Hi, I'm Lexi Silver, and I am on the Youth Advisory Board here at GRIEF SUCKS, and am the teen author who wrote the grief poem book, The Girl Behind Grief's Shadow. I recently created Meet My Grief (meetmygrief.com), an online community filled with poetry, support for grievers, and words of encouragement. 

Why do I have so much to say about grief? I'm kind of an expert, unfortunately - I lost my mom on Christmas four years ago due to an accidental suicide, and my dad nine months later due to sepsis. So I've had more than my share of grief and all that comes with it.

My number one goal in creating this community is for my story and poetry to be heard. I focus on grieving out loud and not letting the non-grief-informed society define me by what I have lost. I want people to know that my life is not a sob story...I'm a real human being who has experienced deep loss.

And the best thing to come out of it is creating something that helps others - I'm so proud when people who visit my site tell me that I have helped them while grieving. I hope you'll check it out and find support there too.

by Olivia, age 18

Why we're lovin’ it: I’ve been obsessed with “The Summer I Turned Pretty” from it's start! It premiered on Amazon Prime in 2022, based on the YA novel of the same name by author Jenny Han. I am counting the days until Season 3 airs July 16th!

The show has an emotional plot, not just with the teen-love triangle, in which the female lead, “Belly,” has feelings for two brothers she grew up knowing, “Conrad” and “Jeremiah,” but also the death of the mom of Conrad and Jeremiah. Belly has grown up with this family her whole life.

The show explores accurately how truly gut-wrenching grief can be, and how much death can take a toll on people in such a variety of ways. With Belly, for instance, you can see that her grades start to slip, and she even gets kicked off her beloved volleyball team. 

But as time goes on, she learns how to manage her grief little by little, and earns her way back on the volleyball team and brings up her grades.

I think this TV series does such a good job showing that grief takes time, and that different people handle and process their grief in such different ways. It highlights how hard it is to watch someone slowly fade from an illness, as the teens all begin to lose themselves. This TV series is great if you want a good cry!

Want to hear more opinions about the show from teens? Check out this one from Erin, and this one from Amber! 

 

by Riya, age 15

Why we’re lovin’ it: I lost my dad to adrenal cancer when I was just two years old.  This song is about losing a parent, specifically a mom. Even though I didn’t lose my mom, “Birthday cake” talks about how your loved one would want you to live your life to its fullest, even if they are not physically there to share it with you.  

I especially love the lyrics: “It’s hard to know what she would say, but I think she’d want you to live like the world’s on fire, want you to love like hearts don’t break, never look down when you walk the wire. Like she made it to 48, still made your birthday cake.”

These words make me think of my dad because he died at 29, which is obviously also a very young age. Another set of lyrics that I feel is relatable to me and my story is “all the pictures on the same walls, looks like she just went to the store, and when you look into the mirror, does it make you miss her more?”

These specific words are important to me because my sister looks exactly like my younger sister, who was just 11 months old when my dad passed away.  Whenever my mom or I look at my sister, we see my dad in her face, and that is a very special part of our lives.

Why we’re lovin’ it: The mission of Get Griefy Magazine is to go beyond conventional storylines surrounding grief. Yes, obviously there is deep sorrow when it comes to our grief but this magazine also celebrates that we can choose to embrace our strength and live fully with grief!

It was founded by Kera Sanchez, a high school Dean of Students in Chicago. The inspiration for it: In June 2022, Kera’s mom died unexpectedly while vacationing in Italy, just days after the birth of Kera’s youngest child. 

Kera found herself navigating grief and postpartum “as a two-for-one special.” The more Kera thought about her situation, the more she wanted to put something into the world that would help other grievers.

Enter Get Griefy Magazine, which offers authentic stories, expert insights, and practical resources that empower readers to navigate their grief journey with resilience and purpose. We love it!