by orla blackburn | Feb 15, 2026 | blog, Grief Support, Personal Stories
When my husband died, I thought my heart had broken.What I didn’t realise was that my nervous system had shattered too. No one talks about the grieving nervous system. About how your body goes into survival mode after loss. About why you feel wired and exhausted at...
by orla blackburn | Jan 18, 2026 | blog, Grief Support, Personal Stories
Another Year, Another Layer This week marks my eighth birthday without Andy. I was 48 when he died—just a couple of months shy of 49—and this year, I’ll turn 56. For eight birthdays now, there’s been no “Happy Birthday, Orls” from the other side of the bed. No card...
by orla blackburn | Dec 29, 2025 | blog, Grief Support, Personal Stories
I thought Christmas Day would be the hardest. So I planned. I filled the day. I made sure it was loud and bright and full of people. I threw myself into the performance of “everything’s fine” because I couldn’t bear the thought of my little boy missing out on the...
by orla blackburn | Dec 2, 2025 | blog, Grief Support, Personal Stories
Last week, I went to my mother-in-law’s funeral. Audrey. Fierce, vibrant, funny Audrey. Except she hadn’t really been Audrey for some time. Alzheimer’s had softened her edges, dulled her spark. The woman who once took charge of everything from dinner to job...
by orla blackburn | Oct 25, 2025 | blog, Grief Support, Personal Stories
I see it again and again in widow forums: someone quietly posts that they just can’t go back to their old job. The spark is gone. The purpose is gone. The energy is definitely gone. And they’re left wondering: Is this normal? (Spoiler: yes.) For many of us, the job we...
