*I am also posting this in pregnancy and birth loss*
I am in need of some input. My family has been through a lot this past year and I am feeling helpless when it comes to my older dd (she will be 5 this month). My mil passed away last October, dd was very close to her, we lived with her for two years. We had to move right after she passed away. Then her great-grandmother passed earlier this year. In July our baby died in utero at full term. A week after that my dd's cat was found dead, and to top it all off we have to move again. She is often mopey and extra sensitive. Cries very easily and has now started wetting the bed. Something she has never done. It will be a little while until we are moved and settled again, and I am just at a loss of what to do for her. I want to fix everything, I want her to be happy again. I just feel so helpless at what to do for her. I myself am struggling to find a new normal and I feel like I am so far from being able to be all there for her.
Two days ago, my dd was very sad and I asked her what was wrong. She just said nothing. Later that evening she came to me and said she just realized that her little sister was really gone, and then she started bawling. I think the shock of losing her is wearing off for all of us.
What can you do for a grieving child? What do they need? I want to give her something to rely on, but with having to move again, (and possibley again if we are unable to find a place to buy right away) I feel like our lives are so unstable right now.
Please share your stories or resources.
Thank you.
Love, Brandi
I am in need of some input. My family has been through a lot this past year and I am feeling helpless when it comes to my older dd (she will be 5 this month). My mil passed away last October, dd was very close to her, we lived with her for two years. We had to move right after she passed away. Then her great-grandmother passed earlier this year. In July our baby died in utero at full term. A week after that my dd's cat was found dead, and to top it all off we have to move again. She is often mopey and extra sensitive. Cries very easily and has now started wetting the bed. Something she has never done. It will be a little while until we are moved and settled again, and I am just at a loss of what to do for her. I want to fix everything, I want her to be happy again. I just feel so helpless at what to do for her. I myself am struggling to find a new normal and I feel like I am so far from being able to be all there for her.
Two days ago, my dd was very sad and I asked her what was wrong. She just said nothing. Later that evening she came to me and said she just realized that her little sister was really gone, and then she started bawling. I think the shock of losing her is wearing off for all of us.
What can you do for a grieving child? What do they need? I want to give her something to rely on, but with having to move again, (and possibley again if we are unable to find a place to buy right away) I feel like our lives are so unstable right now.
Please share your stories or resources.
Thank you.
Love, Brandi
. About your daughter it sounds like she is doing the normal stuff to help her process or express her grief and feelings of being unsettled. I think it will just take time for her to fully make sense of what she is felling. I know it is hard, but we can't fix these things (as much as we want to). All we can is give her love and support. About moving, is there any sort of routine that you can stick to so that could be something constant in her like that might help her feel more settled? I have found our bedtime ritual of bath, books, a story and song make my dd feel really grounded and it gives her time to open up and talk about her feelings.
