The optimism generated by vaccines and falling infection rates has blinded many Americans to the deep sorrow and depression of those around them.
Tag: grief
A Lesson from Sobriety: You Are Allowed to Feel Hopeful
Having hope during a terrible situation isn’t the same as false hope. Hope is a fundamental ingredient of human resilience, a mechanism that sets our brains apart from other species.
How I Stayed Sober Through the End of My Marriage
I cried at Starbucks, I cried at fancy bakeries, I cried on public transportation. But I didn’t use or drink.
On the Other Side of Addiction, Only Love Remains
I knew that when we divorced I had abdicated my rights to the family. But I still loved him as I had since childhood.
Marie Osmond Still Coping with 'Ripple Effect' of Son's Suicide
Marie Osmond opened up about her son Michael Blosil’s death on CBS Sunday Morning.
How to Stay Sober Through a Parent's Illness
I won’t lie, the urge to fix from the outside is constant. The helplessness is overwhelming, the grief indescribable.
Music and Emotion: How Songs Help Us Grieve and Heal
Music can express how we feel when our grief renders us speechless.
Please Don’t Tell Me How to Grieve
We are not taught how to grieve. Acknowledging that death is inevitable means that we have to come face-to-face with our own mortality and the mortality of everyone we love in this world. It’s incredibly scary.
Death Threat: The Unique Dangers of Grieving in Recovery
Though I’ve developed tools for dealing with heartache and anguish in sobriety, this level of grief is a sadness on steroids against which I feel futile and frightened. My father’s older brother, Stephen Dale, died at age 69 in mid-August. He was more than the family’s patriarch; he was its ballast, its mooring. The home… Continue reading Death Threat: The Unique Dangers of Grieving in Recovery
A Space for Grief and Growth: The 12th National Harm Reduction Conference
When we demand answers without a deep, authentic understanding of the problem, we wind up putting band-aids on gangrene. As I wandered into the opening plenary at the 12th National Harm Reduction Conference in New Orleans last week, something felt off. It wasn’t just the four white-robed women on stage, solemn and elegant in contrast… Continue reading A Space for Grief and Growth: The 12th National Harm Reduction Conference