Lacey Turner says she went back to work the day after her miscarriage

Lacey Turner has opened up about her experience with baby loss as she revealed she went back to work the day after suffering a miscarriage three years ago.

The EastEnders actress, 32, spoke about her ordeal for Channel 5 show Miscarriage: Our Story, alongside a selection of other high profile celebrities in order to highlight Baby Loss Awareness Week.

Lacey, who shares daughter Dusty with husband Matt Kay, revealed nobody at work knew she was pregnant when she had her first miscarriage, after she kept it quiet due to the taboo surrounding early pregnancy and the risk of foetal loss.

The TV star admitted she walked around on set feeling ‘heartbroken’ and ‘numb’, however nobody had a clue that anything was wrong as she carried on like nothing had happened to her.

During her appearance on the programme, Lacey said: ‘I went back to work the next day, carried on like nothing had happened, which actually makes me really sad now looking back. I was probably walking around feeling so heartbroken yet nobody would have had a clue.’

‘There’s this whole taboo about not speaking about pregnancy and keeping it a secret until your 12 weeks and we sort of said it’s so early so don’t tell anybody.’ 

‘I just felt so empty. I’ve gone from being so excited and we waited so long for this baby to feeling numb I guess.’

Lacey was 29 years old and seven weeks pregnant when she had her first miscarriage, where she recalled having heavy bleeding and stomach cramps.

Following the loss she fell pregnant again, however at the same point she again suffered a miscarriage, describing it as ‘so much worse’ than the first.

Lacey had to have surgery four months later to remove a small piece of foetus which was stuck in the cervix lining and heartbreakingly for Lacey she was unable to try for another baby until it was removed.

The mother-of-one later fell pregnant again and suffered bleeding at the seven week point, but their baby girl Dusty was born in July 2019.

She and Matt are expecting their second child in February 2021. 

Lacey discussed her pregnancy during an interview on Loose Women on Friday.

Speaking from her home via live link, she admitted she’s battled with anxiety following two heart-breaking miscarriages, but attempts to ‘stay as positive as possible’ as her 14-month-old daughter Dusty ‘takes up most of my time’.

The soap star also gushed about her ‘brilliant’ husband Matt, who is a stay-at-home dad to their little girl.

Lacey admitted the happy news was a shock as she told panellists Kaye Adams, Nadia Sawalha, Coleen Nolan and Jane Moore: ‘It was a complete surprise, but a very nice one, which is always nice.’

The media personality also detailed the differences between her current pregnancy and when she carried Dusty.

She added: ‘With Dusty, I was quite sick at the beginning. But this time round I haven’t been so sick, which is always nice.

‘When you’ve already got a baby, you don’t have the time to think about it because you’re so busy with that one. I forget I’m pregnant quite a lot of the time and then I think, ”Oh, I can’t do that.”’

When asked if she’s managed to stay relaxed during this pregnancy, the thespian confessed: ‘I want to say yes, but probably not. I think the only difference is I haven’t had as much time to sit and think about it. But I’m still anxious.’

The former Our Girl star insisted she wants to maintain a positive outlook on life, despite her past fertility struggles.

Lacey explained: ‘I think I probably always will be, which I think it’s quite normal for people who have been on the journey I have.

‘But I try to stay as positive as possible. It is nice to not have the time to sit and think about it the whole time, because Dusty takes up most of my time.’ 

Jane Danson, Izzy Judd and Natasha Kaplinsky will also appear on Miscarriage: Our Story to discuss their own experiences. 

For help with related issues, contact Tommy’s, a miscarriage, premature birth & stillbirth charity, at [email protected] or call 0800 0147 800.