The Sudden Tragic Death of our Teenage Daughter - facing the impossible

Dan and Nancy lost their daughter in a car crash and had to make the tough decision to take her off life support. Today, they help grievers get unstuck in their grief and help them with better coping mechanisms that refine the definition of what it is to be in grief. Learn about Dan and Nancy’s story on this week’s episode. 

 

Key Takeaways:

A little bit about Dan and Nancy’s grief story with losing their daughter.  Dan saw a little sparrow and he realized it was a sign that it was time to say goodbye to his daughter, who was on life support at the time.  We think that what happens to us doesn’t happen to anybody else, but it’s a small world and we all have shared similar experiences.  We aren’t taught at all how to grieve. However, there are ways to make grief a beautiful experience.  Friends and family members often can’t handle pure accidents that lead to tragedy, and by trying to reason with it, they often put blame on the person who has passed. People asked Dan and Nancy if she was distracted while driving, and if that was the reason why she had her accident. That’s pretty insensitive.  People have avoided the couple in public after they lost their daughter. It’s hard to be around uncomfortableness.  Couples often split up when a child dies, but Dan and Nancy have managed to stay together.  Dan had to put on a brave face and get back to work after his daughter died.  If you stuff your grief down, it’ll eventually come out in unexpected ways to ‘deal with you’.  Dan shares why he is fond of the Grief Recovery Method and why he uses this framework with his client.  Have a map with a destination in mind, but don’t look at the end goal, just take one step at a time, and you’ll get there.  How does Nancy help her clients?  So many of Susan’s guests have created meaning out of tragedy.

 

Resources

Tendrilsofgrief.com

Email Susan: [email protected]

Beingwithgrief.com