A question, how did people here react to the death of a parent?
I didn't expect to have so many dreams about my father. Obviously things have to be worked upon.
Condolences, Kyriakos. It's not easy to lose a parent, no matter what the relationship was like.
My mother (2014)... for a whole list of reasons, my reaction was anger. Some here in OT were nice about it, tried to be supportive via PM and email, and I suppose I didn't react as they might have thought I should. It's not that I didn't appreciate them reaching out. It's just that I was trying to process the whole "I should feel grief, but all I feel is anger" thing. When an estranged parent dies and the family doesn't even tell that person's only blood offspring they were sick, it creates a
lot of anger.
My dad (2019)... that was hard, for a lot of reasons. My dad and I were "two against the world" (plus pets - my cats and his cat and dog) since my grandmother's death, and he was so supportive as my health problems got worse. But then dementia happened, and he spent the last 12 years of his life in various nursing homes. He lost most of his memories right away, but knew me up until the last several months. He died the day before my first eye surgery, in February 2019.
I miss him. He never did get to meet Maddy, as I adopted her a few days after he went into the hospital. He would have loved her, as he loved all the pets (and it was mutual).
Kyriakos, there's no right or wrong way to react, or to mourn. There's only
your way, and how you feel is how you feel. If anyone tells you you're doing it wrong, don't let them push you into what doesn't feel right to you. They don't know how you feel. Only you do.
Grief takes time and energy. It can be exhausting. There will be good days and bad days, and even good hours and bad hours within those days.
Dreams are a normal part of grief. If they bring good memories, cherish them. If not, and you take this as an indicator that some things need to be worked out... remember that you're not on a timetable here. It can take
years. It will take as long as it takes, some days being easier than others.
