In this tight-knit and supportive community of loss moms, I’ve seen so many examples and read so many stories about what moms have been compelled to do after losing a baby, whether through miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal or child loss. For me, it was blogging on LettersToJonah.com, and creating this site. For others, it’s starting nonprofits,…
Author: Joli
Hi! I'm Joli, the creator of Literary Quicksand, where we chat about all things books! Visit us at http://www.literaryquicksand.com/.
The Post-Loss Identity Crisis
We’ve all heard about the stages of grief, and I’m assuming we’ve all experienced the nonlinear way we cycle through all of the stages. I mean, heck, sometimes I hit all of them in one day. There’s another one, though, that I’m not sure we talk about enough… It’s the change in identity. We look…
Donating After Loss
A couple of hours after Mina was born, before I even got to see her for the first time, the nurses in the maternity ward said I should start trying to pump breast milk. They warned that I probably wouldn’t get anything for a few days, especially because Mina was born so prematurely. To everyone’s…
On Ignoring & Facing Grief
I’m a reader. I love how I can fall into a work of fiction and let my mind hang out there for a while, as well as how I can be inspired or learn something new from nonfiction. I’ve been in love with books since I learned to read, and was an English major in…
What does “healing” mean to you?
I wrote a post recently on Letters to Jonah about healing, and about what that word means to me. I feel like it’s important, so I’m sharing it here! In the post, I talked about how I’ll never be “healed,” but there are certain things that I can do that feel like healing – that…
Guest Post: Dealing with Unsolicited TTC Advice
In general, I try not to advise people on things that I don’t have personal experience with. For example, one of my best friends is a type 1 diabetic. I don’t sit there and tell her what she can and cannot eat. I don’t offer her advice on how to maintain her blood sugar. I…
Courageous Mothers Community Forum Now Open!
Hi mamas! Joli here. The goal here at Courageous Mothers is to build a community. We love posting articles, but I want this to be a place to come for conversation, too! I want you to come here to find friendship and support from other mamas, all across the globe. So, I’m testing out having…
Book Review: Expecting Sunshine by Alexis Marie Chute
Expecting Sunshine is a new release by Alexis Marie Chute, about her first son Zachary, who was stillborn, and her subsequent pregnancy. You may have heard her name before – she’s a writer for PALS, her blog is called Wanted Chosen Planned, and she creating a documentary, also called Expecting Sunshine. In Expecting Sunshine, Alexis…
Handling Empathy
There’s no doubt that experiencing trauma changes a person. The way it changes you depends on your personality, of course, but I think one thing is certain of all loss – it makes you more empathetic. Before losing Jonah (and my mom), I identified as an HSP – a Highly Sensitive Person. Yep, it’s actually…
We’ve Moved!
Come visit our new website at http://www.courageousmothers.com/
Happy 4 Months Born Into Heaven, Jonah ❤️ Handling Anniversaries
Anniversaries are hard. Today is 4 months since my Jonah was born into Heaven on January 22nd. I have yet to establish any sort of routine, or something I do on anniversaries to make them feel special. I would like to come up with something that I do every time…that sounds comforting. Maybe light a…
Guest Post: Hope Lives On
“I would strongly advise you against trying again until you complete further testing.” The doctor’s words grated against my heart and irritated an already open wound. Just four weeks earlier, I’d sat in this office clutching an ultrasound referral form and the hope that this baby would be mine to keep. Already, I felt the…
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