lost a child or is just interested in Elle and her story. Then friends and family were writing to me, saying ‘My sister’s baby just died, what do I say to her’, ‘How do I mark the baby’s first birthday’, and all of these things.I’ve followed Elle’s story for the last few years after hearing her interview on Loose Women with Marina Fogle during baby loss awareness month. In the UK, 1 in 4 pregnancies end in loss, but conversations about the heartbreakingly frequent experience are few and far between. I loved this book, it made me cry and smile but most of all it is the most real and heartwarming book due to Elle’s love for her little boy Teddy! As a student nurse I feel truly inspired by Elle’s reflections of her feelings towards others responses to Teddy’s death.

I chose this book to educate myself how to better support the bereaved/bereaving families I work with. In this honest and hopeful exploration of mothering, Elle shows us how she navigated a parenthood no one had prepared her for. You made an already difficult journey, that I'm struggling more with after losing my baby (at 29 weeks from TTC for 5 years, 2 of which with fertility treatment) a little bit harder and I assure you its hard enough.I therefore don’t think you have to have necessarily experienced baby loss to find this book helpful and insightful. Because by this point it was into the summer, I was a year and a bit after losing Teddy, and I felt so much stronger. When I found myself experiencing a motherhood that I never expected, one that I was terrified of living, I didn't know how I would carry on being 'normal'.

People were saying ’Oh God, no one knows what to say to me’ but none of us were doing anything to change the way that conversation was happening.

I followed Elle on Instagram and had learnt about her son Teddy and his death only a few days after his birth through her photos and stories, shared with bravery and love. Would highly recommend anyone to read this book, not only for the emotional reconnection to reality, but also the fact it’s such a beautifully written story in memory of someone so dear.

I didn't know how much I would long for people to say my son Teddy's name, to not treat him like he didn't exist.We can’t shy away from these discussions, by facing them we can help the bereaved moved forward but not away from their loved ones. They’re still here, they’re still living and breathing, they’ve got a whole life ahead of them, we need to make sure this isn’t weird forever. As a mummy myself it has made me look even closer to what I have and cuddle them that little bit tighter. I literally went from room to room just doing that, and taking photos of it and putting it on Instagram, not with the intention of starting a blog at all, just because I needed it for my own sanity.