The hospice nurse gently suggested I tell my dad, “Happy Father’s Day, Happy Birthday, I love you,” and anything else I wanted to say, as she believed he could still hear me. But for our family, emotions were never openly expressed. Her well-meaning suggestion only added to the shame and guilt I already felt, amplifying my sadness. For years, I believed that time and staying strong would heal my broken heart.

I gave myself twenty years to heal, but my grief never went away. I thought that if I stayed positive, my painful emotions would disappear on their own. When they didn’t, I began searching for answers. This led me on a journey of self-awareness, moving from my head to my heart, seeking to answer the question, Who am I? While I learned a lot about myself, my heart still felt heavy. It was only when I discovered The Grief Recovery Handbook that I finally found a clear path forward.

The book’s subtitle, “The Action Program for Moving Beyond Death, Divorce, and Other Losses, Including Health, Career, and Faith,” caught my attention. It made me realize that I had never been taught how to cope with loss. I had always tried to fix my emotions using my “headspace,” but it wasn’t my head that needed recovery—it was my heart. The Grief Recovery Method gave me the tools I needed to heal my emotional heart, not just understand my feelings intellectually.

I learned that grief is the emotional reaction to any loss—a change in a familiar pattern of life—and I was not alone in feeling this way. My emotional heart needed specific tools to recover, and the Grief Recovery Method provided them. I started by identifying the myths I had believed about grief, and recognized how I’d been using Short Term Energy Relieving Behaviors (STERBs) to avoid facing my emotions. I also learned that loss isn’t just about death.

My personal loss history spanned from the birth of my sister, lost relationships, career changes, fertility struggles, adoption, the death of loved ones, the challenges of raising children with invisible disabilities (Autism, FASD), the loss of a pet, and so much more. The Grief Recovery Method helped me address all these hidden pains, which I had been quietly storing behind a mask of “I’m fine.”

This method transformed my life in ways I never imagined. I now invite you to take my hand and let me guide you through your own heart journey, using the proven tools of The Grief Recovery. Method. Together, we’ll uncover and heal the pain of loss. Once you begin to recover from the grief that has weighed you down, you’ll have the tools to experience more of life’s joys—love, happiness, gratitude, and fulfillment.