Jamie Otis opens up about her chemical pregnancy—the most common type of miscarriage

It had only been a few days since she saw a faint positive sign on a pregnancy test, but that did little to ease the heartbreak of Jamie Otis’s pregnancy loss—as the reality star so candidly revealed through an emotional Instagram post.

“I don’t know why some people have it seemingly SO easy to get preggers & carry their babies to term and others struggle?” says Otis, who lost her first pregnancy at 17 weeks in 2016 before welcoming baby Henley Grace in 2017. “We have to wait a cycle before trying again, but I am on a mission to make Gracie a big sis now.”

Otis has been open with her life ever since meeting husband Doug Hehner on the first season of Married at First Sight, which has won her thousands of fans who appreciate her willingness to share the highs and lows of her story. As unique as the beginning of their story was, many people are all too able to relate to Otis and Hehner’s struggles to grow their family: Chemical pregnancy describes when an embryo briefly implants and causes human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels to elevate before the implantation fails. This is believed to account for between 50 and 75% of all miscarriages, with other studies suggesting 25% of pregnancies fail in this way before they are even detected by the woman.

For Otis, the experience played out like a complete rollercoaster. “This very bizarre positive pregnancy test then negative test then faint positive lines gave me hope that Gracie was going to become a big sis in 9 months, but the night before last I began having terrible contraction-like pains & spotting,” she says on Instagram. “Then over the night full blown everything – if you know what i mean.”

As evidenced by the hundreds of comments by followers who went through similar struggles, Otis isn’t alone. But by connecting with others who have walked through this before, Otis says she is finding many reasons to remain optimistic. “I truly believe in the power of positivity & prayer,” she says. “Thank you ALL again for all the thoughts and prayers. I can’t even begin to tell ya how much it means to me & my hubby.”

Today, it’s heartache that Otis is so bravely sharing with us. But in shining a light on an important topic, something worthy is coming of her experience—and it will make the joy all that much more vibrant when another pregnancy announcement does come. As she says, “I know in my heart that the large family we’ve always wanted is coming.”

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