302 results for 'Losing Todd: A Mother's Journey'

By Tim Schramm, Licensed Funeral Director and National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) member As Grief Awareness Day approaches on August 30, I'm reminded of a fundamental truth I've witnessed co

Living life without your child is like falling, quite by accident, into a deep, dark well in the wee hours of the morning. At first your entire body is underwater. You can’t breathe. But that’s okay,

Overcoming the Stigma of Suicide Accepting the Pain of GrievingIn June of 1989, my eldest brother, Dale, took his own life. He lived on the coast of North Carolina at the time. When my family in Wi

There are those who say they like dogs more than some people. This might be why:They’re always happy to see us no matter how long we’ve been gone, how we behave or what kind of day we’ve had. They are

This year was the 118th editionof one of sport's greatest rivalries.I have watched it faithfullyfor more than seventy years.It is the only game I watchwhere the National Anthemis actually the feature

There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition

By Clarissa MollWhether you keep his things or give them away, there’s no one right way to grieve.
When my husband, Rob, died in a tragic hiking accident in July 2019, I came home to Boston from his b

My husband and I are starting over in the desert, having sold the house in Portland where we raised our daughter. It’s taken us five years to gather the energy and the courage to leave it behind. To

“At least…”As a grief counselor, educator and Pastor, every time I hear someone start a sentence with “at least,” I have to cringe. I thought I had heard every “at least” there was. “At least you knew

Nan ZastrowWhether it’s’ your First Noel or the persistent tenth after the death of a significant loved one, it’s likely not going to be a Rockin Around the Christmas Tree kind of the year. There ar

By Ama Al- Zaki  Grief doesn’t simply disappear. It doesn’t fade away like a distant memory or pass like a storm. Instead, it settles quietly inside us, waiting to resurface in the most ordinary mome

My mom died almost seven years ago. My dad died almost three months ago. Mom died with cancer three years after her diagnosis. She relapsed just months after her initial treatment ended. Not considere

By Bill Beckett When I lost my wife, Bonnie, six years ago, I discovered that grief creates its own version of a phantom limb. Except, I did not just lose a part of my body; I lost my life as I knew i

The voice of silence is all around us—it is rooted in the pain from the loss of our son and brother, Nathan. It is the silence of sorrow in our home because one of our sons is gone, and it is the sile

Dear Dad,It’s been one year and one month since you are gone. According to Google that’s 9490.01 hours but to me it feels like an eternity. I still wake up in the morning thinking this is a nightmare

Supporting Families and Medical Professionals through Loss in the COVID-19 PandemicI watched my father draw his last breath via the Ring app on my phone. When I first learned of his stroke, I rushed t

Nancy Harrison At my age, I’ve learned that the conversations that matter most are the ones about real life - the messy, beautiful, complicated parts that make us human. We talk about family, about me

A child full of wonder sits on my knee.She asks, “Where has he gone? Where can my pap be?”I hug her and smile, knowing just what to say.“It isn’t the same, but he’s not far away.Heaven’s for real, and

As of late, there is a chance you may be a castaway on a remote, barren island.Inside the world of emotions, grief can make us shipwrecked and stranded, alone, in some unfamiliar place far from home.I

By Cheryl NewbanksAfter my son passed away, I did nothing but lay on the couch, lay in my bed, sit and stare, try to absorb the shock, and try to make life, make sense again. I didn’t feel like doing