Death of A Loved One

Learning from Grief

Grief is weird. Odd start, I know, but that was the sentence I used a lot whenever someone asked me how I was. It was never a constant feeling; it changed day to day. And still does. It’s the full gambit of emotions from sadness to anger to guilt and, though dark, even humour found its way in.

Katie – Coping strategies

Katie explains her coping strategies

Karyn and Aidan – Planning a celebration of life during COVID

Karyn and Aidan discuss creating a celebrating of life during the pandemic

Kara – “You change”

Kara discusses evolving, growth and change. Kara continues to grieve the death of her partner.

Krista – “My way of helping others”

Krista talks about reducing the stigma. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Reflections on Mother’s Day

Mother’s day is a holiday where we show appreciation and care for the maternal roles in our lives. However, this holiday can feel very overwhelming for those of us who are grieving the death of a mother figure, a mother grieving their child, or those of us grieving the loss of not being able to become mothers ourselves.

Krista – “Feel the feelings”

Krista discusses why she thinks it’s important to deal with feelings. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Donna B – “A Mother salutes her son”

Donna tells her story of joining the army after her son was already a soldier. Donna continues to grieve the death her son during service in Afghanistan.

Karyn and Aidan – Coping with the COVID restrictions

Karyn and Aidan talk about how they dealt with not being able to visit John in hospital

Doodles

On the first anniversary, I invited people who would understand – friends who knew Marshal’s love of art, and his creative spirit. They all came.

I had copied several of Marshal’s doodles of incomplete characters and creatures, with some finished for the kids to color. I eagerly watched to see which doodle or drawing each person chose.

Shawn – “Loss of a Sister”

Shawn talks about his guilt and the loss of his sister.

Jane – Sitting in our feelings

Jane – Sitting in our feelings

Jane shares how she has learned to be more present in her feelings while grieving during the pandemic.