An Angus mother who lost her baby to cot death five years ago has warned there is no time limit on grief.
Dawn Barclay, 28, from Kirkbuddo, lost baby Fern at just eight weeks old in 2014, when she woke up and discovered the tot had stopped breathing.
Dawn was given specialist counselling for trauma from the Scottish Cot Death Trust following the tragedy and has been campaigning ever since for every parent to be offered CPR training and baby monitors to track breathing.
She said she was given counselling again earlier this year when things got too much and now wants to get the message across that grief has no limits and support is always available.
“You don’t ever get over losing your baby, you just learn to get through it,” she said.
“You never get over it but you learn to cope with the grief.
“I don’t know where I would be now without the help and support of the Scottish Cot Death Trust. Grief has no limits.
“The Scottish Cot Death Trust will provide that support and there is no time limit.
“Sometimes I will struggle and I don’t have a huge support network at home.
“It’s a comfort to know they are there if I am going through a tough patch. It’s been crucial for me.”
Dawn, who lives with three-year-old Faye and seven-year-old Flynn, said people are coming forward for the first time to seek support, many years, even decades after their child died.
She is going to skydive next month to give something back to the charity which helped her through her darkest hour.
The jump, which she said will also help take her mind off another big milestone, is planned for Strathallan airfield on August 4.
“Fern would have been going to primary school in August so it will be a difficult time,” she said.
“But doing this skydive and also having Faye and Flynn in the house keep me occupied – you can’t be miserable all day with those two in your life.
“But it is hard on anniversaries especially and that’s the same for any parent in this situation.”
The Scottish Cot Death Trust was founded in 1985 and is the only charity in Scotland dedicated to the sudden unexpected death of babies and young children.
