Summer 2017 and “the class”

Last year, I took a class with the subtitle of, “Grief and Loss Across the Lifespan”. It struck a deep chord in me as we traveled through each stage of life and I gulped as losses that I were not even aware of counting them as your typical “loss of life losses”(although I have had my share of those as well), jumped out at me and I fought back tears that had never had the chance to fall. 

It got me thinking of loss and bereavement and I started to read every book of leading “authorities” on this topic. Have we become a nation with grief that is shoved under the rug? I was shocked to find out that I actually grieve less emotionally and more action oriented. This is more as we may know “stereotypical male oriented”. When my grandfather passed, I dived onto the stage in a production of “The Pajama Game” and dedicated my performance to him. When my friend Amy and fellow IBDer passed on in surgery, I promised to create something for IBD and ibdjourneys was born. 

I find that what we resist, persists. Dive back into work. Keep a stiff upper lip. All will be well. But, is it? What if we honor grief and loss? What if we honor those we loved instead of, “let’s not talk about it and it will go away.” But, does it?  Yes, what we resist, persists. 

So, tonight, something in my heart told me to open this blog. Never planned on doing so. It feels right. Hope you will follow and drop a comment as we explore grief and loss together. 

The more you know, the more you know. Death in its unknown can be filled with fear. For me, it is a transition. I am sure of it given my nearing death experience in 1992. But that, is in and of itself, its own blog post.