Modern Loss Favorites

A Year of Grief, 15 Seconds at a Time

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After my dad's murder, Instagram served as both my grief counselor and a surprising professional outlet.

What I Did With My Husband’s Life Insurance Money

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During the rawest moments of my grief, what I bought helped me breathe easier.

He’s Dead, But He’s No Saint

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My husband cheated on me again and again — but people give him a pass because he died in a tragic Thanksgiving Day scuba accident.

Are You My Papi?

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As a young man, I lost my father to AIDS-related illness. Now I search for echoes of him in the men I choose to love.

Wendy Davis’ Filibuster, My Life

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I was happily married and more than 20-weeks pregnant with a baby I wanted more than anything. So why was I sitting in a Dallas abortion clinic?

Meet My ‘Dead Mom Friends’ 

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I’ve found kinship (but no judgment or pity) among my friends — and even acquaintances — who have also experienced a loss of a parent. 

Giving Birth at the Age Mom Died

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I had my children young, keeping in mind that my own mother died 46. Now I’m 46, missing my mother, grieving my 12-year-old son, and also happily, unexpectedly pregnant.

The Future, Without Me

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I am a happily married mother of two young children and I have terminal lung cancer. These days, I’m consumed with curiosity — and worry — about what my husband’s and children’s lives will look like after I’m gone.

The Un-Telling

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I shared our pregnancy news early — asserting that I wanted my community with me in joy, but also in potential sorrow. Now that I had miscarried, there were so many calls to make.

Help! My Sister Keeps Posting Photos of Our Dead Father (and Tagging Me) on Social

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Our advice columnist on what to do when your sibling keeps posting pics of your dead dad and tagging you on Facebook. #sigh

‘Smad’ and Other Words Born of Grief

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In the year since my husband died, there have been many lessons — and a few new vocabulary words.

Hillary and Chelsea Clinton

Hillary Clinton’s Condolence Note to a Newly Bereaved Mother

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But this one is a condolence note to a mother whose baby died at four days old.

‘Call It Grief and Then See if it Changes How You View it’

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Grief can have a clarifying effect, a way of lasering away the mundane. Here's how you can apply some lessons from loss to this year's surreal new world.

How I’m Creating the Grief Vocabulary My Language Doesn’t Have

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The Dutch wish each other strength to move through tough times. But in loss, we need different words of support.

Dad-Die Issues

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Death brings up so many feelings and conversations. Plans to be made. Legacies to cement. I had none of that.

My Instagram Therapy

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With @textsforjohn, I can still walk through the world looking for things to share with my brother — even though he’s no longer here.

When My Husband Died, Facebook Became My Boyfriend

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Some people see social media as a trigger during times of great suffering. But after my husband died, it helped me stay afloat amid my grief.

Saving the Date for a Wedding That Will Never Take Place

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I was supposed to be married on November 9, but tragedy stopped this self-proclaimed ‘Bridezilla’ in her tracks.

Putting the Satan Back in Christmas

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The holiday season may bring up all kinds of memories when you’re grieving. But what if your loved one was more Scrooge than Santa?

Unmet Love

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I never ‘met’ the babies I lost, but I love them.

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