“Grief Changed Us” — Mahaley & Ravi Patel on Infant Loss, Marriage, and Pregnancy After Loss
Mahaley and Ravi Patel join me to share the story of their daughter, Saachi.
After complications during birth led to meconium aspiration, Saachi spent five days in the NICU before her parents said had to say goodbye. In this episode, Mahaley and Ravi gently reflect on those early days — the hope, the uncertainty, the sacred time they were given — and the heartbreak of leaving the hospital without their baby.
Mahaley, a licensed marriage and family therapist specializing in perinatal mental health, grief, trauma, and infant and child loss, speaks openly about what it was like to be supporting families through birth trauma and NICU experiences while navigating the loss of her own daughter. Losing Saachi profoundly deepened and redirected her work — shaping how she now holds space for bereaved parents and ultimately leading her to write her book, Your NICU Story, a resource born from both clinical expertise and lived experience.
Ravi shares honestly about fatherhood in grief, the strain and strengthening of their marriage, and what survival mode truly looked like in those first months.
Over time, their story expanded to include pregnancy after loss, surrogacy, and the arrival of their rainbow babies — all while continuing to honour Saachi in their everyday lives.
We talk about:
Saachi’s birth and her time in the NICU
Meconium aspiration and unexpected birth complications
The sacred and painful experience of saying goodbye
Grieving differently within a marriage
Supporting one another when both partners are hurting
How losing a child reshapes identity and professional calling
The creation of Your NICU Story and supporting other NICU families
Pregnancy after loss and cautious hope
Parenting rainbow babies while carrying enduring love
This episode is a reminder that a baby’s life — no matter how brief — can alter the course of a family forever. Saachi’s life continues to ripple outward, shaping the way her parents love, parent, work, and serve other grieving families.
Get to Know Mahaley:
Mahaley Patel, LMFT, PMH-C is a licensed therapist specializing in perinatal mental health, grief, trauma, and infant/child loss. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from UCLA and a Master’s degree from Pepperdine University. With a compassionate and client-centered approach, Mahaley is dedicated to supporting individuals navigating their journey to and through parenthood. She also serves on the bereaved parent advisory board at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and runs a child loss support group for grieving parents. Beyond her professional work, she is a wife, a mother of four, and a bereaved parent, bringing both personal and clinical experience to her practice.
Website: www.mahaleypatel.com
Instagram: @mahaleyhpatel
Read her book "Your NICU Story": https://a.co/d/07dscQMi
