I Am A Griever

Quiet Hope: Healing as a Nurse, Mourning as a Mom

By: Yhaimar Barile I’m a nurse. I’m a writer. And I’m a mom who lost her son. Last year, shortly before his eighteenth birthday, my son Gabriel died unexpectedly. Everything changed after that. Life split into a clear “before” and “after.” The world around me kept moving, but mine stopped. Nothing looked or felt the…

Caileigh – Advice to my younger self about grief

Caileigh talks about things that you can do to balance out feelings that it’s okay to experience all of the big feelings that you have, to find joy in little moments, and to find ways that you can cope with those big feelings.

John – The power of journaling

John shares how journaling has helped him so much

Lyss – Music

Lyss remembers playing music for her mother as she was dying and how music has helped with feelings

Adam – Crying and singing

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Adam talks about how crying and singing helps him cope even at the cemetary

Nicole – Pandemic Leads to Increase in Drug Poisoning

Nicole discusses the increase in drug poisonings during the pandemic due to a number of factors.

Betsy – Anticipation

Betsy discusses the anticipation of her adopted son dying of cancer and now or her aging parents

Joyce – A favorite memory with music

Joyce tells a story about her son supporting her and the power of music

Jessica M – Finding Hope

Jessica shares memories of her brothers birthday which was just before her mothers death and how they all found hope

John – My Story

John tells the story of his wife became ill suddenly and died

Keeping Records

I pulled the photos out of their envelope one at a time, turning over each one to carefully record the date, place, and people in the photo. Sometimes, I included comments. “Apple picking in Hamilton with Pop Pop, Fall, 2023. You loved the wagon ride!”. I slipped each picture into an empty pocket in my son’s photo album.

John – What I have learned

John explains how he has changed since his wife died and now looking back what he would say to his self right after his loss