Debbie Haine Vijayvergiya

Debbie Haine Vijayvergiya’s daughter Autumn Joy was born still in July 2011. Since then, Debbie has become a powerful advocate at both the state and national level. She’s been working tirelessly over the past few years to improve stillbirth outcomes and to raise stillbirth awareness. In 2013 Debbie co-founded the national organization Action for Stillbirth Awareness and Prevention Coalition. The mission of ASAP is to raise awareness of stillbirth, unify voices, and accelerate prevention efforts in the United States. In 2013, Debbie assisted in drafting New Jersey’s first-ever stillbirth legislation and in June 2014, Governor Chris Christie passed The Autumn Joy Stillbirth Research & Dignity Act. Later in 2014, Debbie founded The 2 Degrees Foundation, an NJ-based organization dedicated to giving every family in the state a fighting chance against stillbirth. She is also a member of the Stillbirth Advocacy Working Group (SAWG) co-chaired by the International Stillbirth Alliance and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Debbie resides in New Jersey with her husband and two children.

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Health Care Maternal Justice

January 13, 2020

Stillbirth affects tens of thousands of American families every year. This post was originally written for National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month in October 2019. After Autumn was stillborn, I was full of self-loathing over the fact that I failed to bring her home alive. However, once I learned that stillbirth affects tens of thousands of American families every year, I was able to be open to the idea that it may not have been my fault after all. It was only then that the wall that left me disconnected from my world began to erode. First, I had to begin to learn how to let go of...

MomsRising Together

Health Care

January 13, 2020

In July 2011, we faced every expectant parents’ worst nightmare when when we learned that our unborn daughter had died. From the moment that I found out that Autumn was stillborn, my life drastically veered off course. I have since spent the past eight years trying to find my way back on track. I’ve often referred to this experience as my healing journey. But what I have come to realize recently is that this has not been a journey of healing but rather, a story of surviving. In the months following Autumn’s stillbirth I was inconsolable and completely devastated. I was so blinded by my grief...

MomsRising Together

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Debbie Haine Vijayvergiya

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Finding Your Way After a Stillbirth

Surviving After a Stillbirth