grief

Losing a family member is one of the most traumatic life events; Families must support one another to endure the five stages of grief and get through it together.

Pregnancy, and Being High Risk Pt. 1
I know pregnancy is different for every woman, but I hope my story can maybe help someone out there who's been through something similar, and doesn't know how to deal with it, or if they feel they can't reach out to anyone.
By Sofia Maria7 years ago in Families
Miscarriage and Pregnancy Loss
I've been coming across more and more women opening up about suffering a miscarriage, still birth, or loss of a child. If you've ever experienced any of those tragic events, you feel SO alone because of how "taboo" the subject is. No one wants to talk about their miscarriage, and people don't know how to console someone who has suffered the loss of a child. That's where the problem lies. When this subject is brought up, it's usually quickly dismissed or made into an awkward moment when the other person doesn't know what to say. If you've ever been in that situation, you don't need to say anything! Just be there to listen. Listen to all the details the mother wants to share with you, listen to all the horrible parts that she can't get through telling without crying. Just simply, BE THERE. Before suffering a miscarriage, I was that person. I had no idea what to say (I'm horrible at finding the right words to say in tough situations). But upon having experienced that, I've learned that there is NOTHING you can say. Nothing will bring that sweet baby back, nothing will change the outcome of what the mother went through. She just needs your listening ear and support.
By Mar Ta7 years ago in Families
The Bird and the Pearl. Top Story - April 2019.
I had not eaten or drank anything all day. Yesterday was one month since my husband’s passing; food held no allure for me. A visitor stopped by in the afternoon, and it was probably the last person in the world that I wanted to see, yet in the queerest way I was thankful. I suddenly had the urge to lock-up the place I had been locked up in for three days, and go find something good out there. There must be a positive in this town, I thought.
By LP Steinbeck7 years ago in Families
The Story of My Miscarriage
I was looking forward to going out. I remember getting stomach cramps which I put down to period pain, because I always got them really painful and I usually bleed heavy. I stopped to go to the toilet, and I discovered a stain the color of a "show" that a woman normally gets before going into labour, and I thought nothing of it at all, as I had given birth to a baby not long before hand, so I ignored it, thinking it might just be a light period.
By Carol Ann Townend7 years ago in Families
Sometimes I Wonder If I'm Cursed
When you think of a family you see a mother and a father with their children. Be it they have one or six. They spend time together, laugh with each other. Make memories, and have great moments. They would go spend time with grandparents, or aunts and uncles, or cousins. Thats what I picture as a family. I had to picture in my head what a family is.
By Jayden Kamakeeina7 years ago in Families
"Laudatio"
"Give Thanks," proclaims the Vicar, from the front of the cavernous church. His loud and confident command, however quickly softens, perhaps in respect of the service he conducts, or embarrassment at the negligent faces of a congregation, who would rather do anything but 'give thanks' for something that has torn their hearts into shreds, and buried the fragments on some painfully distant desert island.
By Hannah Kawira Hartwell7 years ago in Families
Child Loss
Nearly two years ago, after a successful, stress free pregnancy, which was greatly received, after two miscarriages before that. Knowing that I’d passed the three month danger zone, the rest would be a breeze. Turning off the podcasts that had been about miscarriages and baby loss—I didn’t need to listen to anything like this, as if my baby would die now that the danger zone had passed. I allowed myself the freedom of having a glass of wine on the weekend, as my baby kicked away in my belly. I allowed myself to completely relax and unwind, all felt so well. I allowed myself to look for names for the baby, buy a few things for the little one for when it arrived. I wouldn’t find out the sex, as I wanted that to be a surprise, deep down I knew he was a boy though. The last few hours he had been really kicking, doing a final dance in my belly, before coming out into the world.
By Karen7 years ago in Families
Diary of a Working Housewife
Thursday March 21, 2019 10:45 AM: The loss of a child is an all-consuming sadness that takes you to places you never thought existed. Whether by death or by circumstances, the all too painful experience makes you question your own existence. I, myself, have lost a child to miscarriage and another to circumstance. When I miscarried, I mourned, and with time I accepted this painful experience.
By Azaris Morales7 years ago in Families
Losing a Sibling
My oldest brother, Arthur Jr., always looked out for his younger siblings. I remember him making things for me at school and presenting them to me, his baby sister, with so much pride. He was in the third grade by the time I was born. He and I never even went to the same school due to our age difference. Although we became distant for a few years as adults, by the time he and his third wife separated, we were close again.
By Valerie Furr-Collins7 years ago in Families
Having a Miscarriage
At age 20, I experienced something I never wish I would ever experience in my life, losing a child. So I am going to give you a back story on what happened.
By Theo Holt7 years ago in Families
Take My Hand Not My Life
Things that I never told you are immense, heavy and deep. The secrets that I keep are a thousand times greater than the ones we share when we eat. I think this at times as I sit across from my friends at our favorite restaurants. I wonder how many hold secrets they never speak about? Maybe it is time that we all just stop trying to be so strong, and admit that we hurt too. Men hurt too.
By LG Reagon7 years ago in Families
My Mother's Pots. Top Story - March 2019.
It's ungraciously early on a biting spring morning and I'm watching my youngest son haring across the school tarmac, little chuffs of steam trailing his wake in the white March sunlight, and I'm crying. Not with the sentimentality such inevitable maternal unbridling provokes—nor icy panic caused by my nest emptying at an alarming rate. I'm crying because the canteen staff are cooking meat and onions, and I'm remembering my mothers shepherd's pie.
By J M Hunter7 years ago in Families