I didn't know that I didn't know how to grieve. My father's demise and eventual death was my first real-time exposure to end-of-life care. His death threw me into total confusion. My mind chaotic, my body depleted, I physically broke down. The confusion of not knowing how, at my age I had no idea how to grieve was followed by intense research into grief. The outcome was more confusion, but this time with the acceptance, that is also normal. We all lose people and yet so few of us know how to navigate the aftermath of losing a loved one. We have differing experiences, definitions, rules, and expectations from death, grief, and mourning. Traversing the minefield of grief left me exhausted. Please, can we talk about this phase in our lives we all experience.
I didn't know that I didn't know how to grieve. My father's demise and eventual death was my first real-time exposure to end-of-life care. His death threw me into total confusion. My mind chaotic, my body depleted, I physically broke down. The confusion of not knowing how, at my age I had no idea how to grieve was followed by intense research into grief. The outcome was more confusion, but this time with the acceptance, that is also normal. We all lose people and yet so few of us know how to navigate the aftermath of losing a loved one. We have differing experiences, definitions, rules, and expectations from death, grief, and mourning. Traversing the minefield of grief left me exhausted. Please, can we talk about this phase in our lives we all experience.
