My response to STRAW - you are not crazy, you are grieving.
- neclmft
- Jun 18
- 2 min read
Here's my response to STRAW - grief, loss & the plot twist.
*Y'all know I like to respond in my own timing. I do not rush my responses. Here's my interpretation.*
As always, I think grief & people's responses while grieving are worth normalizing. Psychosis after the loss of a loved one is rare, and usually already present (or dormant) prior to the loss. In other words, the loss could trigger psychosis or exacerbate pre-existing psychiatric symptoms. Again, a very rare case.
Another typical response to grief is "grief hallucinations". According to research, about 60% of widowed people experienced at least one hallucination during the first year after their spouse's death. The hallucinations included hearing their spouse's voice, seeing their spouse or the combination.
This idea of seeing & hearing a deceased loved one could fall under the grief stage of shock and/or denial. It's not abnormal to forget the loved one is gone. The mind and heart require time to grapple with the new reality and to process the fact that the person will not ever return. Every person's response to grief is different and grieving is normal. Grieving makes us HUMAN.
I remember within the first month of my father's passing, I thought I heard him call me to his room. I walked toward his bedroom door. As soon as I started walking toward the room, I was quickly reminded he passed away when I saw the flowers in the hallway. Grief hallucinations happen but the experience did not mean I had to go to the psychiatric hospital nor start medication immediately. I was not crazy. You are not crazy. The experience meant I was GRIEVING! 🤷🏾♀️
Either way, schedule an appointment with a therapist to process your grief. Why grieve alone?
AND CAN WE NORMALIZE GRIEF. AT SOME POINT EVERY HUMAN ON THE PLANET EXPERIENCES LOSS & GRIEF.
And LIFE AFTER THE LOSS of a loved one can look like, feel like & encompass joy, gratitude, hopefulness, wisdom, healing, presence, anticipation, expectation, longevity, legacy, and ALL OF THE GOOD STUFF LIFE IS MADE OF.
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