Each morning Stephanie Lee takes her daughter, Elia, and her son, Ethan, to day care before starting her 7:00am shift at a New York City hospital where she works as a nurse. At the end of the day, she gathers up backpacks, lunch bags, and snacks along with Elia and Ethan. Lee holds Ethan in a carrier against her chest and pushes Elia in a stroller as she hustles to catch a bus home. Her days, along with her hands, are full, but an absence remains.
Lee’s firstborn daughter, Elodie, never came home from the hospital. At 36 weeks’ gestation, Elodie was stillborn. Instead of learning to navigate life with a new baby, Lee struggled to learn to live without one.
Losing her first child in a stillbirth made Lee acutely aware of the fragility of life and the uncertainty of pregnancy. Her subsequent pregnancies were filled with anxiety as she feared the loss of another child. However, she credits the staff and providers at Mount Sinai’s Rainbow Clinic in New York City for meeting her unique needs with sensitivity and trauma-informed care.
Below are photos of Lee, her family, and the Rainbow Clinic, where Lee received help with dealing with the loss of a baby.
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Stephanie Lee, who lost her firstborn daughter, Elodie, in a stillbirth, struggled with anxiety in her subsequent pregnancies. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Specialists at the Rainbow Clinic at Mount Sinai in New York "care for patients who have experienced the birth of a stillborn child, multiple miscarriages, or a neonatal loss. Our goal is to provide the extra specialized care needed to help prevent another loss," according to the organization's website. The clinic is housed at Mount Sinai's Icahn School of Medicine. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Across the street from New York City’s Mount Sinai, where the Rainbow Clinic is located, a corner florist displays pink "It’s a Girl" balloons and blue "It’s a Boy" balloons. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. The Rainbow Clinic recognizes August 22 as National Rainbow Baby Day. The term “rainbow baby” is often used to refer to a child born after perinatal loss. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Signs guide patients at Mount Sinai’s Rainbow Clinic in New York City. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Inscribed on the back of Lee’s necklace is the name of her stillborn daughter, Elodie Haru Ansari. Lee said "Haru" is Elodie’s Korean name, which means “one day.” Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Stephanie Lee displays family photos on her office desk. Pictured on the left are her daughter Elia and her son Ethan. Pictured on the right is Lee's husband cradling Elodie. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Stephanie Lee shows a photo from a birthday party where she and her family celebrated Elodie. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. After ending her shift as a nurse, Stephanie Lee picks up her son and daughter from day care. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025. Stephanie Lee approaches her workplace elevator at the end of her work day, heading home with her daughter Elia and son Ethan. Lee said she never forgets that she is the mother of two daughters. Image by Jenny Albers. United States, 2025.
November 26, 2025
