Grief and Trauma

Living in the Aftermath of Traumatic Death

The sudden unexpected, traumatic death of a loved one is something like having a limb torn off.

Shocking. As if the air has been sucked from your lungs and you can’t manage another breath.

Bryan – This Is Why

Bryan shares about his new website “This is why”a creative form, for blog stories for grievers to express themselves and for readers to connect

Christian – “Overdose Death”

Christian talks about an overdose death not defining who that person was.

Krista – “How I dealt with it”

Krista talks about how she dealt with underlying issues. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Angie – Cumulative grief, cumulative trauma

Angie discusses the challenges of policing and how trauma and grief can accumulate

Cheryl and Mike – “Trying to figure it out”

Cheryl and Mike discuss the things they did to help them understand the death of their daughter in a car accident.

Tending to My Garden of Grief

So long as I remember the lives of those I have lost, honour their presence and impact on me and celebrate their spirit, they will continue to live with me and the pain will feel bearable. It will no longer stop me in my tracks. Instead, it will encourage me and propel me forward through the transmutation of that grief into something different, something more nuanced and fluid. I’d like to share a practice for processing grief which I have found to be especially helpful.

Krista – “It’s not your fault”

Krista discusses how people blame themselves. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Cheryl and Mike – “Getting through it”

Cheryl and Mike talk about self care and relationships as they move forward. They continue to grieve the death their daughter in a car accident.

Sarah K – Finding my people

Sarah talks about how finding other people that are going through the same grief experience has been very helpful to her.

Bryan – Trauma

Bryan discusses trauma anxiety, support and the loss of his father to gun violence

Shannon – Growing through Grief

Shannon discusses post traumatic growth and how it can be an expectation