Re-entering the real world after our daughter died was painful. Simple trips to the grocery store became a minefield of grief. It was so emotional to recount our loss to the unknowing cashier and felt devastating to see others avoid us only to scurry down another aisle. It wasn’t only the grocery store that was…
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On Your First Day of Kindergarten
Continue...On your first day of Kindergarten, you should be here with me. I should be crying tears of joy that you’re growing up and getting so big. Instead, I will carry three blue bins full of extra school supplies to donate to the classes that will never know you. Packed carefully with markers that you…
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How 9/11 Helped Prepare Me For Life As A Grieving Father
Continue...I could not have known on September 11, 2001 that my experience in Downtown Manhattan watching the Twin Towers fall and the subsequent weeks of disarray in the East Village would prepare me to learn the biggest lesson in the wake of my infant son Finlay’s inexplicable death at the end of labor. This lesson…
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Bereaved Mom Guilt: When You Feel Like You Deserved This
Continue...“You’re an awful mother. And that’s why your children are gone.” I fight this lie every single day. Some days though, I just can’t fight it. I don’t have the energy, and I’m convinced that the reason my babies are dead… is because I didn’t love them enough. I didn’t deserve to keep them so…
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Managing Feelings Of Guilt After The Loss Of A Child
Continue...Grieving and healing after the loss of a child is mass confusion filled with conflicting feelings and experiences. One thing that complicates healing from child loss is guilt. Through both my personal journey and my experience as a professional counselor, I have witnessed guilt seep in as the pain starts to change. Managing guilt for…
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Tips For Overcoming Triggers And The Summertime Blues
Continue...If you’re experiencing grief during this season, here are a few tips on overcoming triggers and the summertime blues.
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Jealousy: The Dark Side of Grief
Continue...Jealousy. It’s such a horrible word. It evokes visions of mean-spirited, negative, and unkind people. No one wants the label, and we often will do anything not to get it. But what if, for just a moment, we were honest? What if we put perceptions aside and just admitted that we were jealous? It’s ugly,…
