If you see a purple butterfly sticker near a newborn, you need to know what it means

 If you see a purple butterfly sticker near a newborn, it carries a profoundly important and heartbreaking meaning. It's a quiet, gentle signal that the baby you see is a survivor of a multiple birth, but their twin or triplet did not survive.

The sticker serves as a silent indicator for hospital staff, family, and visitors. Its purpose is to create a space of understanding and sensitivity, ensuring that grieving parents are not forced to repeatedly relive their trauma by explaining their loss. A poster placed nearby in maternity and neonatal units typically explains the sticker's meaning.

The Heartbreaking Story Behind the Sticker

The purple butterfly was created in 2016 by Millie Smith, a mother from the United Kingdom. The inspiration came from a moment of profound pain that followed an even greater loss.

At 12 weeks into her pregnancy, Millie and her partner, Lewis Cann, received the devastating news that one of their identical twin daughters had anencephaly, a fatal neural tube defect where the brain and skull do not develop properly. They were told the baby had no chance of survival. Despite this, they chose to name her Skye, a name they felt would always connect her to them, "somewhere we knew she would always be, that we could look up at the sky and remember our baby".

Millie gave birth to Skye and her healthy twin sister, Callie, at 30 weeks via an emergency C-section. As expected, Skye, born with her brain exposed, lived for only three hours. During that brief time, her parents were able to hold her and say goodbye.

While Callie recovered in the NICU, Millie noticed that the people around her gradually stopped acknowledging Skye's existence. The silence was crushing. The breaking point came when another mother in the NICU, unaware of Millie's loss, remarked that Millie was "so lucky" she didn't have twins. Millie, shattered by the comment, ran out of the room in tears.

The Symbol's Meaning and Global Impact

From that moment of pain, Millie was inspired to create a symbol to prevent other parents from experiencing a similar trauma. She chose a butterfly as a symbol for the baby who "flew away," and the color purple because it was gender-neutral for a boy or a girl.

The idea quickly grew. Millie and Lewis started the Skye High Foundation in their daughter's memory to help other families dealing with the loss of a baby from a multiple birth. The initiative has since spread to hospitals worldwide.

Today, the purple butterfly sticker, or cot card, is used internationally. The card often remains on medical notes and records, so every medical professional is aware of the family's loss, saving parents the pain of having to explain their story repeatedly.

So, if you see a purple butterfly, remember it is not just a decoration. It is a memorial and a plea for compassion—a small symbol of a profound love and loss.