03 October 2023 , 17:45
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As EastEnders' Stacey Slater, Lacey Turner portrays a strong mum willing to do anything to protect her kids. Away from the set of Albert Square, it's clear actor Lacey also values family highly, often sharing sweet moments with her two adorable children via Instagram. As fans will likely know, Lacey and her barber shop owner husband Matt Kay welcomed daughter Dusty on July 12, 2019, with son Trilby arriving two years later on February 3, 2021.
The 35-year-old appears to be absolutely loving life as a mother, describing her young children as her "world" in one particularly touching Instagram post, but it hasn't all been plain sailing. The soap star has previously opened up candidly about the tragic miscarriages she endured before welcoming Dusty to the world, calling for better support for those who've suffered baby losses.
Heartbreaking miscarriages
Lacey has previously opened up about feeling "so alone" during her two miscarriages, using her experiences to highlight why she believes the current miscarriage care system needs reforming. Currently, women in the UK need to have had three miscarriages before qualifying for care or pre-conception advice that could help prevent further losses, as per the pregnancy charity Tommy's, while mental health and bereavement support in this area is understood to be "patchy".
In an interview with BBC Breakfast back in 2021, Lacey opened up about her personal experiences, stating: "For me, I think you become a mother the minute you're pregnant. For that to be taken away, that's another loss. You grieve the fact that you aren't going to be a mother, as well as losing a baby. It was a loss at seven weeks.
"[...] I was 29, I think, and we were pregnant and I was so excited thinking of names and things like that. I just remember sitting on my bed in a ball, sobbing. At the time, I remember thinking, 'Why me? Why is this only happening to me?' I did feel so alone because nobody knew."
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Lacey then recalled going back to work the following day as if "nothing had happened". Reflecting on how "sad" the memory now makes her feel in retrospect, she added: "I was probably walking around feeling so heartbroken yet nobody would have had a clue."
Brave admission
This isn't the only time Lacey has spoken out candidly about the more difficult aspects of starting a family. Speaking with the Sunday Mirror's Notebook magazine in 2021, Lacey opened up about how Trilby's dramatic premature birth influenced her decision not to breastfeed. According to Lacey, little Trilby was rushed to a specialist unit at Watford General Hospital after being born a week early, so the priority was getting him fed.
Lacey remembered: "I was 50/50 about doing it. I found it really difficult last time and Dusty found it stressful but I kept an open mind. But then when he had to be in special care, I thought, 'Instead of trying my hardest to pump and get everything going, let’s just keep it as easy as possible for everybody and keep him fed.' He has his last feed at 11pm and then he wakes up around 3am, and then he’s not up again until 7am!"
She continued: "You have to think about everyone's health but it was so hard. I didn't see him for nearly the whole of the first day as I couldn't go to the special care unit. You feel like you should give birth and your baby goes on your chest and stays there, but that wasn't the situation, which is sad. He was put on my chest and then Matt's, and then he was whisked off to special care, but at least we got that skin-on-skin. He lost quite a bit of weight at first, he went down to 5lb 8oz, but that's normal. He's well over his birth weight now and he's a good eater."
If you have been affected by this story, advice and support can be found at childbereavementuk.org or you can call them on 0800 02 888 40.
EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.* Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on , , , , and .