After taking some time away to look after my own mental health and navigate the absolute roller coaster of perimenopause, it feels really good to be back having conversations with real people about real life.
And we're starting with something that touches every single one of us. Grief.
My guest, Shermin, lost her daughter, Manal, at just 18 and a half years old.
Since then, she's become certified in grief coaching and trained in trauma-informed practices, hoping to help others better understand grief and how we support those experiencing it.
This conversation isn't only about loss. The mourning period ends, the visitors leave, and everyone else goes back to their lives. The person grieving is still grieving.
We talk about the expectations we place on grieving people, the difference between moving on and moving forward, and why our communities can be so good at showing up for the rituals but struggle with what comes afterward.
We also question something many of us have been taught: that mentioning someone who has died will make the grieving person sad. Maybe saying their name, sharing a memory, or asking about them is exactly what they need.
And we get to meet Manal through her mother's stories. She is so much more than the loss her family experienced.
We all experience grief, but we don't all experience it the same way.
I hope this conversation gets us thinking about how we show up for one another. Not just when someone dies, but in the months and years that follow.
Sometimes the most meaningful thing we can do is simply keep showing up.
Connect with Shermin:
Instagram: grieving_mom_yyc, menaal4life
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In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that we live, work and play on the traditional territories of the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksika, Kainai, Piikani), the Tsuut’ina, the Îyâxe Nakoda Nations, the Métis Nation (Region 3), and all people who make their homes in the Treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta.
