Death of A Loved One

Mourning a Man I Never Knew

This spring, I turned fifty-four. I have now outlived the father I never knew: my biological father. It’s been almost twenty-three years since we spoke; eighteen years since I learned of his death. I’m still dealing with the strange grief of his loss.

Bryan – Empathy for others

Bryan talks about how losing his father to gun violence was difficult and how taking things day by day helped him get through many difficult times. Now he wants to help children who are going through something similar to what he did. Things will get better and there is always a light at the end of the tunnel

Bryan – Helping Others

Bryan explains how his experience with grief has helped him help others and why it’s so important for him.

Joyce – Your other children

Joyce discusses how her daughter dealt helped her as well as dealing with the loss of her brother.

Andrea – Grieving during a pandemic

Andrea discusses the challenges of grieving during a pandemic

Shawn – “Dad”

Shawn describes finding out his father died by suicide and the shock and grief that followed. Shawn continues to grieve the death of his father by suicide

Amber – Talking to your kids about death

Amber talks about how important it is to talk about grief, especially with kids

Kim – Some cry some don’t

Kim discusses how tough COVID made the hospital experience and the support she received

Jessica’s Reflections as an Adult Grieving Child

Parents or trusted adults are people children often turn to for support, but my circle of trusted adults was shrinking. My peers were focused on what to wear on civvies day (a day where we didn’t have to wear a uniform), while I was focused on just surviving.

Sam – Mental health tools and resources

Sam discusses talking care of his mental health and group therapy after losing his father, uncle and cousin

Lyss – My Story

Lyss talks about being 16 and her Mom dying from cancer. The second part of her story is about miscarriages

Making Space to Hear Them: supporting children in grief

Children tend to be naturally curious as they grow and learn to navigate the world. As adults, it’s our job to walk with them through that process of learning and to support their curiosity. It can be hard to do that with respect when we are situated in cultures that don’t acknowledge children as autonomous humans worthy of mutual respect. It can be tempting to encourage kids to ignore their feelings about death and grief or to shut down conversations about it when they ask questions. Sometimes, this is because we just don’t know what to say that is developmentally appropriate, especially with young children. Sometimes, it’s because we haven’t allowed ourselves to develop our own thoughts and feelings about death and grief and it feels uncomfortable for us to talk about.