Information, support, and ideas on how to be a supportive friend to someone who loses a child to stillbirth, from a mom who has been through it
(Topic: grief after loss support, holidays) Our mantle, stockings, and present area – no tree this year. Hi Friends, This year is different. This is our 4th Christmas after Charlie died, and every year has been different, but this year is really different. For the last 3 years, my reaction to Christmas has been what
(Topic: Words, Death, Reactions, Triggers) Hi Friends, A few weeks ago, I posted about 15 words related to death that I either liked or disliked, and shared my reasons why I find some to be better than others. I don’t often have a lot of people comment on my posts, here or on Facebook or
(Topic: Words about death, opinions about effects of words) Hi Friends, One of the things I notice as the mom of a baby who died is that people sure use a lot of words about death that aren’t dead! Some of these words are fine, but some are possibly problematic for some people. Many of
(Topic: book, illness, grief, what to say) Image credit: Kate Bowler’s Website Book:Everything Happens For A Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved By Kate Bowler This is probably not a book I would have picked up on my own. Lately, I read mostly fiction, if I read. I don’t read nearly as much as I used
(Topic: Vocabulary, Definitions) Hi Friends, A few weeks ago, I posted about the word “strong”, and how it applies to me. Or more specifically, I expressed my frustration that the word has two meanings – but that the meanings are completely opposite. I had several friends comment or chat with me, saying they thought I
(Topic: grief, strength, definitions) Hi Friends, Several times recently, I have been told I am strong. Over the last few years, it’s happened a few times more. Most frequently I have been told this by strangers, who don’t know anything about me, and who have just heard about Charlie – and if I’m not crying,
(Topic: Talking about grief, mental health and related items, and the language that we can use to talk about them) Dear Friends, *** NOTE: I AM NOT A MENTAL HEALTH EXPERT, OR A DOCTOR. THESE ARE MY OWN OBSERVATIONS. IF YOU FEEL YOU NEED HELP, PLEASE CONTACT A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL *** One of the things
Continue Reading “Grief Language and Mental Health Issues related to grief”
(Topic: Anxiety, copyright, right-of-usage) Hi Friends, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed that I try to post twice a week. Generally on Wednesdays I try to post something specific to life after loss, and on Saturdays I often keep it lighter with pictures of something I’ve made. Recently, though, on January 26th, I missed a
(topic: loss, grief, communication, helping) Introduction This is a post in my series of posts honoring Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. My goal is for these posts to be shareable – if you are a loss parent, I hope you find this post helpful to share with your friends to help them understand you,
Continue Reading “What can I say? Ideas on how to talk to and help a grieving friend”
On Monday, September 18th, my husband and I had the opportunity to visit The Museum of the Alphabet, outside of Charlotte, NC. In fact, we knew nothing about it before we got there, having found it by chance when looking for interesting museums to visit while we were in the area. The museum is run