Kardys tells PEOPLE she hopes her story helps others feel less alone after pregnancy loss.
One woman's TikTok reporting her plant quickly took a turn when she revealed what was really buried in the soil.
In the now-viral clip, Tracy Kardys explained why the task was "low key morbid" and felt heavier than it looked. "My fetus is buried in there," she said, laughing nervously.
The plant held the remains of Kardys' baby, whom she miscarried at home at 10 weeks and 3 days. Nearly six months later, the plant had become root-bound, forcing her to confront the loss again in a way she hadn't expected.
"I'm pretty sure it's been six months," she said in the video, adding that she hoped her baby had already become part of the soil. "I think I might throw up if she's not," she admitted.
Throughout the clip, Kardys narrated each step with jokes, pauses and moments where emotion nearly overtook her. "You've got to laugh about it, because otherwise it's just horrid," she said, summing up how she made it through the moment.
Now, Kardys says she shared the video because miscarriage and what follows are rarely talked about openly. "First and foremost, you're still a mom; you earned that title," she tells PEOPLE, emphasizing that loss doesn't erase motherhood.
She adds that the aftermath was far more difficult than she expected. "I still dealt with many of the postpartum challenges," Kardys says, describing hair loss, exhaustion, bleeding, nausea and guilt that lingered for months.
"The biggest thing I wish people knew is what to expect," she says, explaining that many women are unprepared for the physical and emotional toll. Kardys notes that people often assume miscarriage ends quickly when "no one talks about the during, the after."
Humor, she says, became a coping tool rather than a distraction. "I had to laugh at myself and the situation in order not to cry," Kardys explains.
That instinct was shaped by years of unexplained infertility, a stage 3 endometriosis diagnosis and multiple surgeries. "You have to laugh to trick your mind into seeing the good in things," she says.
The decision to bury her baby in the plant was made quickly and without guidance. "No one tells you what to do, especially if you miscarry at home," Kardys says, recalling how she acted on adrenaline while compartmentalizing her grief.
"For the next few days all I wanted to do was dig her up to hold her again," Kardys admits. She had to repeatedly remind herself to leave her baby in the soil, even when the urge felt overwhelming.
Six months later, Kardys says she feels at peace with the decision. "I get to keep her close and honor her memory," she tells PEOPLE.
She admits the fear hasn't disappeared. "I'm terrified the plant will die," she says, but adds that nurturing it gives her purpose and comfort.
When she asked aloud in the video, "Is this what we call healing?" the question was genuine. "Healing isn't linear," Kardys says now, explaining there's no right way to rebuild after loss.
The response to the TikTok stunned her, especially messages from people who had experienced miscarriage themselves. "Reading comments like, 'This video healed me,' made me cry," she says.
"I truly didn't expect many to see it," she tells PEOPLE, adding that her goal has always been authenticity.
For anyone quietly carrying their own loss, Kardys hopes her story offers reassurance. "You are never alone," she says, reminding others that however they choose to grieve is valid and enough.