Mother Loss

My Mother’s Day Trifecta

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I lost my mom, my stepmom, and my dream of mothering a child of my own. On Mother’s Day, people say the darndest things to me.

My Mom’s Violent Death Gave Me PTSD

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I had to remind myself, repeatedly, that my mom was dead. If I can imagine what it feels like to have dementia, this might be it. Having to be told the same bad news again and again and again.

The Museum of ‘Before’

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My mother's Facebook profile has become a small souvenir of life (and her) before she got sick.

My BFF Makes ‘Your Mom’ Jokes About My Dead Mom — and I Love Her for It

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And I love her for it.

I Forgot the Anniversary of My Mom’s Death

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But there's one deathiversary that I can never put behind me.

11 People You Meet in Hell

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Minimizers, vultures, happy morons, competitors at the Sad Olympics and other people you’re bound to encounter on your grief journey.

The Lie We Tell Ourselves About Mental Health

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My mom's suicide taught me that there is no clear line dividing those who are of sound mind from those who are not.

Sherman Alexie

Thank You, Sherman Alexie, for Going Public with Your Pain

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By suspending his book tour to deal with grief over losing his mother, Sherman Alexie is challenging a culture that admires stoic resilience.

Four Days

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It is fundamentally heartbreaking to meet the love of your life so soon after losing the person who was most fanatically committed to your happiness.

La La Land Modern Loss

With the Swish of a Skirt, “La La Land” Triggered My Grief

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With the swish of a skirt, the musical suddenly triggered my grief.

The Upside of Anger

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After my mom’s death, I learned to use my all-encompassing anger as a force for good.

When Love Feels Too Risky

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I didn’t realize how my mom’s cancer death would affect my love life — until I met the man I wanted to marry.

Both Parents Are Gone. But I Miss Only One of Them.

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When I long to pick up the phone — and share my joys and my struggles — I only want to speak to Mom.

I’m Not Okay with Being a Motherless Mother

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Turns out, I'm not ok with being a motherless mother.

Loss Squared In the City of Love

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After my mother's death, I departed for Paris with her ashes -- the same week of the tragic terror attacks.

I Hate That Mother’s Day Rips Me Apart with Sadness and Guilt

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I know it's cliché, but the holiday still knocks me off my axis.

My Ectopic Pregnancy Nearly Killed Me

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I’d dreamed of having a baby since my mother died. Then my body betrayed me.

As My Wife’s Due Date Approached, My Mother Was Defying Death

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I told myself she was holding on to meet the baby. My father and sister had other explanations.

And Visions of Baseball Danced in My Head

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My mom found healing watching the Kansas City Royals. After she died, so did I.

Being Heard

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There was something about my first days as a mother that reminded me of my final moments with my own mother. Neither my newborn nor my mother could talk back. But could they understand me?

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