“To draw me out, the therapist asks what I did for the holidays. When I tell him he says gently (he says everything gently), Sounds like that's one of the ways your loss has affected you: not wanting to be with other people. Hating to be with other people, I don't say. Terrified of being with other people.” DeathLossGriefLonelinessSolitudeMourningIsolation Book:The Friend Source: The Friend
“It's only natural, Violet said. Everyone past a certain age is in a state of mourning for their youth.” YouthAgingOld AgeMourning Book:The Vulnerables Source: The Vulnerables
“I confess to sudden rages. Walking in Midtown, rush hour's peak, people streaming in both directions, I find myself seething, ready to kill. Who are all these fucking people, and how is it fair, how is it even possible that all of them, these perfectly ordinary people, should be alive, when you--” LifeDeathLossGriefAngerRageMourning Book:The Friend Source: The Friend
“They don't want to see me lose my home. They want me to come to my senses before it's too late. I need a better way to cope with my feelings of loss and guilt. I need bereavement therapy. Here are some names. I should think about medication. Here's what worked for them. There are books. There are websites. There are support groups. Healing won't come from withdrawing into a fantasy world, isolating myself, spending all my time with a dog. There is such a thing as pathological grief. There is the magical thinking of pathological grief, which is a kind of dementia. Which in their collective opinion is what I have.” LossGriefHealingAdviceMourningInterventionBereavement Book:The Friend Source: The Friend