Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn't Understand

Megan Devine has not only managed to use words when words are nearly impossible to come by, but she somehow brings solace where solace cannot be had and nurturance where one is lost for both the griever and the witness.

Essential reading for anyone experiencing the traumatic loss of a loved one. Megan’s such a compassionate, brilliant writer — I’ve bought copies for people and is a top recommendation in Grief literature (of which I’ve unfortunately become very familiar with).

This was a wonderful book. I cannot recommend it enough. It is for all kinds of loss. Not just loss of the human variety. Pets, marriages, financial, etc. It helped, and continues to help, me get through some early stages of grief and I suspect it will continue to help in the future. I have also recommended it to all of my friends. Thank you, Megan.

This book was amazing and literally saved my life. I spent two years not knowing exactly what was going on with me and therapy is great, but was not helping at the same time. Not only is the book very helpful, I also enrolled in the online Writing About Your Grief class which I finally found a tribe of people who echoed my thoughts, words, and feeling and yet we all had different losses. I have a masters in school counseling and taught for 20 years. This has been the best book about grief ever and has also improved my ability to help children with their own grief.

If you have experienced loss, this is the only book you need. Megan speaks from her own experience and tells it like it is. She captured the truth about grief. My copy has many ‘yes!’ notes. The book offers a way to live with grief, to integrate it into your life. It is also a great resource for those supporting people who are grieving. And I strongly recommend that once you’ve read it you head on over to Megan’s ‘Writing your grief’ online writing community because “Pain, like love, needs expression”.

Three years ago my son died unexpectedly at birth. There are no words to adequately describe the grief and devastation. This is the only book I’ve read on grief that was realistic, relatable, and helpful. It should be required reading for all of humanity. I’ll even be referring back to it again someday when I find myself needing it. -Christine (posted under account name Mark)

I lost my father unexpectedly 10 years ago. My mother just passed away 3 months ago. Being 19 and grieving both losses all over again feels incredibly alone. I am so happy I stumbled across this life altering book. I had always been taught that “everyone grieves differently” but that there were steps to follow and ways that I should feel to eventually get over it. This book taught me that I don’t need to get rid of my grief, I just need to learn how to go forward with my life now. Megan Devine absolutely put her soul into this book and has helped me through this dark time tremendously. I am forever thankful.

My son was diagnosed with an aggressive terminal Illness called Krabbe Leukodystrophy, so our grief process began while our sweet little Sunny was still alive. And during this process of caring for our son my husband and I realized how many people “don’t get it”...that grief is shunned and hidden in our society because we were making our friends too sad. Finding this book was a godsend and helped us feel EMPOWERED in our deep grief for our son. It gave us practical strategies and ultimately a backbone to go to the depths of our sadness and allow our personal grieving process unfold in its own way.

This book is a light in a darkness overshadowed with self help and a "get over it" mentality other books and theories tout. You don't get over love. You don't get over loss. Megan helped me realize that and be okay with it.

Such an important, needed book. Meg's words are a gift of relief and reassurance for grievers. I love that it is written in easily digestible sections so you can flip through and jump around as needed. I've gone back to this book more than once, and it's my top recommendation to other grievers. Thank you Meg!

This is an excellent resource for everyone. Everyone grieves, everyone knows someone grieving, and our culture of trying to fix that grief doesn't work. This book is an honest approach to understanding and accepting grief and living with it. Grief happens. It hurts and it is part of living and loving.

Essential reading for anyone struggling with surviving intense loss. Megan's words touched me deeply and gave me permission to acknowledge to myself what I was feeling. I opened the pages at a time when I was frozen, scared and overwhelmed and her words helped me to open up to the pain and begin to address it. This book and Megan's work are saving me one day at a time.

Resonated with every aspect of this book as presented by this author. Reaffirms your experiences and feelings during a time when your life has been shattered. Reaffirms that it is ok to not be ok when you are dealing with unpredictable emotions and the intense pain that comes with the loss of a loved one. Reaffirms that there are people who simply do not get it and it is not your responsibility to "educate" them.

I have been a Spiritual Care provider in hospitals and nursing facilities and homes through hospice for nearly 5 years and experienced a multiple losses just over 6 years ago, including 3 grandparents and my baby (23 year-old) brother. This book is everything. It’s language and empowerment. It soothes and it acknowledges. Ms Devine advocates for you as you read and her care for you is transferred beautifully through words on a page. She has begun a grief revolution and I’m joining her charge!

This book is so right on from the very beginning. It put into words how I felt and am feeling today about the loss of my partner. I found some very helpful things to try that will help me live going forward. I will read this book again and again and learn something new that I didn't see the first time. Thank you for writing this book it is a lifesaver!

After a psychiatrist telling me that this is just life (my son was killed and my father unexpectedly died in my arms days apart)and I'll be OK in 3 months and another telling g me "just try not to think about them" Megan Devine was a treasure to find.I was wondering if I was losing my mind after one of the Dr's told me she didn't know what to do for me anymore after 2 visits (I wasn't getting over it)SO MANY THINGS RANG TRUE TO WHAT I was experiencing and her solutions made sense and helped me soooo much.Her method of separating pain from suffering made a great difference in me.Every psych Dr should read this,it would make them so much more compassionate and relate to what a grieving . person is going through.I just gave my copy to a lady I met at a beverment group and am replacing the copy which I may give to the Dr on my next visit.Now when they make these outrageous statements I know it's not me it's THEM,I feel myself smiling in amazement of their shortcomings!

I really enjoyed reading this book as it informs you of how to carry the pain of grief in your life day by day. Thank you to the author for helping me and others in this journey that we all have to walk together.

I love how Megan is unabashedly grieving. Makes no apologies for her grief. Understands that others may have trouble wiping her while she’s grieving. And yet grieves in her own way anyway. I am so grateful for the permission she gives us all to grieve how we need to when we need to over what period

This book helped me feel more comfortable with the grief that I was carrying around after my son finished cancer treatment. Along with therapy, Megan writes in a way that helped me feel understood and validated my feelings.

I just finished listening to this book. Laying in bed a few nights ago deep in my grief, unable to sleep, and desperately seeking any source of comfort I could find, I logged into the store in hopes to find something on grief that didn’t tell me what stage of grief I was in, or how to just “move on” . I had always struggled with grief books in the past, because they all cover that part about “rebuilding”, and not the early gut wrenching, “I don’t want to live anymore” part. I was desperate to feel less alone, and more understood. If it is possible to feel “home” inside a book, this is it. Hands down the best book on grief I have ever read/listened to. I have already recommended it to all my fellow grievers in my life, and I will be stocking up on hard copies to share with friends, family and clients. Thank you so much, Megan, for putting to words what so many of us experience and feel. Thank you, thank you. ❤️