Actress Shares How Daughter’s Stillbirth Strengthened Her Faith
By Movieguide® Contributor
Alexa PenaVega is opening up about the heartbreaking stillbirth of her daughter, Indy, earlier this year, and how it strengthened her faith.
“It was awful. It was so so, so unbelievably awful,” she said during an appearance on the “Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans” podcast. “But there also was this great feeling of peace that I cannot explain that we experienced.”
PenaVega continued, “If I could have her back, I would give anything to have her back. But also, what we experienced in her loss was so much life. Like, she taught us so much and she continues to pour into us and the questions that our kids ask and the way we just kind of like talk about her every day. There is still so much life in this loss…she’s still such a part of everything that we do.”
She explained that, in some ways, she and her husband Carlos were “blessed” by this loss.
“It’s because you had to dig so deep into a place of healing and meeting God and understanding life in a whole different way that most people don’t have to experience,” she shared.
The actress added, “In this season, it was like the first time we both were just like, ‘you know what? We’re not okay, this really hurts.’ And it was like the closest that we ever were. And then I think from there we just almost restarted like a whole new foundation with each other and grew in an unbelievable way.”
READ MORE: ALEXA PENAVEGA HAS ‘SO MUCH PEACE’ AFTER DAUGHTER’S STILLBIRTH
PenaVega has also posted many encouraging messages to others who might be struggling with the grief of losing a loved one.
“It’s okay to be okay after loss,” she wrote in one Instagram post. “We grieved. We hurt. But we were restored and filled with peace. Indy will always be a part of our lives. Life after Indy will be brighter because she brought us perspective. She brought us closer together. She made us stronger. She helped us grow in areas that needed growth. She was LIGHT in our lives and always will be.”
PenaVega added, “Don’t get me wrong. What we would give to have her in our arms now… but we don’t want to live in her LOSS… we want to live in her LIGHT. Gods peace surpasses all understanding.”
READ MORE: HOW GRATITUDE HELPED GAF STAR HEAL AFTER PREGNANCY LOSS
