Tag: loss

When a Friend Dies

I have been through the grief of my husband and parents’ deaths, but this is the first time I’ve had a significant friend die. I was not prepared for the devastating heartache that accompanied this loss. So much of grief literature focuses on the three prominent deaths: child, spouse, and parent, but I’ve not read…… Continue reading When a Friend Dies

Ghosts of Memories

Grandpa and Mike Ghosts are not scary specters but the presence of those we love who are no longer with us. I could feel them when I sat on the screened-in porch of the house I grew up in. The lower three sides were red brick, with the upper part screened in. During the time…… Continue reading Ghosts of Memories

Secondary Losses

Grief is complicated because it is not only the death of the person you love but also the secondary losses that come with death. Nothing prepares you for the excruciating pain that accompanies death. However, it’s the unexpected secondary losses that nobody really talks about. They include changes to finances, friendships, family relationships, identity, and…… Continue reading Secondary Losses

Grief’s Physical Effects

Seven negative Covid tests in the last few weeks prove that the symptoms I’m experiencing are from grief and not the virus. Tears are easy to recognize as an outward sign of mourning, and they have flowed often from the time mom went on hospice and have continued since her death two weeks ago. However,…… Continue reading Grief’s Physical Effects

The Grief Roller Coaster

Copyright Jennifer Mullins One of the hardest things about grief is its unpredictable nature.  Today I have felt every emotion: deep sadness, joy, numbness, and anger.  Although everyone likes to refer to Elizbeth Kubler Ross’s stages of grieving, they were meant for people dying, not for those left behind.  Grief is not linear, where you…… Continue reading The Grief Roller Coaster

Ambiguous Loss

Copyright Jennifer Mullins Do you ever wake up with a sadness you can’t quite name? It may be from a dream about a loved one who is now dead. Or it may have to do with something that is going on in your life now. When it happens to me, I usually can shake it…… Continue reading Ambiguous Loss

Books That Inspire

Copyright Jennifer Mullins Books have played an essential role in my life. I used to love mysteries until Mike died, and then the thought of dealing with death was too much. Also, they didn’t capture the grittiness of emotions that you go through when someone you love dies. Instead, I started reading books by people…… Continue reading Books That Inspire

Coping With a Chronic Illness

Vestibular Self Portrait The top three grief experiences in order are the death of a child, spouse, and parent. The pain of my husband’s death is part of my DNA. But there is other grief that we encounter. One of them comes with developing and living with a chronic condition. On May 27, 2020, amid…… Continue reading Coping With a Chronic Illness

Never Forget

9/11 is forever seared into our collective consciousness as we watched in real-time the unimaginable: planes crashing into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.  It was horrifying watching the people fleeing the towers as first responders were heading into the fire, only to have them come crashing down on…… Continue reading Never Forget

The Other Goodbyes

Grief at the time of death is expected. The unexpected grief from the other goodbyes would bring the swells of sadness to the surface as I would have to let go of another thread of the cloth that bound Mike and me together. Copyright Jennifer Mullins When Mike first died, I couldn’t find the last…… Continue reading The Other Goodbyes