Tag Archives: grief

How to talk to children about death: tips for parents

Talking to children about death is probably one of the hardest conversations you’ll ever have. Yet, it is a conversation most of us will be forced to have at some point in our lives. I certainly wasn’t prepared to tell my children their sister had died, and I quickly learned that the romantic way these...

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A letter to my daughter on her 24th heavenly birthday

To Abi, It’s suddenly your 24th birthday and each year it hits me a bit different. This year, I realised that you are now the same age I was when I had you. It’s been hard to balance that fact in my mind. At once I am transported back to those heady, happy days of...

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What on earth do I say to a bereaved mum? It’s simple, STALL

It can seem like there’s plenty of advice about what not to do when it comes to grief. I’ve written a number of emotional posts about how some people get it ‘wrong’ when talking (or not!) to a beavered parent, such as this one and this one. While my rants are only one element of...

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Cultivating joy in grief

Christians often talk a lot about finding joy in life’s difficulties and I always wondered what that meant and how on earth it was even possible. Surely God is playing games with us if He expects us to celebrate our suffering?! But I’ve begun to discover for myself what this truly means (and I mean...

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Comforting colouring pages

Colouring is an effective meditative and calming activity. Sometimes, when you’re feeling particularly low there is simply nothing you can do. Your mind is fuzzy, you feel confused, deeply sad, and detached from those around you. Keeping a colouring book handy is a good idea; however, for times when you need something ‘here and now’...

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Halloween – Trauma or treat?

I no longer buy into the commercialisation of the celebration of evil, horror and fear. Stick a bit of sparkle on a witch’s costume and it makes everything OK, right? It’s only fake. But I have seen blood pouring from my dying child’s mouth. I have seen the death behind the glassy eyes. I have...

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Supporting a grieving friend: Practical tips

When a friend is grieving, it’s hard to know what to do, how to act, what to say. It can be even harder for those friends who haven’t been through something like this themselves. When my daughter died, I found myself drawn to friends who had experienced loss. Yet there’s something important I’ve noticed about...

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Sick with grief

No one ever told me that my grief would make me feel so ill. As they broke the news to us that Abi was going to die, I thought of only her, then our family… and everything about how we’d live without her. I was prepared – and expected – to feel depressed, but the physical...

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Should I take antidepressants for my grief?

Dear grieving mum, I’m sorry you’ve found my blog by searching with the keywords ‘antidepressants’ ‘grief’ ‘death of my child’… I’m truly sorry. Behind each of my posts, I see parents read my blog searching for the answer to this question because they are looking for some respite from the strain of coping with grief while...

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From cradle to grave

Today, I took my 9-year-old son to his football match. It’s normally Dad who does the football matches, but it had been almost a year since I’d seen my son play due to having the new baby and he asked if I’d go and watch him. He’s been appreciating some one-to-one time with me of...

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