Perspective of a Child Life Specialist
Working as a Child Life Specialist on a pediatric oncology team was a dream I held close to my heart. I prepared patients and their families for treatment, easing their fears, helping them understand their diagnosis, supporting them through terrifying procedures, and creating space for them to still be kids—even within hospital walls. Most of […]
Fleeing the States During the Holidays
When visiting my Chilean family, I have fewer obligations and can better manage my grief In avoidance of the holidays, I fled the country. Instead of celebrating the holidays in our new home, we are spending it in Chile which is similar to the very first Christmas we spent after our daughter June passed away from […]
Living in the House Where My Daughter Died is Harder Than Leaving It
I have faith that the right door will open and lead me home I’ve been begging the Universe to send our family a door since our daughter June died from neuroblastoma in March of 2022. A door? Yes, you know, the generic kind with a knob you turn and it opens. A door we might collectively, […]
Death of a Child
Many times, parents facing the death of their child will wonder, “How can we go on?” The pain looks insurmountable. The anticipation of death weighs heavily as they try to make memories in the short time they have remaining. I can clearly remember the task of planning Millie’s funeral while I held her in my […]
My Daughter’s Birth Chart Is One Way I Keep Her Alive
Who would have thought you could build on the memory of someone who no longer physically exists? Our daughter June, an Earth sign, was born on the cusp of Virgo-Libra on September 22nd. The year she was born, the twenty-second day of September, was also the first day of Autumn. June, rooted in Mother Earth, […]
When The Hair Started Falling Out, October 2024
Her little blonde curls before treatment, and how it’s changed in the last few weeks. It’s not the physical appearance of her hair coming out that crushes me; it’s a blaring reminder of what’s happening and a tangible sign this is not a bad dream. When we’re all home I stay so busy (as moms […]
The Receptionist Lied and I Have Medical PTSD
What it’s like to live my life in the light and the dark after losing my daughter. This week, I received a lovely birthday gift. For the first time since we moved in April, I have school for both of my children. As a mother to young children, when school synchronicity begins, you cram every […]
Grief Made Me Time-Travel
I haven’t felt this alive since my daughter died In the months after our daughter June died from neuroblastoma, I sat in a plastic chair on our stone patio, in the far corner of the yard facing the wood line behind our house. It was spring in Maine. With exception of the birds chirping and the […]