When Death Moves In: grief after a death in the home

Coping with Grief / Coping with Grief : Litsa Williams



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Before we get started, I just want to give a quick heads up about the content of this post. We’re going to be talking about death and grief in the home. To do that topic justice, it means we talk about some very specific details of people dying at home, both expectedly and unexpectedly. If you’re coping with difficult memories, images, or trauma around watching someone die, finding someone deceased, etc you may want to make sure you are in the right physical and mental space before reading on.

My sister’s boyfriend died of a drug overdose in my family’s sun room. If you’re a regular around here you probably know that. You probably also know that my dad died in an ICU in a hospital when I was 18, several years before. Because my dad’s death didn’t happen at home, I hadn’t thought a lot about how death consumes physical space. I thought about how grief and memories consume space; I knew there were places where I felt like I could still “see” my dad. I would walk into the sunroom and anticipate him sitting in “his” seat on the sofa. I would glance out onto the driveway, see his car, and think to myself “oh, dad’s home!” and then would immediately think, “oh no, dad’s not home, he’s dead”. But until John died, I hadn’t thought about how a death itself can live in a space. I didn’t realize how completely similar but totally different that is.

The night John died, I got the call and rushed home from work to find my sister sobbing on the porch. She had come home just a little before and found him.  Though it was much too late, she called 911, pulled him to the floor and started CPR. By the time I arrived the paramedics were there and he had been pronounced dead, but he couldn’t be moved until the medical examiner arrived. I can picture John’s body now as clearly as that day, when I walked into the living room he was laying on the floor, motionless. His defining brown curls faced me, and I just stood there, lost. I didn’t know what to do. There was nothing to do.  We had to wait nearly two hours for the medical examiner's office to arrive.

When my dad died we all gathered around his hospital bed.  In college I volunteered for a hospice so my only context for home deaths were in hospice beds, with support and family. In this moment I was surrounded by paramedics I had never met, who seemed as uncomfortable as I was upset. I wanted to touch John, to hug him. I don’t know if they paramedics told me that wasn’t okay to do or if I just assumed it wasn’t, but I didn’t touch him. I just stood there and stared while the image of his body and his curls, laying on that floor, burned into my brain.  It became clear later that, during that time, John's death moved into that space for me.  For months I would picture his body on the floor every time I came down the stairs and walked into that room.  I would avoid sitting there because I didn't want to be overwhelmed by the image of him on the floor.  Until writing this post I never asked my sister about her experience in the space.  When I called her to ask I barely had to finish the question.  She immediately knew what I meant, the trauma the room held for years.  Yet we never talked about then, never considered what (if anything) we could do about it.

In the years since we have worked with countless clients and families whose loved ones died at home. Some were anticipated hospice deaths. Others were unexpected, some traumatic. No matter the type of loss, time and again we hear people share their feelings that the deaths that occur in the home resides in the space.  Even with the best and most dignified and supported of deaths, these memories and feelings in the space can sometimes feel overwhelming to manage.

We wish you could provide you the magic answer. We wish we had checklist of solutions that would clear your space of the difficult death memories to open the space for all the other, wonderful memories. Sadly, that isn’t how it works. What we can do is talk about some suggestions, tips, and ideas and think through the benefits and considerations.

#1 Change Everything

Sometimes this takes the shape of moving, sometimes this takes the shape of getting rid of all the old furniture, decorations, and photographs and creating a newly decorated space.

Benefits
Sometimes the triggers are just too much and this feels like the best and only option. Depending on the situation, you may still need to deal with the traumatic memories with the support of a counselor. Radically changing the physical environment can make it easier to manage those difficult emotions in the moment by reducing triggers.

Considerations
Many of these radical changes are not easy. Also, they can be hard to undo if you rush and then regret it. Once you have sold you home, given notice on a lease, or moved out you often can't go back. It can also be hard to get back items you have given or thrown away, or otherwise change things back once after the fact.  Finally, sometimes you think changing everything will help and it doesn't, which can feel like a waste of time, money or energy.

#2 Change nothing

Fear of losing memories, whether they are positive or negative memories, can be strong.  It can be appealing to leave things exactly the same to keep a connection with your loved one and those memories.

Benefits
Beyond the fact that this option prevents you from having to do much work, it also can succeed in keeping the connection with the person who died.  It can also provide a sense of familiarity that is appealing when so many other things feel foreign.

Challenges

As you might imagine, changing nothing can bring up overwhelming grief triggers every time you walk into a specific space.  This can be hard at first though, in some cases, that distress turns to comfort with time.

#3 Make some changes

No surprise, some people don't want a full change, but they don't feel good leaving things exactly the same either.  In this case, small changes may be the solution.  Things like a coat of paint or rearranging furniture are sometimes just enough.

Benefits

This can be both logistically manageable while also providing just the right amount of shift to help your brain focus on more positive memories (or at the very least not immediately trigger the most painful death memories).

Challenges

It can be hard to know how much is enough, what is too much, and what to change. Also, as with any of these, if other people live in your home (or feel an emotional attachment to it) may have their own opinion about what you should or shouldn't do to change things. It is important to do what works for you while also communicating.

#4 Make thoughtful changes

If you decide to go with some changes, think them through and decide what will help.  If the death itself seems to have taken over the space, you aren't going to change that overnight.  You can move things into the space that bring up more positive memories, or that shift your focus.  Maybe it is photographs of wonderful times together that you have enlarged and framed.  Maybe it is introducing a color or artwork that brings you a sense of calm or that reminds you of your loved one. Whatever you decide to do, take your time and consider the idea that you cannot change or eliminate the devastating loss that occurred in the space.  What you can do is think of how to make room for other things.

As always, we would love to know your experiences, tips, and thoughts!  Leave a comment to let us know if you have dealt with a home death and how you've coped. 

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After writing online articles for What’s Your Grief for over a decade, we finally wrote a tangible, real-life book!

What’s Your Grief? Lists to Help you Through Any Loss is for people experiencing any type of loss. This book discusses some of the most common grief experiences and breaks down psychological concepts to help you understand your thoughts and emotions. It also shares useful coping tools, and helps the reader reflect on their unique relationship with grief and loss.

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122 Comments on "When Death Moves In: grief after a death in the home"

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  1. Kalie  September 25, 2023 at 5:38 pm Reply

    Our son died from a gunshot in his home, in his bedroom. It was after an argument with his girlfriend, she fired three shots. Months after he died, his 4 year old daughter visited his home and later, went into his bedroom. After only a minute there, she said, “I don’t like this place, I want to leave.” My husband took her and her half-sister to the backyard to play and look for cool rocks (my son’s hobby). After a few minutes, her face went blank and she said quietly, “I want to leave here.” Her mother gathered their things and left. Does anyone have an explanation as to why she said these things? She was never told about the tragedy, or how it happened, only that he went to Heaven. I cannot stop thinking about this! Thank you.

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  2. Robin  April 23, 2023 at 8:23 pm Reply

    My son passed away in his car of a massive heart attack. No signs of nothing. I had to Go ID his body in the parking lot.1 year later my dad passed away at home which he was in hospice, still this has been so hard to deal with.. My son was my only child…

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  3. Cameryn  December 30, 2021 at 4:12 pm Reply

    I need as much help as I can get. I am so lost and confused. my mom died in our living room. 2 months ago. I don’t know what to do or how to go on I’m only 24 and I have no supportive family, it was just me and her. Please pray for me.

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    • Litsa  January 23, 2022 at 11:41 pm Reply

      I am so sorry for what you are going through, Cameryn. There is a group called the Dinner Party for people in their 20s and 30s who are grieving that might be a good place to connect with some other people around your age coping with similar losses – https://www.thedinnerparty.org/

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    • Naomi  September 5, 2022 at 11:24 pm Reply

      Cameryn, How are you doing? My heart just broke reading your story. I can relate so much it gave me goosebumps. I hope you are well.

    • Heather  February 20, 2023 at 8:51 pm Reply

      Cameryn, I just wanted to check in with you, how are you doing?

      My mom just passed away last month in her bedroom, she lived with me and I was her caregiver the last 4 years. Much like you and your mom it was also just me and my mom.

      While I want to just remember the 6 years of good memories in that space that one Sunday evening of awful overshadows it all and I hate that.

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  4. Emily  October 18, 2021 at 5:11 pm Reply

    My husband died very unexpectedly on January 17, 2018 from complications of Influenza. He was 39. He didn’t die at home, but he started having scary symptoms at home ( we were not even aware he had the flu at that time. He complained of a sore throat and had a low grade fever at bedtime). I was woken up around 3am when he passed out in our bathroom. I moved him to our son’s room because it was close where he began coughing up blood and the paramedics worked on him when they arrived. He died 8 hours later in the hospital ER. I changed everything in our son’s room after because I was reliving it every time I walked in there. I could see him on the bed, the blood all over the rug. Nearly 4 years later, after a complete remodel, I can be triggered and have fierce flashbacks, but not nearly as often. The bathroom where I initially found him I have not changed much, and on bad days I can walk in there and see him slumped in the corner. I think that no matter what is changed you can’t erase those images. Some days I am grateful to feel those things because in some ways feeling close to his death makes me feel closer to his life.

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  5. Carolina  October 17, 2021 at 5:35 pm Reply

    I still can’t talk about what happened, it’s very difficult, my soul just hurts. I think about it all day, try to fill my days with something to do but when everything is quiet & I’m just sitting, the images come back & I’m in shock. I wish so much I had a second chance with him & make things right. Whatever gods may be out there, please help me.

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  6. Levi's Mom  October 17, 2021 at 5:33 pm Reply

    My mother, daughter and I were a family for 20+ years. My mother went to live with my sister when she needed fulltime care. I worked, my sister was retired and widowed. I kept my mother’s room the way it was although my daughter asked if she could move in there. I remember curling up on the floor crying for my mother but didn’t realize it was a form of grief. My daughter moved out after two years and then moved back a few months later following an illness. Three months later, I went to wake her early on a Sunday afternoon. She was 21. I worked three more years and retired. The pandemic hit, and I couldn’t travel as planned. I donated my mother’s furniture. We had separate living rooms. This year 2021 I gave furniture to some local university students and used some of the travel savings to buy furniture replacing the couch where we used to cuddle, sit and talk. I bought a new bed for myself, donated my mother’s twin beds after offering them to a niece. My mother died in a nursing home a year after my daughter died. I cut a piece of the mattress cover from the last place my daughter slept. She didn’t release so the mattress was not soiled. I may make a cushion from the piece one day. The mattress and boxsprings were hauled away by the guys who delivered my new bed. A new table and chairs replaced the table where I used to “see” my daughter sit, so tired, holding her head in her hands that last night. I kept the old table and chairs where all three of us sat together so many times, where she used to reach across, hold my hands and ask the blessing “Thank you for this food. Thank you for everything.” The piano she was supposed to take with her stays in its usual place. I play it now and then but never like she could. I painted my mother’s bedroom and moved in there. I painted my daughter’s room. It is now completely vacant and no one “beckons” me when I pass by the open door. I may move one day. I may stay here. Undecided at this point – almost at five years.

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  7. Jessica  October 17, 2021 at 4:12 pm Reply

    My son was 13 when he died in our garage by his own hand. My husband found him and began CPR. I assisted until the ambulance arrived over an hour later. I was able to overcome most of the intrusive thoughts with help from a therapist and EMDR therapy. However, I had much more difficulty with the many memories of that home. He was three when we moved there. I saw him everywhere. A little boy climbing the rocks behind the house, a teenager riding his dirt bike or flopping on the couch. I was no longer able to garden as the garden faced the garage. We finally decided to move. I’m doing better two years later but still have therapy to deal with my anger and guilt.

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    • Sue  September 26, 2022 at 12:55 pm Reply

      My heart is forever broken 💔🥲

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  8. Joni Sensel  September 25, 2021 at 12:46 pm Reply

    I guess I’m unusual. My partner died too young, out of the blue in our bed and on the floor alongside, where I gave CPR before the paramedics arrived. But there’s so much love and other good memories in the space, which we’d just remodeled ourselves, that while the event was traumatic, that trauma didn’t cling to the space — far too many better memories there crowding it out. I’ll have to think more about how and why in case it could help anyone else.

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  9. Gail  September 24, 2021 at 9:46 pm Reply

    My son died in my apartment,right outside of my bedroom door on 12/16/2020,he was 35 years old and died from Fentanyl. My son struggled with herion addiction but he wouldn’t have touched Fentanyl this is how I know my son wasn’t aware that it was Fentanyl he was going to use,and it killed him.
    I’ve been so devastated, destroyed and depressed over his loss that some days I didn’t know if I could go on in this life without him.He was my only child and I loved him more than anyone on this planet.
    For the first few months it was almost unbearable to look at the place on my apartment floor where my precious son died,I would sob because I could see his lifeless body there,I felt heartsick. I do not have the option to move,it’s expensive and I can’t afford it.
    Sometimes I lay down on the floor where he died but I’ve found that’s not a good idea because it doesn’t make me feel better, it makes me feel worse.
    I’ve been told my son didn’t die of an overdose,that the drug dealers that lace herion for their own profits are killing people,and to look at it as that’s what happened to my son,he was here to have Christmas and help me with things(I have Multiple Sclerosis) and then suddenly he was gone forever. Sometimes I feel his presence around here.
    I live on each day with a broken heart, every day I think about my son,I miss his smile,his kind heart, his laugh,I miss him.

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    • Michael  April 23, 2023 at 8:12 pm Reply

      Death unexpectedly at home finding my son. Regrets are killing me. I was left to clean up the blood that the ME spilled. Can’t get through it.

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  10. Alex De Eddin  August 18, 2021 at 5:01 pm Reply

    My son he was 40 years of age he died at home on may4th this year on heart attack it is very hard on me I need all the help that I get I do need support group.

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    • Isabelle Siegel  August 19, 2021 at 10:49 am Reply

      Hi Alex, I’m so sorry for your loss. If you’re looking for a support group, we recommend you start by calling local hospices and grief centers. They sometimes offer groups for free or at affordable, sliding-scale rates. You can also check your local hospital, grief center, or organ procurement organization.

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    • Ann R  September 24, 2021 at 10:32 am Reply

      Alex, I too lost my son March of this year of a heart attack and he too lived with me. I suggest you get in touch with Compassionate Friends. They have groups all over the country and a FB group for parents who have lost adult children.
      My sympathies. I know it is an unbelievable heartache. Ann

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    • Linda Holder  September 26, 2021 at 10:41 pm Reply

      Dear Alex De Eddie,
      My son, Matt, died on May 4th, 2012 in his sleep of a heart attack. He was forty years old. I am still devastated and it seems like it happened yesterday. I’m having a most difficult time. Maybe we could email each other and talk about it.
      Linda

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  11. Jeri  June 12, 2021 at 6:45 am Reply

    My husband passed away in his recliner. He had been dancing around the room, sat down, and died from a blood clot that brroke loose. It was quick. I did CPR, but it did nothing. Anyway, our living room is still as it was the day he died, 3 years ago. I do not sit in his chair, but I can’t throw it out, either. It helps to have it there, as a reminder of a wonderful man that I miss so much.

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  12. Brandy  June 8, 2021 at 5:19 pm Reply

    Our 17 yr old daughter and I came home 1.28.21 like every other day. I noticed my husbands keys on the table and thought he must’ve been in the bathroom, which you can access from the bedroom or living room. We were in my bedroom and I called to him, no answer. As I walked closer to the door the thing I remember most is the silence. It was a different quiet than when someone is just sitting still in a room. My life changed forever. Even though I told our daughter to stay at the doorway I didn’t realize the bedroom mirror gave her full view of me laying him in the floor to try cpr. The bathroom itself is not triggering for me but staring at the closed bathroom door while I lay in bed or seeing the mirror through the open bathroom door causes me to have anxiety attacks. 17 years of building a life and poof it’s gone in a blink of an eye.

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  13. Linda Davis  June 8, 2021 at 3:30 pm Reply

    My daughter was diagnosed with breast cancer in April 2016. We said our final goodbye on Mar. 16, 2017. Michele was 52 years old. We had Hope for many months! Chemo done. Surgery done. Radiation done. She looked great, and felt great. Hopeful. Unsuspecting, this miserable cancer had metastasized to her brain. It showed up like Bells Palsy, but rather than getting better, it became worse. She was hospitalized for tests. It was here, when my youngest daughter and myself came in to see her, that her husband gave us each some tissues. I had no idea what was going to come out of Michele’s mouth. She simply looked at me and said, it’s terminal! I hugged her so tight, that I couldn’t hear any other words. Shock set in, almost immediately! From that day forward, I operated from some distant place, deep inside of me. A place I had gone to many years ago, when I got the news that my son died in a car crash. It was this daughter, who had given me that news that night, Now, she is telling me, she is facing death! I need to move forward here. My daughter left the hospital sometime in Feb., to spend her remaining days in her home. This was a very aggressive cancer, from day one. We thought she had beat it, and we were so hopeful, but it took over! It progressed quickly, once again. So much had to be done. Michele arranged her whole funeral, as we sat in their den. It was all surreal, as I watched and listened from that place inside of my head. Her oldest daughter planned for her wedding, so her Mom could attend. Michele never recovered from the Palsy, and she lost the ability to show expression. She to wear a patch over her one eye. Speech was difficult, but she managed for quite a while. Between her two daughters and a nurse, her needs were met continuously. It went from moving about slowly, to sitting only, to the bed brought in for her! I’m going through these stages, showing what a loved one experiences from both Michele’s perspective and of those caring for her, knowing the end of life is pending. I can only honestly give my feelings on all of this, but over four years later, I still have so many different emotions about how I feel watching my child die. Hard for me to continue writing, as the pain is still so real. I spent more time with my girl in those months after learning of the first cancer, that I am so grateful for. Learning that it would take her away forever, put me in a foreign world. Her whole family was suffering, yet I felt so isolated. I couldn’t get out of my head! On one day, when Michele was still able to sit up, she looked directly at me, with only one eye, that couldn’t show emotion, and said, I’m not afraid. I, on the other hand, who’s every emotion was on display, could feel her intensiveness with those few words. I believed her. I remember thinking, oh Mich, I am so afraid. I was afraid of her suffering physically and emotionally. I was afraid of losing her! Michele died about a week after her daughter’s wedding! She attended in a wheelchair and a lazyboy chair was brought in for the reception. All done in one building, it was a very bittersweet event. This wedding is hardly ever talked about. Michele had, I believe, a seizure just hours before the nurse pronounced her passing. Michele could no longer communicate within that last week. When the men came in and placed her in that black bag and carried her out, every ounce of warmth in that house left with her. It never did return. I went to see my son-in-law out of courtesy, and to see how he was doing. I could not feel her anywhere! The only ones in the house was her husband and their dog. As a Mom, yes I would choose the time to spend with my child, but I do believe it is more difficult. There is no easy way to describe the death of a child. Whether it’s a shocking phone call, or days spent by their side, wondering when will be the final one. It’s hard to deal with the emotional toll on a daily basis, but I think I always hoped for a miracle with my daughter. With my son, there was no goodbye, or the ability to kiss his forehead, or the fact he died alone in the night. With my son, I could only imagine his final moment in life. With my daughter, I experienced them. These images are difficult to let go of. If you can bear with me, I know this was very long, but when my husband passed away in 2008. His illness was brief in time, but because he was in such pain, it was like forever. I was going to try and have him stay home (his wishes), but his pain was never managed and it became unbearable for him. He would have attempted to end his own life. So, when he went into the hospital, they were able to put him on something incredibly strong. I basically lost my husband to the drugs, for soon he didn’t know who I was. He was terminally ill, and when the hospital knew his time was growing near, they gave us enough notice to be there with him. I found his death very traumatic! He had this awful fluid coming out of his mouth and nose. I panicked, fearing he would choke. As the nurses looked after him, myself and his family were asked to leave the room. When we were allowed back in, he had already passed away, but he looked, once again like the man I married. Calm and peaceful. There was no more pain or confusion. I felt relief for him. Once the reality set in, devastation set in. How would I live my life without him? I missed him terribly, and I knew my life as I knew it, would never be the same, and it hasn’t been. I’ve become almost an introvert. Since losing another child, as well, and then a pandemic. I have no idea who I am, or why I’m here! I simply go day by day. My Faith is strong, and I depend on my Lord to see me through whatever lies ahead. Thanks for letting me go on and on! I don’t comment so much anymore, because I can’t find a stopping point, once I start writing! Sorry!

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    • SB  October 26, 2021 at 3:33 pm Reply

      So sorry for all your losses Linda

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  14. Jane  June 8, 2021 at 11:24 am Reply

    When my husband died of a heart attack on our kitchen floor I could not get the vision of him lying there for hours (waiting for medical examiner etc) out of my head. At first I wanted to burn it all down, & throw out everything. Now 2 years later I am still cleaning out little by little when I have the strength. What really helped me with the trauma was EMDR, luckily I have EAP through work and could see a therapist. I recommend this to anyone dealing with a traumatic event, to this day I still remember the event but it does not have the debilitating effect it once did. Feel free to message me if you want more information. It did not take away the crushing memory, but softened it enough to stay in my home and start to make it my own.

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    • Mike McDaniel  April 24, 2023 at 5:00 pm Reply

      I have continual flashbacks. They won’t stop

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  15. Anita  June 8, 2021 at 10:42 am Reply

    We myself and our son lost my husband/daddy very suddenly in January 2020 without any warning he just went in his sleep,he was 46 I was43 and our son was 7 and a half not knowing how to help your child through his grief so young is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do

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    • Carolina  October 17, 2021 at 5:26 pm Reply

      Anita, my son is five years old, having lost his father, best friend is so heartbreaking. I don’t know what to do about the hurt of him not growing up with him.

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  16. Deanna Napue  May 13, 2021 at 7:39 am Reply

    I lost my mom in January this year ,im 36 years old and I never thought this would happen so fast. My mom was 57 years old my best friend my everything.

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  17. Maggie  December 27, 2020 at 10:53 am Reply

    I lost my husband 6 months ago. He died at home. I still don’t know what to do. I cry all the time. I tell everyone I’m okay but I am not. I feel alone after 52 years of marriage. He was my best friend also.

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    • Rose  January 26, 2021 at 7:10 pm Reply

      So sorry about your loss. My husband died October 6 2020 we where married for 15 years and he was my sole mate. He was much older than me and he also lost his wife of thirty years before we met. My husband had already had a bad valve and other health problems and I was always by his side from the time we met. He always looked after me and my daughters and grandchildren. He was my best friend and we had so much in common . We moved two years ago from California to Arizona we bought a house and shortly before we moved he had suffered a seizure and his heart stopped and he came back. Then shortly after we where in Arizona he started having more problems . But husband James was a fighter he had such a will to live in spite of being 88 years old. He was so passionate about life , and in september he went into the hospital from another seizure .after a week the doctors couldnt find anything wrong and he was sent home . James looked well and he looked forwarded to the holidays and the day of James was in good spirits and even was planning and looking forward to the buying another property for investment . But the day of James passing he was ready to go to bed and we said our goodnight and I sat in my chair and left the room to take care of something for about a few minutes when me and my children heard something fall very hard. James was already on the floor with no life in him. I was in total shock and when the per-medics to revive him he was already gone, they didn’t want me in the room while his lifeless body stayed there until a Chaplin arrived. I couldn’t even bring myself to cry and I felt tremendous sorrow. I can’t explain how even my grandchildren and daughters that where there when this happened where all in disbelief . I have a master bedroom and to go into the bedroom I cant bring myself to sleep in there because I came face to face with James as he lied there and I pleaded for him to come back. At this moment I still can’t bring myself to sleep in my bedroom ,although I still use the bathroom from the master bedroom. There are soiled marking that james body was releasing at the time of his death and I had hired two carpet cleaners to come and remove the soil and it still remains there stained. It saddens me every time I have to go pass the area he died and at first i was frightened because of the way I seen him last. I had to pull myself up and had to remind myself that my husband was a christian and loved God and James would’nt like me staying in that room sad and alone if he could see me that way. So I made a choice to live my life the way i know my husband would want me too . He loved life and I know without doubt he would want me to do the same. I do cry and miss him terribly but I have to daily remind myself that one I know I’ll see him again. I’m in my 60’s and I looked at James pictures even before I met him, and that gave me strength to see him on his horse and his love for his animals and the life he had before me. He lived and loved life and there was such strength that came from faith in God . I want the same thing that he had . I know if he could say one thing to me right now, is he loves me and wants me to be happy and take care of myself and our family and to live , because that’s what he did and expects no less from me. In life his was always with me and looked after me like no other. But I’m going to make a decision to carry his torch and know he never died he still alive just now with the lord.

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      • Isabelle Siegel  January 27, 2021 at 1:45 pm

        Rose, I’m so sorry for your loss and for the pain you are experiencing. My heart goes out to you and your family. You’re right: Your husband would want you to take care of yourself, to continue on. That being said, it’s okay to grieve your loss. What you’re feeling is so valid. You will find a way to navigate this. I recommend you check out this article: https://whatsyourgrief.com/grief-recovery-is-not-a-thing/ James will always be a part of you. All the best to you and your family.

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      • CHRISTINE E HOLMES  May 27, 2021 at 10:48 pm

        Rose I know what and how you feel right now my husband passed away October 05, 2020. A piece of my heart die right with my husband cause he was my best friend I am so lonely with out him we had been together for 38 years I met him when I was 16 in half years old he was first true 💘 love so Rose I feel your pain

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    • Joslyn Smith  March 24, 2021 at 11:14 am Reply

      My boyfriend of 33 years died next to me at his house in his sleep. I genuinely thought he was sleeping or snoring abnormally and really needed rest. As I woke up seven hours later I noticed he hasn’t moved a muscle and I called the police as they instructed me CPR in to get him on the floor. They soon pronounced him dead. My world is completely changed. I thought I had it all figured out with this piece and manifesting thing. I never would expect him to not wake up. This is hurting my heart and I just wanna know what are some signs that he is around men still as his spirit. I get the smell of weird things like pizza and lasagna randomly. Is he trying to connect with me?

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    • CHRISTINE E HOLMES  May 27, 2021 at 10:41 pm Reply

      Maggie I know what you is going through cause I lost my husband we had been together for 38 years he was my best friend who I loved very much and now I feel so lonely and I also cry every minute of the day so Maggie I feel your pain all I ask you to do is hang in there and trust in our Father( Heavenly)

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  18. Cindy Reinsmith  June 30, 2020 at 5:00 pm Reply

    I daughter OD on Fentanyl and passed away 2018 and I took a picture of the room after she was gone and I got it developed and bunch of demons I took a picture of the outside window and look like she was picking out . Neighbors told me when I moved out a couple people moved in and they move out real quick another lady moved in she went out screaming slam the door and never came back

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  19. Yvonne Butcher  February 27, 2020 at 1:33 pm Reply

    My husband just passed away in December from a very tragic shotgun shot to his stomach, I was there for over a hour I laid beside him in his blood holding his stomach in begging him not to die. It took a hour for the paramedics to arrive then they life flighted him. Sadly he passed before we got to the hospital. I have so much pain sadness guilt that I could not save him. I miss him so much. His mother who is not a kind women fired me and planned and had his memorial wighout my knowledge and texted me that me and my family were not allowed to come which when I found this our proceeded to rush to the funeral home and stop this madness of her having this done on christmas Eve , as soon as I walked thru the door she attacked me and I never got to stop this or say goodbye to my husband I rushed by ambulance to the hospital. diagnosed with major grief and anxiety attack. Then she has my husband cremated on his birthday December 31st and won’t give his ashes to me. She is refusing me access back into our home which resides on her property. I don’t have anything of his which also kills me. Everytime I try to sleep its nightmare after nightmare. I keep seeing the look on his face after I heard the shot and turned around and he says to me “Baby I think I shot myself” The look of fear on his face will forever be engraved in my memory. I cry constantly. I feel so alone and lost. My whole world turned upside down by one tragic accident. I amd staying with my mom treaeying to stay busy so I dont think and fight my sleep every night because I just cant do it. Im losing it and feel like I’m, drowning someone please help and advice maybe what I should do . THank you for reading a little piece of my story.

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  20. Stormy  December 25, 2019 at 8:59 pm Reply

    I am exhausted and at a total loss as to what to do. My husband committed suicide in my daughters old room upstairs. Then my grandma died and I inherited her entire apartment,. Then my son died in a tragic car accident and his whole house has been moved into mine as well. I am surrounded by three dead loved ones things, a lot of things. Mostly all Im able to do is shuffle stuff around, trying to make room. I don’t know how to do this, Im only one person and my family is not interested in helping me…if you can believe that. Help! I feel like Im drowning.

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    • Diana Corral  February 15, 2020 at 7:09 pm Reply

      I’m so, so sorry for all your loss. My younger brother recently died of an accidental drug and alcohol overdose. Sometimes I feel like I just can’t deal with this pain. I cannot even imagine what you are going thru! My brother died in Nov. 2019 which was very hard because it was also during the holidays and very sudden and unexpectedly. We had no clue as to what he was going thru. My poor 20 year old daughter found him in the garage of our condo where we all lived. She is now in counseling.
      During a month I just left everything the way it was. We turned our garage into a room which was his room. I had pictures on the kitchen refrigerator of him until my daughter said that seeing him there every morning was very hard for her. I had to take them off to help her. These last 2 months since then I have slowly changed things. I have turned the garage back into a garage, boxed his things (not sure how long or what I will do with them) but for now I do not want to get rid of them. I feel like I need to keep a part of him. I do have his ashes here at home and sometimes talk to him as I cry. I have given some of his stuff away but I have kept the most personal stuff I know he would not want me to give away. This has helped me in my grief a lot. Still very hard. Your loss is much, much greater than mine. I would slowly at your on pace ( not what anybody tells you is best) change things. Keep and change what you think each one of your family members would of wanted you to keep. Cry when you want to regardless of where you are. You don’t own anybody and explanation. And I’m sorry your other living family is not there for you. Remember one day at a time is all we can do now. Take Care of your physical and mental health as much as you can. Grief can take a bad toll on our body and we know our deceased loved ones would not want that for us. I know it is easier said than done, but unfortunately it is what it is. Take care of yourself and God bless.

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  21. August Vargas  December 12, 2019 at 11:10 pm Reply

    I have two family homes I am 28 years old and I’ve seen it all my parents passed away when I was 17 and 18 they both died unexpectedly my grandmother was a lot older she lived for 8 years after my dad passed she had dementia I took care of her I came and lived with her because it was hard for me to live in the home where I grew up with my parents, my grandma was on hospice for 3 years before she got really sick I had watched her die and it was really hard for me as she was all I had left in my family this whole house makes me think of her she died in her room my boyfriend suggested that we should move into her room to be closer to her we are just going to change everything up and keep the memories we are going to paint it and make it happy like as if she was still here she wanted to die at home and I think sense my whole family died here I probably wanna die here also, I was scared at first of being in the same room that she died in but after thinking about it for awhile she probably would be happy for us to move in there we had fights and arguments but that was family fights every family goes through it if you are like me don’t be afraid just think positive about everything and it should all work out before she died there was a lot of prayers in that room with her in it I prayed with her I held her hand and kissed her and stayed in there with her for as long as I could she will always be in our hearts I just had some questions about how it would feel and how many other people are going through the same thing

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  22. Rachel  October 23, 2019 at 2:27 pm Reply

    September 22, 2019 was the worst day of my life..the worst pain I have ever felt and most difficult situation I ever been in. My Mom 55 years young decided she would end her existence. I was hung over throwing up in the bathroom that connects to her room and my daughter’s room. I heard her crying like really weeping but I was so sick I decided to lay down on my daughter’s bed…that’s when I heard the gunshot. The gunshot was so loud my ears were ringing. When I ran to her room the door was unlocked. When I opened the door all I could see at first was the gunpowder floating in the air like thick smoke. I turned to her bed and she laid with her feet off the bed and hole in her neck. I ran to get my phone and dialed 911 and the blood started coming out her ears and mouth. It was horrible to see my Mom like that. Shortly after my husband and two daughters came home and we waited for the ambulance. When they got here nobody tried to help her because there was a firearm involved. They just let her bleed out untill a police officer came. That still pisses me off. I wasn’t expecting to find her dead I really thought she missed and I would find her ok. she was just alive and crying then bang she was gone..just like that. She wrote a note and left me her house and I wish I could tell her why would you leave me this house knowing you would kill herself here. Did she really think I’d want it? I can no longer go to that bathroom or walk by her door. I feel extreme sadness when I look at her door or just pass it. I see her car and it makes me sad. It feels like I’m waiting for her to come home. Yesterday its been a month and my family and I have been staying here since the second week of that day. I hate it here, especially at night. I have no idea why I’m afraid but I am. I’m afraid to be alone, I was alone when it happened so now when I’m alone I feel like something really bad is going to happen. I really think I have PTSD, if I hear anything that sounds like a bang I freak out. I can’t be alone here at the house but I’m okay other places. Everything in her room is the same except her bed we had to take out because of the blood.
    I don’t know anyone who’s gone through what myself or family has went through which is why I felt the need to share my story. I feel alone, my parents are both gone. My Dad passed 2 years before this happened. My role as a daughter is done, my Mom took that from me. It’s cliche to say but this all feels like a nightmare. Please don’t take your life, it really is painful for the people left behind.

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    • Karen  December 3, 2019 at 10:09 am Reply

      Wow.. I lost my mom on Sept 22, 2019. We lived in the house with her. I was the only one here that day also. My mom was 74 and had cancer and apparently some heart issues. She came home from church that day and said she was very sleepy. She went to lie down on her bed. I checked on her once and she was sound asleep. I checked on her 30-45 min later and she was gone. She had passed in her sleep. So unexpected. I cannot get the image of her lying there on her bed lifeless out of my head. It haunts me every day. I cannot imagine the images you must have. I often ask why I had to be the one to find her that way. But living with her I guess that’s a chance you take. We are slowly changing the room as much as possible. I’m trying to only remember the day before she passed because it was a great day my husband and I spent with her having fun. I don’t want to remember Sept 22, 2019. Bless your heart for your grief.. I hope you find peace.

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  23. kaitlyn  October 11, 2019 at 2:24 pm Reply

    For over a year Lynda has been drowning in pain levels above and beyond of what was told and expected.

    After recovering from micro strokes beginning 8 years ago, and moving forward with prayers and thirst for life and family it all began a slow and painful drop with the onset of newly discovered cancers … Cancer of Esophagus and Cancer of the tongue and tonsil node. And than begin the downward spiral. Chemo and Radiation for 7 weeks was phase one for the Esophagus, 3 weeks off, and then again 7 weeks for the Throat.

    At the beginning of treatment since March, she was fed via pharmacy formulations administered through her Chemo Port. She was unable to eat and swallow. “Mouth wash” with Lidocaine daily used to reduce chest pain caused by Chemo, not covered.

    Lynda kept a daily journal of all activities, pill taking, pain levels. We met a few folks who they themselves wanted to learn how she did it.
    In May they performed surgery to install a J tube in her intestine for nourishment, but it failed. No Doctor in Southern Nevada wanted to perform the Stomach PEG due to the possibility of her having the need for esophageal surgery in the future. After begging and pleading we were allowed to go to So Cal and the USC Peck Medical Center where an educated and informed Dr. Avay performed the task.

    She will be going into a Hospice / Rehab facility.

    Now she came home from the rehab facility but she is back with the hospice care. Just a few days ago some things changed… she usually would wake me up to tell me she has to use the restroom but she was asleep all night.. I noticed her eyes couldn’t fully be open… she barely can speak.. she dreams and moves her arms and legs but when you look at her eyes shes kind of gone… i can’t really have a conversation with her even though she can hear… my dad and i got told she has a month…. we thought when she came home (from rehab) she would live a little longer well something just changed very quickly… my dad found out the mass in her stomach which was the pain she was having was liver cancer and they can’t do much… so they gave us a bed and all the other stuff for her… feeding nutrition for her J tube. she is currently hooked up to the pump of the feeding bag…. we looked up signs if someone is passing and she is showing these slowly…. it breaks my heart cause as of me being 25 years old and my mom is 64 and her birthday was September 23 i believe its too soon an she still young. i never had seen someone pass or go to a funereal or anything so as the only girl i feel alone losing my mom to three different cancers & she is a strong women but it took a big number on her body… its going to be hard to cope and deal with it but i know she will look down on at us and i pray every night for her ..

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  24. Connie Teuscher  September 25, 2019 at 3:09 pm Reply

    My husband died in our home of cancer with hospice in attendance on Thanksgiving 2018. We had set up our den as our room the last month of his life and hospice helped us care for him there. But as helpful as hospice was, they could not keep him comfortable at the end. Hospice does not do shots or I.V.’s and he needed those. They gave him oral drops of morphine but that did not keep him comfortable and he suffered horribly right up to the end. We should have moved him to the hospital. It was very traumatic for all of us who were there. I am unable to go into that part of the house at all. I removed everything from that room and had a door installed so don’t have to see it when I pass by. When I’m able to think more rationally I will probably be moving. Right now I can’t think straight.

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  25. Sharne Cooper  July 25, 2019 at 12:07 am Reply

    My Mother was on Oxygen everyone was home at the time my mom asked me what did you do when you was dehydrated I told her I went to the hospital to get liquid in my body cause I couldn’t keep water down at the time so my sister called the Ems for her they gave her water my mom was happy I sat down in the living room I was feeling better also so I asked the Ems are you going to take my Mom to the hospital he said no there was no justice I didn’t understand or let it bother me cause she was happy so my sister and I went up stairs for bed I have 4 kids I had them all in the room with me I woke up 3 am I told my oldest she is 9 years old now but that time she was 8 I told her go down stairs to get my charger for my phone my daughter yelled mommy grandma is on the floor I didn’t get upset cause she does this so I went down just to make sure I seen my mom arm hanging off her bed and her head was to her knees I kept staring at her to see if she still breathing and I’m looking at my daughter to at the same time so I touched my mom pulled her back she fall over I looked at her hands and feet they where blue I touched also they where cold I slowly touched her mouth it was hard and black for some reason she didn’t look mad at all so an Police Officer came to give her CPR she wasn’t responding Ems came 5 or more came still wasn’t responding so my sister called Perry Funeral Home they came my mom was just laying there clothes half off her I don’t understand that part What was she trying to do everyone had they own opinion her door was closed her Oxygen turn down low saying it was hot in her room but Honestly I think my mom was tired she took it off as soon as we left and I was told she had Damention when she was living and Memory Loss and living with a half of a lung things I didn’t know she had cause she will move around without the oxygen on and talk My daughter told me my sister was with her last and my sister has a problem when she hear voices and bipolar but I’m not blaming anyone I didn’t see it or hear anything it was very quiet in the house but before that my daughter died and came back and she has Chronic Asthma she needed CPR also thank God my daughter still here and still until this day I want to know what happened but then again I don’t cause my mom told me if you want to see something ask God to show you but the thing is Can you take it So be careful what you ask for but now it’s hard for my daughter and I living in the same house we all live together she doesn’t want the house dark like me she won’t come in first or go near her door I try going in her room I come out tearing bad so we all just keep her door closed I’m just so confused and scared Why my daughter and I are Scared and we both seek counseling and attend Church I just can’t wait until we all Pass this Situation

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  26. Linda Knight  June 19, 2019 at 4:12 pm Reply

    I just lost my best girlfriend this past March. We were best friends for 50 years and had known each other since 4th grade in New Jersey. Nobody realized something had happened to her until the mailperson contacted neighbors about her mail piling up. I wondered why she had been so silent but she lived out of state and was planning on selling her home come spring and was going to have things done and get some painting done in her basement so I thought ok she must be busy. I emailed her after not hearing from her. Nothing. In April I got a response but it was her younger brother telling me that my girlfriend had died in her home alone. I was shocked. She had planned to go to Tennessee and she has just retired and had just recently turned 59. She never got to do that. We are thinking she got the flu and passed away in her home. The police came to do a wellness check and broke in and found her laying on her floor in her bathroom. She had been there for at least three weeks which totally just messes my head up so bad to think of her body laying there rotting away and nobody knew. I am suffering from traumatic shock coz of what happened to her. So sad all the time and crying nonstop.

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  27. Margaret Bergeron  March 26, 2019 at 2:51 am Reply

    My husband and I moved to a new state in Dec. We brought his mom to stay with us because her health was not so good. I had her going to the doctors. Getting better and doing good. I took care of her all the time. Sunday she said her stomach hurt and told my husband to leave her alone until morning. That morning he woke up and came to sit with me. He fell asleep again for 30minutes and when he woke back up he went to check on his mom and she was gone. I dont know how to feel! I’m lost! Part of me feels like she is still here with us. Part of me wants to just move but we can’t. It was listed as natural causes and she was cremated but part of me just feels lost..

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  28. Lucy Jones  February 25, 2019 at 1:55 am Reply

    March 23 1977 my father committed suicide at his brother’s. I can still see his lifeless body on the ground covered with a white sheet. I had difficulty sleeping since this happened. I sometimes wonder did I not say the right words. I tried a few weeks prior talk to him and educate him on older men and young women but he wasn’t listening. I lay woke for hours and I usually fall asleep about 445 a.m. it has been over 40 yrs and it still be on mind.

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  29. Michelle K  December 26, 2018 at 7:01 pm Reply

    I found my husband dead unexpectedly on Thanksgiving morning, 11/22/2018 and I don’t understand how he could have died while I slept next to him. I got up at 2:00 am and walked over to his side of the bed to turn off his light, he was setting up sleeping, he did this sometimes, and I noticed his breathing. I walked back over to my side of the bed and went back to sleep. When I woke up around 7:30 I noticed he was laying strange. His body was in bed but his shoulders and head was rested on the coffee table and his arm was stretched down with his hand in the trash can. I thought I would wake him up so he wouldn’t be sore from sleeping in that position and when I started to rub his chest to wake him up it was hard and I think I realized he was dead, but I was hoping he was not so I kept screaming his name to get him to wake up. Now I feel so quilty because I think if I would have woke him up when I got up to turn off the light he would not have died, but I didn’t wake him up because I was tired and thinking if I woke him up I would not be able to go back to sleep. So I feel like I let him die just so I could sleep. But I didn’t know he was going to die. He had just went to dr and they told him he was healthy and his heart was good. And I cannot get out of my heart that he had died right next to me and I didn’t know it was happening, nor can I comprehend the position of his body when I found him. His eyes were closed because I thought he was asleep. I keep seeing his body’s position and I keep remembering that I should have woke him up

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    • Karen B  February 11, 2019 at 7:24 pm Reply

      My husband too died Thanksgiving Day 2018. He was suffering from cancer and was a tracheostomy patient. He begged me to suction him, but I was not able to get anything up. So we argued. He kept pleading with me and I kept saying No! I went into my room hoeping that he would calm down a bit. It got really quiet so I assumed he was watching TV. About 20 mins later I decided to check on him and he too was sitting up, with his hand on the nightstand, but his eyes were open. I knew just looking at him that he was gone. I called 911 and they came out but it was too late.
      I too wonder if I had gone into the room sooner if that would have made a difference. I remember laying him on the ground and doing chest compressions, only to hear leaving but not going back in.
      I have closed the door to his room, and go in only on occasion. It will always be with me. Nw I have to find a way to make that room part of the house again.

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    • Jen  February 28, 2019 at 11:47 am Reply

      I found my husband in the garage/man cave on Thanksgiving morning. He was hunched over in his chair and I thought he fell asleep watching tv again. I keep reliving the moment I tried to sit him up. He was only 49.
      I don’t like going in the garage. It’s his space. Those are his things. Everyone thinks I should be parking in the garage. It’s winter and I don’t care. I don’t know if I’ll ever park in there.

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    • nancy  June 19, 2019 at 3:14 pm Reply

      I too slept while my husband lay next to me dying. I don’t understand how I cd sleep when this was happening. And I just don’t remember what made me wake up and check on him. I shook him numerous times until he slumped out of the bed onto the floor. I’ll never ever forget his closed eyelids. Almost two years now, I still sleep in the same bed in the same place though I never go to his side. I consider it sacred ground, but I also know to move on I’ll have to move away. Just not ready yet. Thank you for sharing. And I’m sorry that we share this experience.

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    • John Bloom  September 15, 2020 at 1:09 am Reply

      I really and truly sympathize with you. A little over a month ago I was getting ready to go to work and I went in the bedroom to wake up my fiance and she was dead.. the previous evening she had been drinking and when I went into the bedroom she said she had a bad headache and had to throw up I helped her to the toilet and on the way back to bed she said her head hurt really bad. Nothing out of the ordinary because whenever she drank she got headaches. it wound up she had a brain aneurysm that burst. My whole world crumbled she was my everything the glue that held me together. Why didn’t I realize she was in trouble how can I be so naive and so blind. I blame myself if I would have just paid more attention to her I feel like I could have saved her. I share in your pain just don’t beat yourself up.

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  30. B Ann  December 16, 2018 at 9:08 pm Reply

    November 10th I went out with my friend for my birthday. When we came back our good friend had overdosed in her bathroom and we found him. He was about 6 foot and got pinned in a foot and a half space in the fetal position. I will forever hear her screams and pleads for help for someone to please call 911. My phone was dead, I remembered to always try for and that’s when I realized he was to far gone. He had his pants around his ankles and his entire upper half was white while the lower was purple/blue. His hand was Gray. I don’t think I’ll ever be the same. I loved him and so did anyone who has ever met him. His death sparked an uproar. Constant flashbacks. The smell of linen makes me physically sick because the laundry room was right beside him and now all I think about is death when I smell it. They gave him a closed casket which I feel is even worse but honestly nothing I feel will ever take this away or make it anyless traumatic. He was the best dude I’ve ever met. He relapsed and this time he lost his battle. RIP Blaine. I love you

  31. Sue W  October 31, 2018 at 8:41 pm Reply

    I lost my darling Dad two months ago. He was 94, a month short of his next birthday. He fell backwards down the stairs and hit his head so hard he was bleeding from his ear. He was still awake but not aware. I heard him fall from the kitchen but didn’t realise how bad it was. One look at him sprawled at the bottom of the stairs and Icalled the paramedics. They, in turn, called the Air Ambulance and the Police. He was driven by ambulance to a hospital quite a few miles away, but I still didn’t realise how bad he was hurt. I followed on in my car after a while, leaving my brother to look after my disabled Mothe (she had a stroke 8.5 years ago and suffers from dementia) only to be told on arrival that he was not going to recover. My brother joined me shortly after when I rang and told him and we spent all night watching over him. The next day his resuscitation equipment was removed, but he took over 10 hours to cease breathing.
    I miss him so much, and have only just stopped feeling sick every time I go into the hall and up or down the stairs. I can’t avoid passing where he effectively died and keep going over and over the events of his accident and subsequent death. I started clearing out his clothes and other stuff the following day, it was kind of therapeutic. Now I am the main carers for Mum, and that makes it even harder. She realises he has gone but still calls for him. After all, they were married 72 years and they were ( and still are) very much in love.

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  32. vern  October 1, 2018 at 1:36 am Reply

    I lostmy Mother in 2010 and a few days ago my Father passed away at our house and the day after his brother, our uncle passed away.It is tough to deal with not only my Dad but my uncle and my grandma lost 2 of her sons.I am thankful my Mom told me to pray and have strength and that the Lord will be with you to take the burden off. So thats what I do I just pray and ask God to give me strength.It is an overwelming feeling when you lost a loved one especially your parents.I feel lost right now my parents are gone and I feel like I have noone to be here for. I did what I did in life to make my parents proud and they were now they arent here to see me and I dont know I just feel empty now. I will continue to make my parents proud even though they are not here but if you ever feel the urge to end your life dont things get better over time. I t seems like alot to handle but be strong.

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  33. Denise Feltham  September 4, 2018 at 7:30 pm Reply

    My mom died in her bed on March 5th of this year. I was alone at the time. It was expected but I didn’t know when the actual moment would occur. She had Alzheimer’s for a long time, with some vascular changes and signs of a mild stroke. The she broke her hip at Christmas, and it was discovered she had an enlarged aorta. Then she developed breathing difficulties and she was dead in two weeks. I made a commitment to keep her out of a nursing home and for her to die at home. Ironically, I thought she had begun the dying process almost a year before, and reached out to a hospice, but they had since then closed her file. Being alone, I had to call 911 from my room until the operator called me back on my cell phone. I had that melancholy feeling on Saturday. Mom was there but she wasn’t, and I knew the time was drawing closer. On the Sunday evening I tried to busy myself with laundry, baking bread, housekeeping. Mom kept calling out my name, but when I went to check on her she didn’t realize she called me, or else she just wanted to make sure I was there. Shortly after her last call-out I went in to check on her and saw her eye roll up in the back of her head, and her opposite arm jerk, and I thought she’s either having a seizure or she’s going. I thought now I have to go into action. The emergency dispatcher asked numerous questions that I couldn’t really answer, such as is she breathing, because I was on the phone. When I went back in to check, her eyes were open but staring into space, and I could tell she wasn’t breathing but her arm was twitching. The dispatcher told me to start CPR, help was on the way, pull her down on the floor. I thought to myself she’s just 2 months shy of her 95th birthday and she was suffering so much and wanting to die. I wasn’t going to abuse a dead body. Strangely enough, the time of the call was not registered on the call display, and by the time the paramedics got here and confirmed death, it was probably a half an hour later. Over the space of a couple of hours there was a whole community or police, coroner, fire fighters, paramedics and eventually the hearse attendants from the funeral home, as well as my sister whom I called. I didn’t want to go near that room that night, and had trouble catching a couple of hours in my room next to it. It is a strange sense of presence. For the next few weeks I would close that bedroom door, and when I had to go in to retrieve something I would be triggered by all mom’s personal effects and the memory of her lying in the bed with her eyes staring blankly. One day shortly after, while I was making her bed, I caught sight of a ball of fluff (her hair) and it struck a nerve. I quickly rearranged furniture, removed belongings and eventually bought a new bed. Then I began sleeping in the room, using my own room as an office. I’m actually surprised at how my own presence filled that vacuous space, and although it doesn’t take me much to remember the scene of death, I don’t get that ghostly feeling.

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    • Anna Roberts  June 28, 2021 at 1:01 pm Reply

      My mom died on May 25 this year. She died in her room which is next to mine. Reading your comment let me know Im not alone with how I feel. She had cancer. I was with her when she passed and the images haunt me. I also kept busy the days prior with household work. I would go in when she would holler out. But she didn’t recognize me anymore. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through. I’m 23 and we have been together our whole lives. She moved in with me when I moved out of the house we were living in because I couldn’t stand the thought of her alone. We were together every day. I still have no idea what to do. I’m blessed with my 3 year old who keeps me going each day. I can’t figure out what to do with her room. I sit in it and cry. I know I need to change things but I can’t. Hospice removed all of their property so it’s an empty shell of the room she had. I’m rambling I know but it gives me a bit of comfort writing this out. I miss her. She was my best friend…..

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  34. MELINDA F KLINE  July 17, 2018 at 3:03 pm Reply

    My husband had died june 11 2018 in our home. One minute he was beside me the next minute he was down stairs and gone. I can not even say how the pain feels.He was my best friend

    • JD  May 23, 2019 at 2:00 pm Reply

      I lost my husband 4 weeks ago, I am totally lost, for 40+ years it was just the two of us.

      I try everyday to do something but end up just sitting /staring and thinking all the time.

      I don’t sleep just get in bed, the scene of him dying is on my mind all the time.

      I should be dehydrated with all the crying and tears ive shed, people keep telling me it will get easier, they haven’t lost anyone yet so why are they all full of knowledge on the subject.

      I’m so sorry you are suffering, I know exactly.

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    • Maggie  December 27, 2020 at 10:48 am Reply

      I lost my husband 6 months ago. He died at home. I still don’t know what to do. I cry all the time. I tell everyone I’m okay but I am not. I feel alone after 52 years of marriage. He was my best friend also.

  35. Andi  May 24, 2018 at 2:04 am Reply

    I lost my brother in our house fire 2 weeks ago. The house is being rebuilt from insurance as it is unsalavageavke. I am havi g a hard time accepting this! I watched the firemen pull him out not breathing and started CPR right on our deck. Does time heal? We lost all our special memories we had in the house and lost all my brothers belongings. I just am scared this new house won’t feel comfortable because I lost so much.

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  36. Andi  May 24, 2018 at 2:04 am Reply

    I lost my brother in our house fire 2 weeks ago. The house is being rebuilt from insurance as it is unsalavageavke. I am havi g a hard time accepting this! I watched the firemen pull him out not breathing and started CPR right on our deck. Does time heal? We lost all our special memories we had in the house and lost all my brothers belongings. I just am scared this new house won’t feel comfortable because I lost so much.

  37. carmen  February 7, 2018 at 1:41 pm Reply

    HERE GOES : My sister found my nephew dead in his bed he died of a brain tumor, this happened in 2005 ,he was in his early 20s we had no knowledge that he was sick, happened within months of the diagnosis . I’ve been very supported but not only have i lost my nephew i also lost my sister she has been in paused since the death i want to push the play button , in fact i had many conversations with her she was all for moving forward but those were just words . when i called her out she just stares . how long should i just stand by or should i push play its been 13 years . Ive always been the brutally honest sister and i refuse to have a superficial relationship with my sister done it long enough but i would hate to hurt her so I’ve been keeping my distance . I’m a very positive person always striving for the best me i find lots of inner peace from this and i want that for those i love, i know its not about me and i have never lose a child which i feel that is what people will tell me but it painful to watch .

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  38. carmen  February 7, 2018 at 1:41 pm Reply

    HERE GOES : My sister found my nephew dead in his bed he died of a brain tumor, this happened in 2005 ,he was in his early 20s we had no knowledge that he was sick, happened within months of the diagnosis . I’ve been very supported but not only have i lost my nephew i also lost my sister she has been in paused since the death i want to push the play button , in fact i had many conversations with her she was all for moving forward but those were just words . when i called her out she just stares . how long should i just stand by or should i push play its been 13 years . Ive always been the brutally honest sister and i refuse to have a superficial relationship with my sister done it long enough but i would hate to hurt her so I’ve been keeping my distance . I’m a very positive person always striving for the best me i find lots of inner peace from this and i want that for those i love, i know its not about me and i have never lose a child which i feel that is what people will tell me but it painful to watch .

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  39. Terry  December 31, 2017 at 1:20 pm Reply

    I would be surprised if I get a reply, but here goes. My Mother died 3 months ago. When I talked to my older brother crying, he told be to knock it off. I tried calling my relatives, but I think that they believe I’m a pain. Then yesterday I found out my biological father passed away. I’m alone, no family, and PLEASE… don’t tell me to go to a professional because I did that when my husband died and they were nuts. I was told by a person going to be a counselor that all patients are liars. And churches forget it! All they care about is money. I am better off dead. I tried call the so-called “Talk Line” and they directed my call to an insane asylum! There is Nothing for me to look forward to, and don’t insult by telling me to count my blessings!

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  40. Terry  December 31, 2017 at 1:20 pm Reply

    I would be surprised if I get a reply, but here goes. My Mother died 3 months ago. When I talked to my older brother crying, he told be to knock it off. I tried calling my relatives, but I think that they believe I’m a pain. Then yesterday I found out my biological father passed away. I’m alone, no family, and PLEASE… don’t tell me to go to a professional because I did that when my husband died and they were nuts. I was told by a person going to be a counselor that all patients are liars. And churches forget it! All they care about is money. I am better off dead. I tried call the so-called “Talk Line” and they directed my call to an insane asylum! There is Nothing for me to look forward to, and don’t insult by telling me to count my blessings!

    1
    • Kris  February 22, 2018 at 5:32 am Reply

      I know the feeling of grieving alone. I lost the most important person in my life a month ago, and then I discovered I have no real friends. They were all there for me in happy times, but when all my nightmare began they vanished, including my close family which hurt the most. You need to be strong on your own, the person you lost is still in your heart giving you strength and they would want you to survive this. It’s a way to honor their memory. I’m telling you this because it’s the only thought that kept me going. Other than that, try to find people you can connect with, someone who experiences the same thing as you. Reach out to them. Don’t bottle up any of your emotions, when you feel the need to cry, cry; when you are numb and can’t cry at all, know that it’s ok. Accept that you’re not in control anymore. You won’t “get over it”, you will learn to live with the pain. This is your new reality now, there’s nothing you can do but go with the flow. One day at a time. Force yourself to do things you used to enjoy before. Go for a walk, read a book, watch a movie…I know how hard is now to do simple things as these, that’s why I’m saying you should force yourself,

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  41. Alison  November 22, 2017 at 4:40 pm Reply

    I lost my husband 4 weeks ago from cancer. He was 66 years old. He was only diagnosed in September so we had very little time to really understand what was happening before he actually passed away but the one thing he was definite about was that he wanted to die at home. There was no way he was going into a hospice and, although I was hesitant about being able to care for him at home, I wanted to do everything for him that I could.

    The end came much more quickly than I thought possible and he died in my arms in our spare bedroom – we’d moved in there because it has an en suite and we thought it would be easier for him as he became weaker so he wouldn’t have to walk as far to go to the toilet or have a wash.

    I thought that it would make the house unbearable to live in if he died here. I didn’t think I would be able to stay here after he died because I would always feel his death here.

    In fact, it’s the opposite. The house feels warm and calm. I can feel him still here, just out of sight. I know that he loved me and only wanted good things for me so how could his presence here be anything but comforting? It’s difficult, sometimes, to go into that bedroom now, but I make myself go in there at least once a day to “demystify” it and try to make it just another room in the house. It will always be the room where my beloved died, but in a way, that makes it a special room, not something to be afraid of.

    I miss him so much. The pain is unbearable. Each day that passes, however, means I’m another day closer to being with him again. He was my soulmate and I can’t see myself living for too much longer without him – I can’t eat or sleep properly and the only reason I get up every morning is that I have to look after the cat. He told me that we promised her a forever home and I have to stay here and take care of her for the rest of her life. I know we’ll be together again, though. We promised each other that we would be together “not just in this life, but for all our lives to come, for as long as our love shall last” and I believe that promises like that have power. I’m not actively going to harm myself but I’m looking forward to my own ending, however it comes, so that we can start our new incarnations together.

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  42. Alison  November 22, 2017 at 4:40 pm Reply

    I lost my husband 4 weeks ago from cancer. He was 66 years old. He was only diagnosed in September so we had very little time to really understand what was happening before he actually passed away but the one thing he was definite about was that he wanted to die at home. There was no way he was going into a hospice and, although I was hesitant about being able to care for him at home, I wanted to do everything for him that I could.

    The end came much more quickly than I thought possible and he died in my arms in our spare bedroom – we’d moved in there because it has an en suite and we thought it would be easier for him as he became weaker so he wouldn’t have to walk as far to go to the toilet or have a wash.

    I thought that it would make the house unbearable to live in if he died here. I didn’t think I would be able to stay here after he died because I would always feel his death here.

    In fact, it’s the opposite. The house feels warm and calm. I can feel him still here, just out of sight. I know that he loved me and only wanted good things for me so how could his presence here be anything but comforting? It’s difficult, sometimes, to go into that bedroom now, but I make myself go in there at least once a day to “demystify” it and try to make it just another room in the house. It will always be the room where my beloved died, but in a way, that makes it a special room, not something to be afraid of.

    I miss him so much. The pain is unbearable. Each day that passes, however, means I’m another day closer to being with him again. He was my soulmate and I can’t see myself living for too much longer without him – I can’t eat or sleep properly and the only reason I get up every morning is that I have to look after the cat. He told me that we promised her a forever home and I have to stay here and take care of her for the rest of her life. I know we’ll be together again, though. We promised each other that we would be together “not just in this life, but for all our lives to come, for as long as our love shall last” and I believe that promises like that have power. I’m not actively going to harm myself but I’m looking forward to my own ending, however it comes, so that we can start our new incarnations together.

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    • M Horton  February 11, 2019 at 9:12 am Reply

      Hi, I am Marilyn. My husband died sitting at his favorite computer after a lovely dinner with friends. He was healthy, 76, and my rock. July 2017. Your message has helped me realize that this home is a place of good memories, and I need to focus on those. Thank you. Was not sure I wanted to remain here before.

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  43. Ariana  November 7, 2017 at 9:43 am Reply

    One week before I was set to move across the country in May, my father was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. After 8 years of living on my own I decided to move back in with my parents and help with his care. My mom had been adamant on him dying at home so that is what we planned for. It was so hard taking care of him that summer, our worlds got smaller and smaller and for days on end we wouldn’t leave the house. I remember so clearly being woken up at 3am by my mother as she told me he had finally passed. That was October 14, 2017. We had many conversations about how we may react and what would make us feel most comfortable in that moment. We waited for 6 hours for the doctor and funeral home to come pick up his body. I spent most of that time outside on the porch because it was too hard to be inside. The air was hot and still, and the smell made me feel sick. I went up to see him a few times. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be as I had seen him confined to that bed in my parents room for the past few months. As soon as they took his body away we had to clean and air out the house. My mom insisted on rearranging her room and getting rid of all medical equipment right then and there. We agreed that the past 6 months were not the way we wanted to remember him or our lives together. Everything in this house reminds me of him. His favourite chips in the pantry. His writing on the calendar. His shoes in the front hall. It was my 26th birthday this past weekend and not having him there to celebrate was so painful. I do find the house still comforting and I know I will eventually move back out on my own. I often see him sitting in his favourite chair next to his record player, that’s how I remember him best.

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  44. Ariana  November 7, 2017 at 9:43 am Reply

    One week before I was set to move across the country in May, my father was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. After 8 years of living on my own I decided to move back in with my parents and help with his care. My mom had been adamant on him dying at home so that is what we planned for. It was so hard taking care of him that summer, our worlds got smaller and smaller and for days on end we wouldn’t leave the house. I remember so clearly being woken up at 3am by my mother as she told me he had finally passed. That was October 14, 2017. We had many conversations about how we may react and what would make us feel most comfortable in that moment. We waited for 6 hours for the doctor and funeral home to come pick up his body. I spent most of that time outside on the porch because it was too hard to be inside. The air was hot and still, and the smell made me feel sick. I went up to see him a few times. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be as I had seen him confined to that bed in my parents room for the past few months. As soon as they took his body away we had to clean and air out the house. My mom insisted on rearranging her room and getting rid of all medical equipment right then and there. We agreed that the past 6 months were not the way we wanted to remember him or our lives together. Everything in this house reminds me of him. His favourite chips in the pantry. His writing on the calendar. His shoes in the front hall. It was my 26th birthday this past weekend and not having him there to celebrate was so painful. I do find the house still comforting and I know I will eventually move back out on my own. I often see him sitting in his favourite chair next to his record player, that’s how I remember him best.

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  45. Mia yeoman  November 2, 2017 at 12:57 am Reply

    My uncle died in February ,2012 he name was John Sidney Moore I woke up one day and the house was all quiet and it never usually was there was his telly on where he would be watching something , anyway this day the flat was so eerily quiet and the thing was my curtains was closed and he was always up earlier than me so it felt strange as I opened the curtains and went to his bedroom I found him on the bed he passed away and was very blue .my first thought was to sit beside and say goodbye and say that at least he would not be in pain anymore he was 80 when he died .The family had given him a surprise party the year before as his 80 th was in the October of that year.i called a paramedic and my mum and dad (when he was alive we lost him this year in january) and told them that my uncle had died (he was my mum’s brother) they both came straight away all of them paramedic included and he was declared dead straight away and had been for some hours .my mum and dad stayed with me for most of the day that day along with the paramedic and the police eventually because it had been quite a while since my uncle had seen a doctor .
    The shock stayed with me for months and I found I couldn’t walk past his bedroom for fear of looking in and in my mind’s eye seeing him on the bed lying there .I eventually got past that but I comfort ate so much that I ballooned to over 18 st with the grief .in the end I started to lose the weight and redecorated his bedroom and made it into gym for me but it took me four years to get over it .I still have a picture a small one that he had in there which I put back up so he was still there in a way .I still think of him now and then when I am working out .

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  46. Mia yeoman  November 2, 2017 at 12:57 am Reply

    My uncle died in February ,2012 he name was John Sidney Moore I woke up one day and the house was all quiet and it never usually was there was his telly on where he would be watching something , anyway this day the flat was so eerily quiet and the thing was my curtains was closed and he was always up earlier than me so it felt strange as I opened the curtains and went to his bedroom I found him on the bed he passed away and was very blue .my first thought was to sit beside and say goodbye and say that at least he would not be in pain anymore he was 80 when he died .The family had given him a surprise party the year before as his 80 th was in the October of that year.i called a paramedic and my mum and dad (when he was alive we lost him this year in january) and told them that my uncle had died (he was my mum’s brother) they both came straight away all of them paramedic included and he was declared dead straight away and had been for some hours .my mum and dad stayed with me for most of the day that day along with the paramedic and the police eventually because it had been quite a while since my uncle had seen a doctor .
    The shock stayed with me for months and I found I couldn’t walk past his bedroom for fear of looking in and in my mind’s eye seeing him on the bed lying there .I eventually got past that but I comfort ate so much that I ballooned to over 18 st with the grief .in the end I started to lose the weight and redecorated his bedroom and made it into gym for me but it took me four years to get over it .I still have a picture a small one that he had in there which I put back up so he was still there in a way .I still think of him now and then when I am working out .

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  47. Kathleen  October 26, 2017 at 6:36 pm Reply

    My son died suddently in my great room,this room I am always in.His poor dad broke in my home when i was on vaca.& found him blue gone 16 hrs.kneeling…so sad..most times I feel at peace but lately I worry that he never realized was happened…2-27-17 he apparently was on phone n collapsed..

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  48. Kathleen  October 26, 2017 at 6:36 pm Reply

    My son died suddently in my great room,this room I am always in.His poor dad broke in my home when i was on vaca.& found him blue gone 16 hrs.kneeling…so sad..most times I feel at peace but lately I worry that he never realized was happened…2-27-17 he apparently was on phone n collapsed..

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  49. E. D. H  October 6, 2017 at 1:35 pm Reply

    My husband had a heart attack and died suddenly at work.

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  50. E. D. H  October 6, 2017 at 1:35 pm Reply

    My husband had a heart attack and died suddenly at work.

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    • Shelly ferraro  October 10, 2017 at 10:06 pm Reply

      My husband of 17 years died of a heartattack as we we were beginning to make love in our bed. He had no prior problems and it was very sudden. He was 49 years old. This was in may of this year. Everyday I go through the motions of life but feel something different on the inside. I changed the furniture around in our bedroom and tore out carpet and put a hardwood floor in. I still see him and hear the noises he made as it hit him. I will never get that out of my mind.

      • Joy Lambdin  December 13, 2017 at 3:36 pm

        Shelly Ferraro I am so sorry for your loss. I lost my husband 17 months ago sudden heart attack on our bed. He was only 52 and we had been married 28 years. I certainly can relate to the noise made by my husband. I still cannot get it out of my mind. I did purchase a new bed and changed a few things. I sleep on the couch most nights. God bless you and everyone on here. I pray God gives us all the comfort we need.

  51. Patric Daniel  September 19, 2017 at 5:21 am Reply

    mmMy wife of 24 years and 43 days died on 24th July this year. Last year on October 11th she was diagnosed with brain cancer GBM grade 4. The doctors told me that she has 2 years to live. But she survived just for 9 months. Her last few months were terrible. She had lost her speech some 6 months back and couldn’t eat. She had to put on a food tube and started losing weight. She couldn’t move much and was soon bedridden which resulted in bed sores. She also had fungus infection in her mouth and thrombosis besides other ailments. Prior to her illness she was very fit and 6 days in a week we would walk 5 kms daily. Her last days were very painful as she suffered a lot but couldn’t express it. She died after several hours of struggled breathing. Even though I knew she won’t live long I am unable to except her death as a reality. I could see her suffering in silence and couldn’t do anything to help. The doctors had given up on her one month prior to her death. The grief is unbearable and I cry very often. Everything reminds me of her especially the bedroom where she died. She was the only person I loved more than anything else on this earth. She has left a deep vacuum which I think will never be filled.
    I am very grateful for all the people who have shared their grief. It has made me feel that I am not alone in this difficult journey. I am greatly encouraged by knowing how each one is trying to cope up with their grief. But one thing is for sure. The pain is mine and the sorrow is mine.

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    • Nina  September 22, 2017 at 5:46 pm Reply

      Daniel sorry for your loss I bet your sick of hearing that, I lost my husband in March this year. He died with me by his side holding his hand in our bedroom in a hospital bed. I have never seen death in person let alone hold their hand. It wasn’t long but the gurgle sound I can still here it was so hard to watch then he dropped one tear down his face that leaves me with the most pain. I slept in the room that night and following till this day. There are no comforts to bring other then from God. Ask for peace and comfort in your grief and he will provide trust me take your time.

      • monami1220  November 28, 2017 at 11:42 am

        Nina,
        I also just lost my husband on June 20th, after being diagnosed on May 20th this year, with 4th stage stomach cancer.
        He also came home with hospice help.
        My daughter and I laid by his side as he passed. As we both weeped knowing we were going to loose him within hours…
        Our precious Lord put my daughter and I both to sleep next to him. When we woke up he was gone…..
        As hard as that was listening to him gurgle for air as his lungs were filling with fluid, I’m thankful that our prayers were answered and he went fast and didn’t suffer very much. I do find some comfort in that.
        It’s still soooo hard, like it was yesterday.
        Our “25th” anniversary is December 20th, go figure, exactly 6 months after his passing. I’m still devastated ?

      • kaitlyn  October 11, 2019 at 2:45 pm

        i am so sorry for your loss ): I sleep by my mom every night cause she is passing slow but we have meds to make her not in pain and she had two cancers then a new one in her belly which is liver cancer & her bodys too weak from everything.. but i hold her hand and i pray to god to send her a message and i talk to her even tho she can’t talk back she is in hospice so i guess they are suppose to help …. this is sad

      • kaitlyn  October 11, 2019 at 7:18 pm

        I’m so sorry to hear about that that is so sad but i know everyone’s we know who passed are looking down at us.. this is so hard

        if you could please write me on email i’d like to share my story and need some help with answers

  52. Patric Daniel  September 19, 2017 at 5:19 am Reply

    mm

    • Nina  October 7, 2017 at 10:51 am Reply

      Hey Patrick I hope your better I’m the person who suggested God asking for peace and comfort I hope you took my suggestion and receiving the peace and comfort necessary in this process. Hold on stay strong I promise you will feel the ease take your time.

    • C Edwards  October 8, 2017 at 12:53 am Reply

      The love of my life brought me flowers the week we were moving to the property of our dreams to build a home and retire….He walked in, gave me the flowers, put them in a vase, said something was wrong and shortly after I went to him, dropped in front of me…
      I still see the flowers in the vase, feel his knees hitting mine as he collapsed, his arm reaching to mine as I give CPR, I see them dragging this force of a man across my floor and all the machines that were there, see the strangers frantically around me in the laundry room screaming questions, hear the hopelessness in their voice and see it on their faces, remember so very many things from this unexpected death of my high school sweetheart of 45 yrs and most giving man I ever knew. At 61 yrs, healthy and vital as anyone, he dropped, and our home forever changed….none of the precious memories of building the home and loving our life on this farm could cover the horror of what was that day. I am so sorry for your loss and the memory of it….sorry for everyone who knows the devastation of this hole in your being. I still wish a pact existed with God to take us both….seems only fair for how much we were one…

      • Joy Lambdin  December 13, 2017 at 3:45 pm

        C Edwards I wish there was a pact too.

  53. Ann Layer  September 17, 2017 at 10:40 am Reply

    After my 22 yr old son died from accidental overdose just 9 months ago in our guest bedroom, I gave away the entire bedroom set and replaced it with the one he had away at college . Now it’s like a new room but it has his bedroom furniture that was never there before. It’s comforting to go in there knowing the bed and all were from happy times at college!
    We also changed the way the room was set up like direction of bed, dresser etc. it’s now a happy place.
    I also took all his clothes and gave away some but kept our favorites and put them in his old bedroom closet which is now an office/spare room. So, you can choose to go in the walk in closet and spend time with his “stuff” but the rest of the areas are different and new. Feels much better! I did this rather quickly because I already planned to change the furniture when his lease was up at college just a month after his death. Just didn’t plan on him NOT being here with us…..so young but all of you have lost young people. Sad for everyone…
    Love love love to all and…
    HUGZ!

  54. David Hommel  September 15, 2017 at 11:18 am Reply

    Our son had Marfan, a genetic disorder that weakens connective tissue in arteries. Over a five year period he had two aortic dissections and was rescued each time by emergency surgery. That last major episode, he spent over 40 days in the ICU. They replaced his entire aorta with a synthetic one. He would never dissect again. He was, however, left weakened and unable to return to work so he moved in with us. Three days after his 41st birthday, he called out for help from his bedroom. We rushed upstairs to his room and followed a trail of blood to the bathroom where he was on the floor. He was drowning in his own blood. His pulmonary artery had burst and his lungs were filling up with his blood. While his mother tried to give him CPR, I called the ambulance and waited at the street to direct them in. He died that evening, March 18th, 2017.
    The following morning, I undetook the task of cleaning the bathroom and attempting to remove the blood stains from the carpet in his bedroom unsuccessfully. When his sisters arrive with their families for his memorial service, we gave them our bedroom and the spare while we into his room. We did not want them to see or have to sleep with the blood stains.
    Since then, his mother has moved back to our bedroom, but I have remained. We have made very few changes, but it may be time. Thank you for these suggestions. Perhaps we will be able to create a respectful place for our memories.

  55. lisa beecraft  September 14, 2017 at 7:37 pm Reply

    my son was killed in a car accident 1 mile from his home. he was living 3500 km from me with his dad. they werent getting along and he wouldnt worry me with that. he was alone. his brother came to tell me. mass hysteria. i find out 2 years later it may have been suicide. i will never know. i will go to visit the spot again rest some flowers and come home to look at his picture and his urn. i loved him so much

  56. Sonia  September 14, 2017 at 6:53 pm Reply

    This is a great article. Thank you wyg. I am in deep grief over the loss of my 22 year old beautiful son to suicide. It is a heartbreaking journey. Only 4 months ago. I came home from work to discover the house locked and our door key not in its hiding place. I thought my son must have been out with his girlfriend as his car was still in the driveway and he forgot to leave the key. I climbed through a window and went to my bedroom and saw his bedroom door was closed and I could see some blue rope. In my daze/confusion I opened the door and couldn’t open it right open as he was slumped against it. I screamed out to him. This is seered in my mind of course. In my shock and numbness I managed to call my husband and the police and they called the paramedics. My husband arrived home before either. He was able to force my sons bedroom door open. Ill never forget his cries and howls. The experience is numbing. Having police and paramedics in your home and then family and friends appearing. Then by 10pm that night its just me and my husband and silence. It’s all too much for the mind to absorb. We have been through the unthinkable. My faith keeps us from crumbling. We are in counselling since. In my grief I find every information/resource I can get my hands on to assist and support me through this. As far as changing things around I didn’t go into his bedroom until a week and 1/2 later. I knocked on the door and said ‘It’s mummy darling, I’m coming in’ My heart was pounding but I needed to do this. His room was its usual messy state, bed covers strewn around and clothes. My darling never made his bed anyway so I removed the sheets and blankets and pillows like I always did on Saturdays and folded his clothes and talked to him through my tears. I continued to do this since and now air his blankets in the sun each week and dust his room. A neighbour bought a beautiful peace lily the day of his life celebration and that is in my sons room. We put a beautiful photo of him on his wall and each morning when I rise I go to his room I say ‘Good morning my darling I love you!’ and I open the curtains. My sons office faces the water where we live and its a nice bright room. He has all his personal possessions in there too. So we have 2 rooms full of his belongings. The office is hard to be in. His computer and guitar and clothes and gym bag and other personal effects. His degree he graduated last year in Exercise Science. So many memories. It hurts so much. I had to put some photos away as they were too painful. I know we will move one day. It is not the same home for us anymore. We lived here 16 years my son was 6 when we moved here. He is the youngest of our 3 children. My older children live not too far and are married. It is very hard here now. My husband and myself and the house is so quiet without our darling boy. We have wonderful memories here with our children growing up here. So many family joyous memories. I think about leaving but it frightens me too. The finality of it. Where to go?? Probably closer to where my daughter lives. It is too soon to move, we are still adjusting to life without our boy but I know we will do it one day. In the meantime we are thinking of replacing our old couch for a new model and some new cushions. It is really baby steps each day. The mind and heart battle everyday. Peace to all xo

  57. Andrea  September 14, 2017 at 6:47 pm Reply

    Interesting. I am at peace with where my son died. In my bed, my spot. He was not feeling well, fell asleep there so I used the spare bed a few feet away. I am not sure why or how, but it comforts me knowing that he was not under duress, simply went to sleep and never awoke. I still sleep there and similar to this story….waiting for medical examiner, his body on floor… etc. does not occupy the space as much as the memories of he and I watching tv in my room, playing games etc. do. All of grieving is awkward. I vividly recall all these moments with clear detail. Some good and others bad. I refuse to let the bad dominate. “If you contemplate the circumstances of death, then you must also remember how they lived.” quote from Joseph M. Marshall lll Grieving is hard permanent work. Living is hard work. Thanks for all those sharing these difficult times of their lives. It truly helps knowing we are not isolated in our sorrows.

  58. Genell  September 14, 2017 at 6:18 pm Reply

    My Mom was murdered in her and my Dad’s home of 27 years and the home my 3 younger sisters and I grew up in. My youngest sister found her and my Dad entered the house and saw the massacure too.

    My sisters and I grew up on a farm in Kansas and spent many days “exploring” the fields and campouts on the trampoline staring at the bright star-filled sky. Home was a safe, secure, and loving place to retreat to from the world.

    Once the KBI released the farm and house back to our family, the whole farm seemed frightening. The five of us entered the house together for the first time. We walked past fingerprint soot, red tape, and sticky numbers placed throughout the house. No one spoke for a long time. Silence.

    It smelled like fear and blood. Fear seemed to permeate even the walls. Mom must have been so frightened. We arranged for a biohazard cleaning crew to come to the house, but we couldn’t wait on them. We knew where notes were that may have been helpful in the investigation and time is critical in those situations.

    We rounded a corner as a group and stared at the dried blood that covered the floor and splattered the walls. It was something straight out of a horror film.

    Weeks passed. No answers. We spent days in the house stripping carpet and repainting. But the house and farm were vacated before it got dark.

    We couldn’t sell the house- that was Home. And we live on a farm. We couldn’t burn the house and start over- there were lots of good memories there too.

    When my Dad wasn’t strong enough to move back, I did. Someone had to. I would never let our home slowly wear down and never hear laughter or feel love again. The person(s) may have taken our Mom and wife, but they will not take our lives too. It was a long, scary journey. But I was determined to win over the fear that filled the air.

    For months I stayed every weekend I came home. Slowly, I began to not cover every window with cardboard, or go through every room with protection before I would go to my room and stay there until the sunrise. I can remember the first time I allowed myself to shower when everyone else had left the house. I never had before because I wanted to hear Everything.

    We like ceremonies and gatherings in my family. …Holidays, birthdays, graduations, anything and everything. Why not hold a ceremony that invited our closest neighbors into our home and fill it with love again? I dubbed it ‘Bringing the Love back’.

    Turns out- this not only helped my Dad move back in, but the smelt fear seemed to vanish. We FILLED our home with people who loved our family. There was tons of food, laughter, and smiles. And the best part? The whole upstairs is a huge circle with rooms in the middle of it. We held hands and created a circle that literally touched every room of the upstairs. And we Prayed. That house and our family was blessed over so many times. I cry and smile remembering it.

    Being in our home seemed to be easier and easier after that. Holidays were hard. Birthday parties were hard. But we did it. Now, grandkids run through the house happily laughing often. Just like Mom would have liked it.

    I know every time I walk through the place she struggled and died. I think about her with every room I move around to. But this is Home.
    Our Home.

    • Eleanor Haley  September 15, 2017 at 7:56 am Reply

      Gene bell, I love the idea of the “‘Bringing the Love back'” event so much….wow, I was really moved thinking about the strength this much have taken and also the extreme power I could imagine it had. Thank you so much for sharing

  59. Lisa  September 14, 2017 at 5:41 pm Reply

    My mom died here at the home (with hospice attending) we shared almost 4 months ago. For financial reasons we allowed a relative to move into her room right away. So I was forced to pack up her stuff. It was so hard. I cried the whole time. I gave away a couple items but most of it is in the garage and even though it’s been 4 months, I dread going through it. It has to be done. If I’d have had my way, her room would’ve stayed untouched for awhile. But maybe it’s just as well.

    In my mind, that room will always be her room. And even though everywhere I look are memories of her, I don’t want to move.

  60. Sherri P  September 14, 2017 at 5:28 pm Reply

    Frank Panzer, your story is a little similar to mine. Can I get in contact with you by email?

    1
    • Frank Panzer  September 17, 2017 at 8:51 pm Reply

      Sherri,

      Sure, my email is frpanzer@cox.net.

      Frank Panzer

      1
  61. Frank Panzer  September 14, 2017 at 4:31 pm Reply

    I have been a long time follower of your blog. This post, like the others who have responded, hit “home”. Our youngest son, Matt, died in our home. Matt was 22 years old when he died. He had his tonsils removed on Thursday and died the following Saturday evening. He had been sluggish all day and looking back, I should have taken him to the ER but my wife and I listened to the Dr. that performed his surgery and believed it was the pain medication. It was the toughest day of my life, trying to keep him alert, trying to keep him from swallowing his tongue, watching the paramedics try to revive him, waiting in the ambulance and watching the ER team try to revive him. Coming back into our house was difficult that night, we were numb. We could only think we could have done something to save him. Since Matt died at home and was under 30 years of age, the medical examiner had to perform an autopsy as required by law in our state. Our medical examiner’s office was in chaos and we had to use an attorney to get his body released to the funeral home the following Tuesday. We buried Matt not knowing why he died. We did not get the autopsy report until six months later, which delayed the life insurance benefits on his life. Matt died from streptococcal pneumonia, a very agressive and almost always fatal form of pneumonia.

    We still live in the same home. There are so many good memories of Matt in our home. We have replaced the sofa he died on but still have not been able to go through his things, just too emotional for my wife. Matt died seven years ago and there are days it was as if it were yesterday. We miss him so much.

    Please keep your blog going. It truly helps me.

    • kaitlyn  October 11, 2019 at 2:53 pm Reply

      Hi Frank! i am so sorry to hear about your son ): that is so sad and im praying for your family. i have a story about my mom and it is similar to the fatal phenomena …. could you please email me?

      im 25 and i’m losing my mom and this is soo hard ):

  62. Pauline  September 14, 2017 at 3:45 pm Reply

    Me too. My husband died here at home, in the house we’d moved to less than nine months earlier. He had come home less than 36 hours earlier, after three weeks of palliative care in the hospital only 300 yards from our door. Friends had been with us constantly in that time and there was a house full (or so it felt) for his final hours, with friends holding his hand, touching him, stroking him, talking quietly to him though he was not conscious.

    As soon as the initial outpourings of grief and tears were abating, one of us called in the nursing service who came to “tidy him up” and they took on the responsibility of contacting the duty doctor. . . Something went wrong with that system, and he didn’t arrive for six hours. So we sat quietly in the next room, talking and not talking, thinking we would eat something but not being hungry, for all that time. I set candles around him in the shadowed room, and we would go in occasionally to talk to him . . .

    Because of the arrangement of rooms in this house, Stuart’s last minute bedroom was the living room. It’s now reverted to its initial function, with furniture as we initially had it set up. I don’t still see the hospital bed, there, in my imagination, which is good: I’ve moved his favourite chair that he chose to sit in, before he was bedridden – it’s in another room now. I don’t use it.

    We didn’t have long together here in this house and for a lot of the time after we moved in, Stuart was in and out of hospital so in a way there’s not a host of memories in the corners. I have no idea whether this is helping me or not.

  63. Loretta  September 14, 2017 at 3:24 pm Reply

    My husband died in our home. He was in hospice, he had dementia, he collapsed on the floor next to bed in the bedroom. That has been 6 months ago and I just can’t get that image out of my head. He died 4 days later after collapsing on the floor.

  64. Deborah Spires  September 14, 2017 at 2:32 pm Reply

    My 18 year old granddaughter took her own life in my living room. Shot herself by my Christmas tree….Hazmat took my entire tree…I had to redo floors and furniture…At first I did not know if I could even ever live in the house again or anywhere for that matter…..but I did..and now I do cherish the prior memories at my home with her…I try really hard not to think of the ending….I did redo with bright colors ….birds….went from carpet to hardwood..etc….I was not able to put up a Christmas tree last year as it was the first Christmas since..I lost even my sentimental decorations…I do have peace of mind over it for the most part and I try to concentrate on her life and her in Heaven…as to not lose what we had between us as it was so special!! She was a victim of bullying from 14-15 and never healed from it….your suggestions are excellent. LOVE EVERYBODY!…. IS ON MY FRONT DOOR…SHE LEFT IN HER NOTE SPREAD THE MESSAGE LOVE EVERYBODY!

  65. WS  September 14, 2017 at 2:29 pm Reply

    Thank you for this article. Whilst my Mum died in Hospital the topic touched me and resonated. The fact is that watching my Mum die was traumatic, that I relived the last days / hours / minutes /seconds many times, and continue to do so. A commenter mentions terminal agitation and I agree, it is an important subject that needs to be discussed. I was lucky that I had read about it so I understood what it was when it happened, but it was traumatic to witness. Her death would be considered peaceful but waiting for it and watching it, wishing it to be over with yet being terrified for it to come …. those moments will be etched in my mind’s eye for ever. Leaving her at the Hospital was also traumatic, wondering how long her body was left in the side room, was she cared for in death …. I found myself in tears driving past the building recently, over a year on after her death. Visiting her flat in the weeks and months afterwards was also traumatic. At times it was comforting but mostly it was painful to be in the space that she no longer filled. I also had the picture in my mind of her being taken out of the flat for the first time by paramedics and I think she knew, and I knew, that she would never return.
    I am grateful that I did not find her dead in her flat, I often had thoughts that it might be the case when I visited. I think I would have always had unanswered questions about her last moments if that had been so, and as awful as it was, I am glad I know what happened at the end.
    Thank you for this article.

  66. Marcia Dana  September 14, 2017 at 1:54 pm Reply

    My husband of 34 years died in our bed, after a three year battle with lymphoma. Rather than a gentle fading away, his death was sudden and dramatic. Although he was in hospice, he was remarkably functional. In the end, his heart gave out. It had been damaged by one of his chemo drugs. His heart stopped, and he died gasping for breath. It was so hard for me to accept that there was nothing to do for him but be there. While waiting for the undertakers, a small group of family, friends and our pastor gathered. We said our good-byes and a prayer. After the funeral home took his body, my dear friends flipped the mattress and changed the sheets for me. This was my bedroom. I would have to sleep in it again eventually, so why not now. My closest friends vowed to take turns sleeping with me until I was comfortable enough to tell them to go away. That lasted about a month, but it was much longer than that before I could look at my bed and not relive those awful final moments. I rearranged the furniture and bought new, more feminine bedding. It’s been almost 6 years since his passing and he still fills this house that we built together. I’ve made some changes to the house and landscaping. I like to think he would approve. The painful memories fade slowly as I create new, loving memories here.

  67. Carol Lapkovitch  September 14, 2017 at 12:09 pm Reply

    My Husband died of stage four cancer and did not die at home but at a hospice facility. but even after almost two years I still feel close to him and also talk to him with in my writings I have become very comfortable with the memories I have of him. He pass away April 14 2016 but no mater how far the distance apart we are we are still connected and I hear him call out to me in the middle of the night. We had a very strong love for each other, his last words to me was I Love You.

  68. Janell Picard  September 14, 2017 at 11:26 am Reply

    My husband died of colon cancer in our living room with with close family after a 19 month illness. He died Oct 5 2011. My 38 year old son died last Oct 3 2016 of pancreatic cancer. He lived in the downstairs separate unit from the top floor of the house. I took care of both of them, along with my family, my sister and her daughter were present at both of their deaths. Hospice was in and out. My son suffered with terminal agitation in the last weeks of his life. It is very difficult watching what you perceive is a healthy person lose their ability to stand, sit, walk, talk in a two month period of illness. (What’s Your Grief could write about ‘terminal agitation’ – it is very common in the dying.)
    I’m selling my house now and should be moving that first week of October 2017.

    My sister always would say at the beginning of October after my husband died, “Greg (my husband) is trying to ruin October.” She said it sort of tongue in cheek. After my son was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, I said to her “You ain’t seen nothing yet.” But I refuse to let their deaths ruin the fall for me. I am trying like hell to ‘celebrate’ and honor my family. I’m moving to the sierra foothills near my mom and my family to begin a new chapter. I want to be closer to my family of birth and I need to be out of this house. I love my house and home and it’s difficult to leave it after 27 years. But I put a fork in it. I’m done.

    I am still in tremendous grief over my son. I cry daily. I sobbed earlier today while washing dishes. He was one of my best friends and it was absolutely heart-breaking to witness his death. Reading all these other stories is very powerful as far as this stuff happens and we need to figure out how to cope or we are as good as dead dwelling in sadness and the horrible loss of our family members.

    I tell myself (to ease some of my sadness) that my son and my husband would be pleased and proud of my decisions to move. They would not want me to suffer and using that idea helps to put things in perspective. I also use pinterest (grief category) and that helps with the grief process. I’ve used it also to help me focus on a “dream home” and a “leaving home” category for inspiration. There are a lot of grievers out in the world. I am so grateful we can share and learn from other people’s experiences even if those experiences are sad. Loss, grief and joy are all part of life. We have to learn to share, listen and cope so we can keep living and help others in their suffering.

  69. Sandy  September 14, 2017 at 10:47 am Reply

    My husband died on our kitchen floor of an aneurysm on St Patricks Day 2003.. My 16yr old daughter came home for lunch and found him. She called 911 and was told to perform CPR. I did not know this. When I came home the ambulance and Police were there. I went in and saw him there and knew he was gone. It was only 3 days later that my daughter cried in my arms because she could not save him. I didn’t know until she told me about the dark color of the skin under his back that he had been gone for at least 2hrs – she could not have saved him. For a few weeks every time I walked into the house I could see his lifeless body laying there. It was not possible to change the area because it was right in the doorway of the kitchen in front of the stove. My daughter did so well. We talked about his death often to give all of my kids a chance to process. This was 15yrs ago. Recently when on a drive with my daughter I asked if she ever sees him lying there when she goes into the house. She replied “every single time”. We still own the home and my youngest daughter, who was 8 at the time of her dad’s death, lives there. When we go for family gatherings I sometimes have a fleeting picture of him in my mind but it is not a painful one. I think the one thing that saved me was the fact that I had been an EMT for 10yrs so had witnessed death on numerous occasions. I knew “death happens” and accepted the fact that my husband had died. I’m just amazed that my daughter has not shown or expressed any long lasting effects. I think too that because we talked about it and (even though this sounds weird) we had her lay down in the position she found him – this helped us process what had happened. On the 1st anniversary of his death we sat and went through the events of the day again. I think it helped her sisters understand what she had went through and helped everyone keep his memory alive. We also remember to speak of him often. My middle daughter once said “mom, its like dad was never here, nobody talks about him but us”. It is so important to not bury the death of a loved one. Talk about the good times and honor them.

  70. Suzanne utts  September 14, 2017 at 10:46 am Reply

    My mother-in-law of blessed memory died in our hallway. We couldn’t move. There was nothing we could change. It was a trauma for my 18 yr old daughter, and then for my husband to arrive at home to find his mother gone, although she had AFib back in the days when there was nothing one could do for it. Time healed the wound as much as time can.

    Though my late husband didn’t die in our apartment, he had Alzheimers and to this day I can still “see” him pacing like a caged lion in the weeks before he entered Assisted Living. From there he went to a “Behavioral Unit” (euphemism for a gruesome mental hospital where they could not help him) and then into a hospice bed. I am moving from that apartment next week. In the meantime, I am living in my new apartment, having moved what I need most to the new place. Even my little dog feels better in this new place. He has brightened considerably since moving here. It was only then that I realized how much this little dog was grieving.

    Do what your heart tells you to do. If you must stay in your apartment for awhile (I stayed almost 18 months.) or your house, perhaps you can move furniture around, get slip covers for furniture, get a new rug and pillows, do so. Go to the beach or to some place where you and your significant other DIDN”T go on vacation together. If you feel the heaviness return when you return home, that’s a clue that perhaps a move out of the environment is a good idea.

    G-d bless you. It’s a tough decision on this journey.

  71. Jo  September 14, 2017 at 10:38 am Reply

    My husband died unexpectedly while sitting on his couch-recliner, a glass of wine at his side, the 5 o’clock news on the tv and one of his favorite baseball hats on his head (well, that had fallen off as his head lolled to the side after death). I have lived in a sort of disassociated state since then, seeing the couch where he died, the floor where I pulled his ever-so-heavy dead weight to the floor to perform CPR, the fire department working loudly to break down my front door and screen, them dragging his body from the den into the middle of the kitchen/dining area where they worked on him for at least 1/2 hour-45 minutes-a life time. I chose not to change anything at first. His pants still hang on the back of the bathroom door, the towel he used in the bath still hangs on the hook behind the other bathroom’s door, his jacket still hangs on the hook in the closet. Other things of his I’ve gone through and given away. Some things went to his children and grandchildren. Everything else remains as I work through sorting and cleaning and clearing 33 years of our relationship together and 30 years in this home. I seem to clean and sort and shuffle and then simply rearrange things. It’s so hard to let go when I’m alone…my family no longer includes me in their lives, less my brother who is 1500 miles away but has been my best supporter in the family, even at a distance. This grieving alone sucks.

  72. Lori R-G  September 14, 2017 at 10:38 am Reply

    My husband died in his sleep from low blood sugar the night of our daughter’s wedding. Our alarm clock went off in the morning and he didn’t respond so I got up and turned it off. I got back in bed and suddenly “knew” he was not alive. I placed my hand on his back to see if he was breathing. He was cold. I was in shock. I hugged him and rubbed his back and told him I love him. Luckily his best friend had spent the night so I was not alone. I called our daughter and told her she needed to come by the house before they set off for the day. While I waited I lay in bed with my husband. Fast forward a couple of months and I repainted my bedroom and bought a new bed. I made the room a bit girly and I was happy I did. I get through life after Dave by focusing on the good life and fun times we had together rather than bemoaning what is gone and will never be. I consider myself very blessed to have had 20 years with my friend and biggest supporter.

  73. Beth  September 14, 2017 at 10:34 am Reply

    I’m currently going through this, but it’s a little different, as I’m not living there… but was the house my parents built together and the only home I ever knew. My mother died in the kitchen, and was there for a while before the police found her. (and only a year and a half later after my Dad passed away) While I’m not the one that found her, it’s still traumatic for me to visualize her laying on the kitchen floor, and took me years to get that image out of my head every time I went to bed. I’m also an only child. To make matters worse, she was a “clean” hoarder, and there were so many things in the house to clean up. It’s been four years, and twenty, 20 yard dumpsters later and we’ve renovated many things in the house – new floors, new appliances, newly painted walls, cabinet refacing, etc. I felt like I HAD to do it, because I owed it to my mom (and dad) to make it right. It addition, there was much childhood trauma for me in that house, again a PTSD situation for me involving my mom and dad…Over time, the voices have disappeared, and now we have put up the house for sale, but it’s still SO hard imagining people in OUR house. After all the work, we’ve had to still reduce the price in order to get interest as there are still many issues with the house. When I got our first offer which was yesterday, I had a huge panic attack. I feel like I’m doing something wrong by letting go, even though we have to move on. But letting go feels like I’m letting them go. Each room, each doorway, each area of the house brings it’s own memory. I can visualize them still sitting in the bedroom on the bed, or standing at the mirror in the bathroom…. so at the same time, I’m doing something right, while I feel like I’m doing something wrong… it’s a very hard situation…

  74. Melinda White  September 14, 2017 at 10:21 am Reply

    This article hits so close to home. I wish you would talk about this topic more often. I found my 25 yr. old son dead laying halfway in his room and half of his body out in the hall. This image is seared in my brain. He died of an overdose of heroin. Had graduated from an university in biology only a year earlier. I have gotten a lot of therapy just over this topic. After two years we finally sold the home and moved. What I didn’t realize just two years after my loss, I had just increased my stress levels (moving to a new town) and lost close connection to my friends who had been there for me through the toughest days. But after about a year, I settled in and made new friends. The friendships were different from my past ones, because many of my old friends knew my son and this was comforting. My new friends shy away from the topic as if death of a child is contagious. I was diagnosed with PTSD many years ago in my early 30s due to childhood trauma. The trauma of finding my dead son made my PTSD much worse. It has taken a lot of work to get where I am now, fewer flashbacks and better memories coming now. Please don’t treat finding a dead loved one in your home as something you just have to live with, get some help! Of course, this situation is going to affect people differently in all directions, but please don’t suffer for years. EMDS therapy and counselor therapy helped me tremendously. When I found my son, rigor mortise had already set in, I knew then rationally that he was gone but my heart wouldn’t let me give up. My husband and I did CPR and then the paramedics took over. I was surprised that they even tried but pronounced him dead not long after trying. It seems like they tried for an hour but I know that is just in my mind, it just seemed to go on forever. So many parents find their dead children in the home due to accidents, overdoses, etc. Society needs to support these people, but again society has a lot of strides to make in the grief area too.

  75. Sue Franzmathes  September 14, 2017 at 9:35 am Reply

    My Mom died by suicide in our home, in our garage, in 1984, and my then young kids found her. My husband and I could not afford to sell our house and move, so we stayed. In retrospect, it was the wrong decision for my children, but at the time, there was nothing we could do. My husband and I lived in that house for an additional 14 years. My children went from feeling safe in our home to being afraid of the dark. They moved out, as soon as they were old enough. Even though, when we would enter the garage, we would always hesitate, the fact that my Mom died in the garage, and not the main house, made it ‘easier’ to live there. But I think that the real reason I was so hesitant about moving was that I didn’t want to leave my Mom, if that makes sense. When we moved to our new home, the feeling of peace was so overwhelming and so calming, that I actually felt guilty. Then two years into living here, my father-in-law had a heart attack in our upstairs hallway and died in my daughter’s arms. That feeling of calm disappeared in that moment. It wasn’t fair. Why us? We are still living here, because we love our home. That calm feeling never completely returned. It has been 17 years. Having our parents’ pictures up in our living room helps.

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