White, David

PERSONAL:

Married Siobhán O'Neill (a writer), c. 2002; children: Mitchell, Robyn, and April.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Bettystown, Ireland.

CAREER:

Salesperson and writer. Worked in sales for various companies, including Cadbury, Chorus Telecom, Sanyo Ireland, and an overseas property developer.

WRITINGS:

(With wife, Siobhán O'Neill-White) We Lost Our Baby: One Couple's Story of Miscarriage and Its Aftermath, Liffey Press (Chester Springs, PA), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

David White is a salesman and writer. He has worked in sales for a number of companies, including Cadbury, Chorus Telecom, Sanyo Ireland, and an overseas property developer. White first partnered with Siobhán O'Neill in the late 1990s. They married five years later, and she became pregnant on their honeymoon.

Twelve weeks into her second pregnancy, O'Neill-White went to the hospital after noting some bleeding. The doctor initially was not able to find the baby's heartbeat but later conceded that it was simply a weak heartbeat, suggesting that the baby was probably not developing as it should. Incensed with the doctor's perceived lack of empathy, particularly as the bleeding continued to get worse the following day, the couple decided to get checked at a different hospital. Somewhat comforted by the new doctor's assurances that they would take the issue up the following day, the pair settled down to bed. However, disaster struck that night when O'Neill-White suffered even more blood-loss after feeling as if her water had broken. White rushed her to the hospital but was not allowed to stay with her in the emergency room. After several hours of pain, she learned of her miscarriage by overhearing a nurse, while White remained in the waiting room unaware of his wife or baby's condition. The hospital offered no counseling and did not provide the pair with information about support groups that existed in their community. Both became depressed over the miscarriage. While White began drinking to seek refuge from his pain, O'Neill-White became angry at the hospital's treatment of her and for not providing enough answers to her. They lost friends over the incident and their marriage suffered. After seeking counseling, though, O'Neill-White began to write down her feelings on the various issues which had troubled her. White read her diary and the pair decided to turn it into a tool to help others who had been in their position.

White published his first book, We Lost Our Baby: One Couple's Story of Miscarriage and Its Aftermath, in 2007 with his wife. The memoir describes the pair's difficult time accepting the miscarriage and the treatment they received from the hospitals that attended to their case. The couple wrote the account with the intent of helping others deal with having a miscarriage and bringing to light the resources and support available to couples facing this type of personal trauma.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

White, David, and Siobhán O'Neill-White, We Lost Our Baby: One Couple's Story of Miscarriage and Its Aftermath, Liffey Press (Chester Springs, PA), 2007.

PERIODICALS

Irish Independent (Dublin, Ireland), September 13, 2007, "‘I Was Angry with the Hospital’"; February 11, 2008, Sue Leonard, "How We Fought for Our Marriage."

Kirkus Reviews, October 15, 2007, review of We Lost Our Baby.

Read Ireland Book Reviews, June 9, 2007, Gregory Carr, review of We Lost Our Baby.