Exhale: A Blog for Women’s Mental & Emotional Health
Grief is a universal human experience, one that touches all of us at some point in our lives. It is the complex and deeply personal response to loss and, though it is something everyone experiences, each person's path is unique. Rather than being a linear process with a definitive end, grief is a lifelong journey that weaves its way into the very fabric of our lives.
There’s a common myth that motherhood completes or defines us as women. When you begin the journey toward becoming a mother, there is a hopefulness, a feeling of excitement and wanting to have a child. Then it happens. You have your perfect baby in your arms and all of a sudden, in that instant, you go from being the person you’ve been your whole life to being some new and different person – somebody’s mom. And it’s exciting and wonderful and then…
For anyone not in the military, it may sound cliche when someone says, “When the service member serves in the military, the whole family serves.” But for those of us who are family members of an active-duty service member, we know that this saying actually rings true. As the spouse of a service member, we may not serve on the front lines, but we make lots of sacrifices in support of our spouses’ duties and responsibilities.
The holidays can be challenging for many people – it is a time of year filled with celebration, but with that celebration comes reminders of things that are now different or people who are no longer with us. The holiday season can be a dichotomy of happiness and sadness at the same time. If you are a military spouse, the holidays can be extra challenging for a variety of reasons.
Follow on Social Media @AshleyComegysLCSW
