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! 

 

Why we're lovin' it: For this classic 70's hit, "Landslide," we had two teens who wanted to write about it! We love songs that cross the generations; here's to you, Fleetwood Mac. And thanks, Ann, and Sarafina for contributing.

From Ann: I really love the song "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac because its themes are about change and growing up. I think those feelings can be similar to how the way grief feels.

The line "Can I handle the seasons of my life" means to me: "Can I keep up with how quickly everything changes, how one day I can be totally ok about my grief and the next it can all fall apart and I feel like a mess again. 

Grief doesn’t work like a ladder that goes straight up. It’s more like a rollercoaster with ups downs twists and turns. Another line from the song that stands out to me is, "I’ve been afraid of changing 'cause I built my life around you," which means to me: It’s hard to imagine your life without someone who was such a big part of it."

From Sarafina: The song doesn’t only talk about the emotions of grief, but it also mentions the changes grief can cause. In the song, it says, “Well, I've been afraid of changin', 'Cause I've built my life around you." To me, these lyrics remind me of being so used to a certain way of living or being super dependent on a person, and the death of that person can change your entire life and collapse the foundation you were so reliant on. 

It is hard to adjust to the new ways of life and  wanting to stay in the past, but time keeps moving forward and no matter how painful it is, you have to move with it. The song also explores the fear of growing older without that person, which often brings a kind of mourning for missed opportunities because of grief. 

Ultimately, “Landslide” shows that grief is not only about death. It can also be caused from life changes, and the painful process of personal transformation.

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!