In this episode of Beyond the Loss: Life and Identity After a Child Dies, I launches a new series dedicated to helping grieving parents understand the profound evolution of their pain. If you are looking for child loss support, navigating parent grief, or finding your identity after a devastating loss, this episode offers vital clinical, emotional, and deeply personal insights.
I reflects on the early years following the death of her son, Michael. She breaks down the vital difference between mourning (the immediate survival phase of acute grief) and grief itself (the ongoing, lifelong relationship with your child’s love, memory, and legacy).
In this episode, we explore:
The difference between grief and mourning after child loss.
Why mourning feels like survival in the early years after a child dies.
How grief can become part of an ongoing relationship with your child.
Why integrated grief does not mean closure, moving on, or forgetting.
How love remains present even when a child is no longer physically here.
Why joy can still belong in a life shaped by loss.
How culture, family history, and personal experience influence the way we grieve.
Why there is no standard timeline for child loss grief.
How parents carry their child forward through memory, values, rituals, and daily life.
A gentle practice for noticing how your child still belongs in the life you are living now.
If you are a bereaved parent, let this conversation remind you that the presence of grief does not mean you have failed to live, and choosing to live does not mean you have left your child behind.
This episode is an invitation to consider how grief may change shape over time, while love remains deeply present.
If you are grieving the loss of a child, supporting a bereaved parent, or walking alongside grieving families in a professional capacity, I hope this conversation offers comfort, validation, and a gentle reminder that your child’s presence can still be part of the life you are living now.
Transcript: Here
Additional Resources
Website: sharonspano.com
Podcast: https://sharonspano.com/podcast/podcast-beyond-the-loss/
YouTube: youtube.com/@SharonSpano-BeyondtheLoss-Host
Substack: substack.com/@drsharon
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About Beyond the Loss
Beyond the Loss: Life and Identity After a Child Dies is a podcast dedicated to helping grieving parents, bereaved families, and professionals navigate the emotional, relational, and identity shifts that follow the death of a child. Through compassionate conversations and clinical insight, I create space for healing, understanding, and honest reflection after profound grief.