My husband’s car is on its last legs. We need to start thinking about replacing it before we spend too much more on it. He’s put it off for far too long and spent too much money keeping it going, but I know he loves the car mostly because of the times he spent withContinueContinue reading “Before and after our grief”
Tag Archives: grief
Health anxiety (hypochondria) after the death of a loved one
As someone who now openly admits to suffering with health anxiety, since the death of my 12-year-old daughter and three pregnancy losses, I tend to avoid any kind of health-related TV programme. In fact, I wrote this blog post about why TV alienates the grieving as it contains so much death, blood, gore and trauma.ContinueContinue reading “Health anxiety (hypochondria) after the death of a loved one”
The physical pains of grief
It’s been a while since I posted about my reluctant but important decision to take antidepressant (or rather anti-anxiety) medication. I have taken a break from writing for a while, to let life settle and see what comes of this new course of treatment. While at first the medicine seemed to exacerbate my symptoms, theyContinueContinue reading “The physical pains of grief”
What Disney’s Inside Out taught me about grief and loss
I recently took my daughter, age 12, to watch Inside Out. It was a rare day that we had alone and I felt it would be a poignant film to see together. Having researched the film (which I have to do with anything I expose my children to), I was impressed by the reviews whichContinueContinue reading “What Disney’s Inside Out taught me about grief and loss”
The dark side of grief – craving escape from the mental and physical pain of loss
I recently went for my first month check-up at the doctors, to see how I’ve settled taking the antidepressants. For anyone who has not taken antidepressants before, or who hasn’t experienced anxiety – and especially for those grieving mummas out there who are finding that anxiety and depression are adding to their grief, I wantedContinueContinue reading “The dark side of grief – craving escape from the mental and physical pain of loss”
Dreams of moving on
I wrote a post last September about how hard I found it to declutter our home. We were having a car boot sale and kept coming across things that brought back bittersweet memories. Abi’s belongings were still everywhere – a forgotten hairclip, a school pen – and I found the thought of getting rid ofContinueContinue reading “Dreams of moving on”
In pursuit of happiness (while grieving)
As I was waiting for my son, I stood next to another mum with a young boy. She laughed and smiled as she tickled her toddler’s tummy and said cheerfully to me, ‘Doesn’t this good weather make you feel so much better!?’ I gave one of my template smiles in response. She was a lovelyContinueContinue reading “In pursuit of happiness (while grieving)”
How TV alienates the grieving
I saw a trailer on Sky the other day for the next big thing in hospital drama – Critical. A fictional series based on saving (or not) the life of a patient filmed in real-time (over an hour). The filming looks slick and the actors serious. It’s sold as being ‘ground-breaking and the most realisticContinueContinue reading “How TV alienates the grieving”
Children’s books about death and dying
There are numerous children’s books out there which focus on death and dying. I thought it would be useful to share our favourites with readers. We have always loved reading to our children, it’s a part of our daily bedtime routine. When Abi died, we turned to books as a way to share our feelings,ContinueContinue reading “Children’s books about death and dying”
Abi’s Black Belt
On this day, two years ago, Abi fulfilled a four-year-long ambition… to earn her junior black belt in Kung Fu. She’d attended Chi Wai Academy twice a week for all those years, working solidly through her belts and badges. Rarely complaining. Always disciplined. Impressing us and her peers with her determination, skill and flexibility (touchingContinueContinue reading “Abi’s Black Belt”
Chasing Dragonflies 