Editor: Last week was National Suicide Prevention Week, hence this post: Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I lost my son to suicide, and I am struggling with the urge to join him. I try to stay here for my beautiful granddaughter that he left for me to enjoy. There are days that it is almost like living
A woman who lost her adult son to sudden death
Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I am currently working with a woman who lost her adult son to sudden death when he was residing in a foreign country 5 years ago. Since then she has been absorbed in a deep and isolating grief, though she has two other adult children and a husband who remain quite concerned
What is the Meaning of Life? 9.9.19
What is the Meaning of Life? is re-published in remembrance of 9/11 Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I have just one question, but it is a big one. In your opinion, what is the meaning of life?–Nicolae Dear Nicolae, I’m a practicing psychologist who works alongside people who are struggling with deeply unwelcome changes in their
An Oncology Unit Nurse Asks…
“An Oncology Unit Nurse Asks…” is a repeat of an earlier Dr. Neimeyer column in honor of Labor Day. When we think of “Labor Day” we often overlook those in the healthcare industry. Here’s why we shouldn’t: “In 2000, there were 7 million more workers in manufacturing than in health care. At the beginning of
PTSD and Grief: An Ask Dr. Neimeyer Guest Column
Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I was heartbroken and overwhelmed reading the question to you from the woman with PTSD who was in the horrifying and traumatic accident that killed her two little girls and injured her husband and daughter. I want to let you know of a treatment for PTSD performed by Dr. Lipov in Chicago called the Stellate
Lost my husband to lung cancer
Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I recently lost my husband to lung cancer. The chemotherapy was not working and they were debating whether another form of treatment would work. He then got an infection and was admitted to hospital. He never left the hospital as he got sepsis. I feel responsible as I was his caregiver 24/7
Anticipatory Grief — An Ask Dr. Neimeyer Guest Column
Editor’s Note: This week we are printing a response to a recent Q&A on Anticipatory grief. The author, Mary Jane Hurley Brant, M.S., CGP has written for AfterTalk several times in the past, and we value her thoughts. Below is “Judy’s” question and Dr. Neimeyer’s answer followed by Ms. Mary Jane Hurley Brant’s response. Dear
Deadly car accident takes two daughters
Dear Dr. Neimeyer, I was recently in a deadly car accident that took the lives of my two beautiful, funny, and loving baby girls, ages 6 and 8. The accident also resulted in my surviving teenage year old daughter being a paraplegic, and my husband having a TBI, and several fractures in his face, arm, leg
Anticipatory grief, when a loved one is dying
Dear Dr. Neimeyer, My question is about anticipatory grief, the distress that family members can feel when a loved one is receiving end-of-life care. I work in a palliative care unit of a large hospital, and we often have families who are overwhelmed with the reality of the patient’s impending death, to a point that
Does time heal sorrow?
Dear Dr. Neimeyer, My 27 year old son died almost two years ago. The first year was hard but I mostly felt in a fog. Now it seems that fog is lifting, but this second year is proving to be a lot worse than the first. I am remembering more about the death and funeral