The Grief We Keep Postponing
Grief is one of the nastiest emotions we have to deal with from the moment we’re born until the day we’re buried six feet underground. When we were born, we didn’t come with a manual. Our parents raised us based on how they were raised—through habit, culture, what they saw, what they knew, and within their own limits. When they raised us, they taught us about emotions through whatever parenting approach they had. But grief? It was never properly introduced. No one really showed us how to regulate it or how to deal with it. Most of the time, we were just told to keep going and suck it up. We weren’t equipped to express it, let alone understand it. Maybe that’s why we’re so handicapped when we try to deal with it. I’m not going to be another asshole smart-ass comparing my problems to others. Everybody has their own baggage. And most of the time, that baggage is filled with grief that was never properly unpacked. And no, it’s not only about your abandonment issues, Karen. It’s much ...
