Gordon Ramsay Says Son Rocky’s Death in 2016 Was ‘Really Tough’ but ‘Brought Us a Bond’ as a Family

“There’s no book that guides you through that loss,” Ramsay tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue

Gordon and Tana Ramsay’s mutual trust and support for each other during their 26-year marriage allowed them to withstand the unthinkable.

In 2016, Tana experienced a pregnancy loss at 20 weeks. “Born with a strong heartbeat but too little to survive,” she said of their son, whom they named Rocky.

“There’s no book that guides you through that loss, and so losing Rocky was really tough,” says Ramsay in this week’s issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday. “Watching the trauma unfold, it’s this life-changing moment.”

Tana and Gordon Ramsay at home in London

He says the experience ultimately made their family stronger. (Tana and Ramsay also share daughter Megan, 25, twins Jack and Holly, 23, daughter Matilda (“Tilly”), 21, and son Oscar, 4.) They named their Cornwall home after Rocky, and each member of the family wears a piece of jewelry with his name on it.

“We wouldn’t have had Oscar had we not lost Rocky,” says Ramsay. “There was no substitute — far from it — but it brought us a bond that you’d never experience in a normal situation.”

Gordon Ramsay in London

Tana marked seven years since their loss in June with a photo from her pregnancy. “A happy picture taken of us celebrating Meghan’s 18th, I was just under 20 weeks pregnant,” Tana began her caption on the photo.

“Although it’s 7 years today, it still feels like yesterday,” she continued. “We all miss you everyday. We love you Rocky, forever in our hearts. I couldn’t do this without my family, you are all everything to me 👼🏻🖤 xxxxxxxx.”

Ramsay describes his wife as “incredibly resilient.”

Gordon Ramsay with wife Tana (middle) and kids Jack, Tilly and Megan

“That’s the power of Tana,” he adds. “Just watching the way that she dealt with it — and opened up with other friends and women in close proximity that could give advice — she was incredible straight after that.”

Their kids “get a lot of strength from their mom,” says Ramsay. “There’s a lot of things that Tana’s done, that we wouldn’t be here today without that strength.”