Tag: depression

1)Dying 2)Depression 3)Pregnancy 4) Mental Ward 5) Let’s just go to Mexico!

Ronan. If I am not pregnant, I think I am severely depressed. I told Rita this tonight. I don’t know what it feels like to be depressed, because I never have been. I’ve been traumatized over losing you so badly that I can’t function, but I would not call that depressed. I would call that just a mom, who has had the worst thing that could possibly happen to her, happen. And then you are left, feeling blind, deaf, dumb, alone, abandoned, shocked, scared, numb, tormented, miserable, heartbroken, physically ill, and like you too, would like to die. You are left thinking the pain alone, will kill you. But it does not. So you get up, somehow. I’m not sure how, but you do. I did. I feel like I have been moving on a high-speed train for months now. Doing so much, but it all felt good. Doing good things/being productive is what is saving me. Doing all of this while still respecting this pain. The high speed train has come to a halt. I am so freaking tired. I worry that it is because I have done so much/too much and now your 1 year since you’ve been gone is approaching. Your 5th birthday is shortly after too. I am going to freak out if I am this tired, and it is not due to being pregnant. This is so not like me. I don’t get tired. I run off constant energy and adrenalin. I can do 50 tasks at once, while hiking Camelback, blindfolded, juggling apples behind my back. Not this past week. This is not the flu or step throat or anything like that. This is something more. It’s either I’m really, really sad…. or pregnant. If this is what depression feels like, HOLY FUCK. It is scary. I do not enjoy this. Rita says if I am not pregnant, then we will be doing a lot of night hiking. Good solution, Rita. Seriously.

There are some things in life, that I am asked to do, and I just cannot do them without you. In my old life, I would have said yes in a heartbeat. In this new life I have learned to say no. There are certain situations that I know I can mentally/emotionally not handle. So, I have started to say no to things that I know will be too painful for me to do. Your daddy is so supportive of me and the way I am doing this. He knows when he comes to find me in the shower to ask me if I am ready, and he finds me crying hysterically saying, “Please, I cannot go without Ronan. Don’t make me go without him!” He knows not to make me. He just looks at me, kisses my forehead and tells me it’s alright, that I do not have to go. This is one of the 10 billion reasons that I love him so much. But I would still kill him if it meant I could bring you back. You see, RO… why couldn’t I have just left it at being one of the 10 billion reasons I love him so much? Why did I have to throw that killing him for you thing in there? Because that’s how my mind works. It’s kind of dark and twisted, in a pretty way. At least I think it’s pretty. But I am a sucker for a dark and twisted mind. I think they are the best minds to have.

I wish I had more to say tonight. I honestly don’t think I left the house all weekend. I’m feeling that crummy. I met Rita at Trader Joe’s. We Robombed the place with your little cards. That was the highlight of my weekend. Well, that and snuggling up to your brothers while we watched oh so bad but oh so good, 80’s movies. Ummm… hello, “Licence to Drive.” Top 5 fav 80’s movie of all time. I loved those Cory’s. Quinn cracked up at it. Liam thought it was stupid and actually went into the bedroom with your daddy to watch, “Storage Wars,” or something. He is obsessed with that show. Those brothers of yours… they are so stinking rad. I am so lucky to have them. I was so lucky to have you. I’ll never understand why you had to go. I miss you so much.

I’m sleepy, tired, and sad. I love you to the moon and back. I’m so sorry, Ronan. I hate this for all of us. I hate this most of all, for you. I hate that you are not here, and I don’t get to take care of  you. This destroys me. This is so not how things should have to be. I hope you are safe. Please be safe. I love you to the moon and back. Sweet dreams, baby doll.

xoxo

The Stages of Life without you

Ronan. Productive days are good for me. Days where I am busy, have lots of tasks at hand, and it forces me to feel like I have a bit of a purpose in this life without you. I went this a.m. to meet your Mimi so we could have a meeting with our Foundation CPA. I wanted to meet her and go over a few questions I had. It was a good, productive meeting. Afterwords, I headed out to North Scottsdale to see the Good Doctor. I like to check in with him every couple of months. I told him that I had stopped taking my Zoloft. He asked why and I told him that I was tired of being numb. He said that was a good reason and asked all the usual questions to make sure that I am actually doing alright without it. I told him that I wanted to deal with the pain of losing you, and to actually feel it; even as much as it hurts. We talked about a lot of different things. I told him about the sleep issues I’m still having in a major way and how I’ve taken my Ambien the past couple of nights. I don’t want to take that crap, but I also know that sometimes I need a break from all of this pain. Trying to sleep on my own, with only Melatonin, is just not working. I’m still going to continue to try, but I can only take so much. I hope one day I’ll be at peace with sleeping again. I really miss it.

After my visit with the Good Doctor, I came home and was full of way too much energy/anxiety. I threw on my clothes and drove to Camelback Mountain. I met my Frienemy, Inferno Fuckwad Bob there. I hiked up that mountain, as fast as I could today. It was only 102 out. Just as I was tackling the last part of it, I felt the need to stop and take a break. But then the voices in my head, screamed at me otherwise. They told me to keep going, to push myself harder, because you were waiting at the top for me. I could have been suffering from heat stroke, but I didn’t care. In my mind, I had to keep going, to get to you. I ignored the waves of nausea in my stomach, and continued to the top where I think I almost passed out. I sat and took a lot of deep breaths and drank my water. There were a couple of other people as crazy as me, who were there as well. They were there for pure pleasure though. Not because they know anything about Inferno Fuckwad Bob. I sat and listened to the happy conversations around me and almost got lost in the couples world; while they were snapping pictures of each other and were beaming with excitement about making it to the top. I wished to be that girl that I used to be today….. so giddy and proud of hiking Camelback. I remembered that girl today. The one who used to hike Camelback for pure pleasure, not because she feeds off of the pain. That girl seemed so young, so innocent, and so carefree. I missed that girl.  I wished for a rewind button, before you were sick. I wished so many things today at the top of that mountain. None of them came true.

Somebody asked me the other day, where I was in the stages of Grief. I am aware of the stages, but the question caught me off guard. Stages? I have to follow the stages? I didn’t know how to answer. It seemed so strange to me, as if there is a formula to follow after losing you. I am not like everyone else because everyone else did not have YOU, as there son. I guess I’ve never really taken the time to sit down and process the “Stages.”  I took a look at them the other day. They make sense, but I don’t necessarily think there is an order that I am following them in. I have felt these things, since you were diagnosed. I feel these things, 100 times a day. I don’t think the things below should be named the “Stages of Grief.” It should be written as a manual on, “Welcome to your new life, after losing your child.”

It should also have a side note that says, “Good luck with that. Doesn’t it fucking suck?” Here are the “Stages,” below. Just in case any of you are curious.

Denial

This first stage of grieving helps us to survive the loss. In this stage, the world becomes meaningless and overwhelming. Life makes no sense. We are in a state of shock and denial. We go numb. We wonder how we can go on, if we can go on, why we should go on. We try to find a way to simply get through each day. Denial and shock help us to cope and make survival possible. Denial helps us to pace our feelings of grief. There is a grace in denial. It is nature’s way of letting in only as much as we can handle.

As you accept the reality of the loss and start to ask yourself questions, you are unknowingly beginning the healing process. You are becoming stronger, and the denial is beginning to fade. But as you proceed, all the feelings you were denying begin to surface.

Anger

Anger is a necessary stage of the healing process. Be willing to feel your anger, even though it may seem endless. The more you truly feel it, the more it will begin to dissipate and the more you will heal. There are many other emotions under the anger and you will get to them in time, but anger is the emotion we are most used to managing. The truth is that anger has no limits. It can extend not only to your friends, the doctors, your family, yourself and your loved one who died, but also to God. You may ask, “Where is God in this?

Underneath anger is pain, your pain. It is natural to feel deserted and abandoned, but we live in a society that fears anger. Anger is strength and it can be an anchor, giving temporary structure to the nothingness of loss. At first grief feels like being lost at sea: no connection to anything. Then you get angry at someone, maybe a person who didn’t attend the funeral, maybe a person who isn’t around, maybe a person who is different now that your loved one has died. Suddenly you have a structure – – your anger toward them. The anger becomes a bridge over the open sea, a connection from you to them. It is something to hold onto; and a connection made from the strength of anger feels better than nothing.We usually know more about suppressing anger than feeling it. The anger is just another indication of the intensity of your love.

Bargaining

Before a loss, it seems like you will do anything if only your loved one would be spared. “Please God, ” you bargain, “I will never be angry at my wife again if you’ll just let her live.” After a loss, bargaining may take the form of a temporary truce. “What if I devote the rest of my life to helping others. Then can I wake up and realize this has all been a bad dream?”

We become lost in a maze of “If only…” or “What if…” statements. We want life returned to what is was; we want our loved one restored. We want to go back in time: find the tumor sooner, recognize the illness more quickly, stop the accident from happening…if only, if only, if only. Guilt is often bargaining’s companion. The “if onlys” cause us to find fault in ourselves and what we “think” we could have done differently. We may even bargain with the pain. We will do anything not to feel the pain of this loss. We remain in the past, trying to negotiate our way out of the hurt. People often think of the stages as lasting weeks or months. They forget that the stages are responses to feelings that can last for minutes or hours as we flip in and out of one and then another. We do not enter and leave each individual stage in a linear fashion. We may feel one, then another and back again to the first one.

Depression

After bargaining, our attention moves squarely into the present. Empty feelings present themselves, and grief enters our lives on a deeper level, deeper than we ever imagined. This depressive stage feels as though it will last forever. It’s important to understand that this depression is not a sign of mental illness. It is the appropriate response to a great loss. We withdraw from life, left in a fog of intense sadness, wondering, perhaps, if there is any point in going on alone? Why go on at all? Depression after a loss is too often seen as unnatural: a state to be fixed, something to snap out of. The first question to ask yourself is whether or not the situation you’re in is actually depressing. The loss of a loved one is a very depressing situation, and depression is a normal and appropriate response. To not experience depression after a loved one dies would be unusual. When a loss fully settles in your soul, the realization that your loved one didn’t get better this time and is not coming back is understandably depressing. If grief is a process of healing, then depression is one of the many necessary steps along the way.

Acceptance

Acceptance is often confused with the notion of being “all right” or “OK” with what has happened. This is not the case. Most people don’t ever feel OK or all right about the loss of a loved one. This stage is about accepting the reality that our loved one is physically gone and recognizing that this new reality is the permanent reality. We will never like this reality or make it OK, but eventually we accept it. We learn to live with it. It is the new norm with which we must learn to live. We must try to live now in a world where our loved one is missing. In resisting this new norm, at first many people want to maintain life as it was before a loved one died. In time, through bits and pieces of acceptance, however, we see that we cannot maintain the past intact. It has been forever changed and we must readjust. We must learn to reorganize roles, re-assign them to others or take them on ourselves.

Finding acceptance may be just having more good days than bad ones. As we begin to live again and enjoy our life, we often feel that in doing so, we are betraying our loved one. We can never replace what has been lost, but we can make new connections, new meaningful relationships, new inter-dependencies. Instead of denying our feelings, we listen to our needs; we move, we change, we grow, we evolve. We may start to reach out to others and become involved in their lives. We invest in our friendships and in our relationship with ourselves. We begin to live again, but we cannot do so until we have given grief its time.

So, there you have it, Ro. The Stages of Grief. I do think it was beautifully written. I think it was written by Dr. J’s friend, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. I’m reading her book now, “On Children and Death.” She was a good friend of Dr. J’s which tells me she is worthy of me reading her book. I’m not too far into it as I am having a hard time staying focused on it as it is one of the many pile of books next to my bed. I want to finish this one first, but I have some homework that I am trying to get done before I meet up with of few of our lovelies next month to go over your Foundation. Homework that requires research and not enough hours in the day.

Ro baby. I spent the rest of the day, playing the good mama role, really well. Except I didn’t cook dinner but one of our dolls dropped off dinner instead. Thanks, Katie. You saved me tonight<3<3<3

Time to try to sleep, Ro. I’m getting up early to run with Samya in the morning. Miss you so much. I love you and hope you are safe. Sweet dreams, Baby Doll.

xoxo

An Open Letter to an Asshole

Dear Asshole Reader,

I guess I’m going to have to get used to people like you. Because the world is full of them. Stupid know-it-alls, who judge and give advice just to hear themselves speak. People who think they have the right to spew out their words because they think they know how a mother who has just lost her son, should be feeling. All I have to say is, Wow. And you can fuck off. You have a lot of nerve, to write your words and with all that you had to say, I am assuming you have devoted your life to studying parents whom have lost a child? You seem so knowledgable on the subject. Or clearly, you are a Psychologist yourself?? Hats off to you, if you are either of those things, because you totally seem to have it all figured out. As if there IS a specific formula to follow after one loses a child. You should really write a book on the subject and pass it out to grieving parents everywhere.

You said to me that I am clinically depressed. Do you know what the exact symptoms of that are? I do. I’ve been seeing my therapist and good doctor for about 10 months now. They are both very extremely intelligent and very good at what they do. In case you do not know the symptoms of being clinically depressed, I will tell them to you and we can go over them one by one. I feel like educating you tonight. I hope you don’t mind. We can make it into a fun little game, I’ll just put a (Y) for yes, in front of the symptoms I do agree with, and a (N) for a no, in front of the one’s I disagree with.

Common Symptoms
of Clinical Depression
There are different forms of clinical depression with different combinations of the following symptoms:

Physical:

  • Sleep disturbances-insomnia, oversleeping, waking much earlier than usual- (Y) Insomnia is a given.
  • Changes in appetite or eating: much more or much less-(Y)Turns out your kid getting cancer and dying from it is the perfect diet! YEAH!!! Gold Star for me!
  • Decreased energy, fatigue (N)Opposite.
  • Headaches, stomachaches, digestive problems or other physical symptoms that are not explained by other physical conditions or do not respond to treatment- (Y) Shaky hands- check. Throwing up because the thought of everything my child went through and not having him here anymore, makes me sick to my stomach-check.

Behavioral/Attitude:

  • Loss of interest or pleasure in activities that were once enjoyed, such as going out with friends, hobbies, sports, sex, etc. (Y) and (N) I won’t go into the “intimate” details but as you can imagine, sex is not really at the top of my priority list right now. But a (N) to the sports. If I was not active, I really do think I would bury myself in a hole in my backyard and never come out.
  • Difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions. Wait….. What was the question again?? I can’t remember. Kidding! Of course I remember, silly!! (Y) I cannot concentrate on a thing or even remember the day of the week. I can still make a decision for the most part though. Like deciding to call you an asshole tonight. That may have not been a “good” decision, but hey, I made it all by myself! Gold star for me again!!
  • Neglecting responsibilities or personal appearance (N) I have a lot of responsibility in my life that I am taking care of. For example: today, I had nothing of importance to do and we needed new air filters for our home, so I went to Home Depot and bought them! All by myself. Granted, I ended up buying the wrong one’s (fuck there goes that “remembering” thing again!) And while buying them, I think I even looked halfway decent, so I’d give a (N) to neglecting my personal appearance. Shit. I didn’t blow-dry my hair today though but instead threw it back in a bun…. UGH…. I may now have to re think that personal appearance thing. I did shower though and I’m pretty sure I smelled good so I may be o.k.

Emotional:

  • Persistent sad or “empty” mood, lasting two or more weeks- Well fuck. It’s been 3 months and I’m still feeling really sad, and empty. I didn’t know I had to be over the death of my son in less than 2 weeks. That seems kind of harsh!
  • Crying “for no reason”- So much crying going on here. I have a million reasons to cry though so this cannot apply to me at all.
  • Feeling hopeless, helpless, guilty or worthless- Yup. Living in a hospital for 8 months and seeing all of the sick cancer kids, some without parents to even take care of them, and then having your own son die in your arms….. well that can leave one feeling pretty hopeless and helpless. I totally feel guilty about all of my sadness and I do feel worthless because I promised my son I would get him all better, and I didn’t.
  • Feeling irritable, agitated or anxious- Not really irritable… unless you are my husband… then you get the short end of the stick (Sorry Woo) Anxious? All the time. I constantly think my kids, myself, or husband are going to get cancer next. I have a lot of anxiety about that.
  • Thoughts of death or suicide (Y) But then I think of what that would do to Liam and Quinn and it comes down to that would just make me a selfish bitch. That’s just not me. I like to take care of people, and I have 2 amazing little guys to take care of. 3 if you count Wooddawg, which I do. 4 if you still count Ronan, which I do. He would never forgive me if I did something so stupid like that. And when Ronan gets mad, he gets MAD! I would not want to spend my afterlife with him and all of his anger for me because if I were to do something like that, he would never forgive me.
So, now that we have dissected that, I think you actually may be right! Or they need to change the diagnoses from “Clinical Depression,” to “Things you may feel or do after losing a child.” Hey, that could be your new calling in life! You could have them re write the handbook, since you know so much about each individual person and how they should be acting or feeling. Oh, but guess what else. You told me I need to get on an anti depressant asap. You said I could never be happy again, unless I get on some medication. Your exact words were ,”Please get some antidepressants and let the pain go. Rejoice that Ronan is no longer suffering. Rejoice that his spirit is free of his painful body and that one day your spirit will see his again.”
Well jeez! Good thing I have been on one for 8 months now! Zoloft, 100mg, to be exact. OMG. I suddenly feel SOOOOO HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!! It must be working! O.K. asshole reader. You have no freaking idea what you are talking about. A pill is not going to make me happy. I have been questioning this Zoloft crap for a while because it seems to do nothing for me. I am convinced that no pill can take away this pain that I feel 24 hours a day, unless it is one that numbs you so much that you don’t feel a thing. I’m not doing that. I’m not going to stuff this away and not deal with it now, so it can come out 10 years down the road. Sorry. Not happening. I’m going to whine, cry, say it’s not fair, be bitter, sad, depressed, angry, and cuss up a fucking storm because that is how I am feeling. If you don’t agree, then stop reading and go away. I don’t want support from someone who is so judgmental and close minded. And another thing, you can take that rejoice thing and shove it up your ass. I will never rejoice that Ronan is gone. He was so happy and so healthy for being so sick. He lived his life as if he didn’t have cancer at all because for the most part he was just happy to be with me, no matter what. And with his brothers and daddy. He was more pissed about all the “rules,” he had to follow. My little rebel. He didn’t stop fighting until the very last day, when I told him he had to stop being so stubborn and just relax his body so he could come with me for the rest of my life. I told him I would keep him with me forever and that is what I plan on doing.
I could go on and on about some of the things you said lady….. I loved this part….”I sometimes think you love the following of your readers so much, that you are willing to stay in this pain forever just to keep them. You fear if you heal and get on with your life, that there will no longer be a reason for the blog, and the readers will go. Maybe that is what is best. You love the attention the blog gives you, so much you are willing to sacrifice all your family for it. That is truly sad and unhealthy. I hope you will get help and we won’t be disappointed if you are no longer sad or hurting.” LMFAO about that one. Yes, yes, this is all just a show, an act. I must wallow in my sadness so my lovely readers won’t leave me. Lady- Are you on crack?!?! You cannot possibly be serious. That is one of the craziest comments I’ve ever heard. I would not sacrifice my family for anything (well that could change tomorrow if they start to drive me crazy) The writing I do, is my quiet down time when everyone else is asleep or not home. I do my writing because I have so much shit spinning around in my head all day and it is the only thing that calms me down. If I don’t get it all out, I can’t sit still. I know it doesn’t have to be public knowledge, this pain of mine…. but I started it that way and I’m not going to half ass it or stop because things are getting too sad, too depressing, or they don’t seem to be getting any better. This is my reality of losing my beautiful baby boy and I’m not going to be silenced about it. I’m going to continue to write because one day, maybe I will help someone else with my honestly and craziness. Oh, I have the perfect example of my helping people tonight. It came in the form of an email. Perfect timing.

Maya – I just found out about you and Ronan this week, and you have changed my life. I don’t know if you had the chance to read the really LONG email I sent you this week, and I hope that none of offended you (my references to faith), but writing it actually made me feel a little better. My son died 7 years ago – yesterday was his birthday, and 8/16 will be the 7th anniversary of his death. I feel that I have had to suppress all of my grief, anger, etc., in order to be fair to his twin brother and younger sisters. Your story gave me the courage to start writing mine. Please understand, with regard to my faith, I felt exactly as you do right now. It has taken me a long, long time to find some peace. Please feel free to reach out to me if you ever want to talk, scream, cry or whatever. I wish I would have had an outlet, and I commend you for finding yours. Thanks you for your inspiration, and bless you, your family and Ronan.

: http://3here1inheaven.wordpress.com

See that there, Asshole reader?? Proof that I have helped at least one person! Do I get another Gold Star?!?! I think so! I’m on a roll!!! The girl up there is just one example of why I keep writing. I get 10 emails like this a day. It’s an honor and I feel so privileged that my honesty and pain, can help other people. It is what it is. There is no unnecessary drama, fake sadness, bullshit extra anger… just to keep the readers coming back. It’s me. Just me, trying to get through the days, trying to find things that make me feel good again, but nothing is going to lessen the pain of missing Ronan. He can never be replaced and I will always have a void in my life. I hope to find glimmers of happiness here and there, someday. But it’s only been 3 months. If I am still having this problem, in 3 years, then we can talk. Maybe. Although I did just call you an asshole so you may never want to talk to me again, which is totally fine too.
Alright, Asshole Reader (whoops! you mentioned you were offended by those words) Sorry! They just fucking keep flying out! Bad Mommy. Gold Star taken away. But now I have to go. You have taken away from my writing to Ro time. So now you really are an asshole. Geez. You can’t win tonight. Fine Asshole Reader… I love you anyway because at least you speak what you think, even though I think you should maybe channel it to somewhere else…. like underground dog fighting. I just don’t think it was your place to say all of those things to me when you have no idea what it feels like to lose him. Ronan Sean Thompson. You cannot put me in a category and judge judge judge by what you read. You only read, and I know the reading is intense so I get how one could be worried. But I can tell you, my two boys could not be happier and more loved and more well taken care of. Our house is very happy, despite all the sadness in it. Even with my buckets of tears. I’m not hiding my tears from my boys. This is how it is, this is how we all are feeling, and hiding it is only going to hurt us. We are open, honest, and allowed to feel whatever we want. This is my family. This is our life, grief, pain, and love. We are doing the best we can do.
I feel much better after getting that off my chest. Have a good night and thanks for your “advice.” But please, next time think about who you are writing to and who the eff are you to act like you know when you have no fucking clue. Piss off cowgirl.
I had to put this in tonight. I needed a laugh and Will Ferrell is the best at getting those from me.

My Ro. I miss you so.

 

 

 

 

Ronan. I think it’s been a few days since I’ve written. The days are still creeping along, ever so slowly. You’re still gone and I am still here. Barely. We are still at the beach. It’s getting closer to the time when we will leave this place, and return home. The thought of that makes my stomach turn. Back to reality. In a big way. Back to life going on, without you here. Your brothers will return to school and life will move forward. I don’t know how I am going to do this without you. It doesn’t seem possible.

I’m not really sure how the days have been going by; but they have. My memory is still foggy as I sit and try to recall how we’ve spent our time. A little time at the beach, eating out, seeing some movies, running….. I think I’ve slept a lot. Mostly just laying in bed, missing you. Not really living as I’m still not ready to. I had dinner with your daddy last night. It was a sad dinner. Everything with him is sad because we are both so sad about you. We talked about you a little, but dinner was mostly filled with silence and small talk. We saw a movie afterwords and it was really hard for us both to sit though it. My lack of concentration is distracting to everything I do, even trying to sit through a mind numbing movie. You would think things like that would be easy for me, but they are not. Even the simplest things have become difficult.

I think I’ve been avoiding phone calls. Crap. I haven’t called your Nana back in a week. Grandpa Steve has called for weeks and I haven’t returned his phone calls either. I’d really just prefer it if I weren’t here in this world anymore to worry about returning phone calls or having people worry about me. I just wish I were with you. Not my choice though, I know. I miss you more than ever.

I’m reading a new book. I like it so far, although I’m not that far into it. It’s called, “The Other Side of Sadness.” It’s basically about the way the mind works when losing a loved one. It is making sense to me as it’s more of a scientific approach to the way the mind and body work when dealing with so much pain. I think I’ll finish it in a few days, but it takes me longer to read books now. I used to fly right though them, absorbing everything easily. Now, I find myself having to go back and re read things and taking the words at a slower pace. It’s as if I’m becoming an entirely different person. Even the way I read a book is fucking different now. Just when I thought I had myself and life all figured out. Turns out, I knew nothing and I only really existed as the person I was, due to being your mom. I don’t know who I’m supposed to be without you. You were such a big reason to why I was the way I was. That person seems gone. I do get glimpses of her every once in a while. Certain people bring out parts of me that I miss so much. Macy is one of them. So are Liz and Olivia. I guess it’s because I feel so comfortable around them. One second I can be looking at Macy, and we will both be crying about you and a second later a song will come on and the next thing I know we are singing our lungs out together to an old school song, while laughing so hard we can hardly breathe. Thank god for those moments…. I need to be around people who make me laugh. Laughter really is the best medicine. For a few minutes a day, it makes me happy again.

I started Liam and Quinn in a camp over here today. They desperately need something to keep them busy, especially Quinn. He’s been really clingy to me which is understandable, but also not healthy for either of us. They both seemed to think it was o.k. and the will go back all week. I am hoping they will like it a little more tomorrow. I think it looks like a really fun camp, but I know for Quinn it’s just that he is separated from me and worries about where I am, what I’m doing, and if I’m coming back. He seems unsure about everything no matter how much I try to convince him that nothing is going to happen to me. What I really want to do is scream that he is absolutely right, that he is so fucking smart, that there are NO guarantees in life, and something could happen to me, as they could happen to any of us at any time of the day, because they can. Look at you, baby. My healthy, strong, baby boy who had this fucking cancer eating away at his body and nobody knew it. Quinn is completely right, completely intuitive, but that is not proper knowledge for an 8-year-old to know. It’s my job as his mom, to reassure him that everything is going to be o.k., when I know this in fact, could be a fucking lie. I am trying my best to protect the shred of innocence that your brothers have left. They have had to learn such a very hard lesson, one that a child should never have to learn. I have to make a choice with this lesson. I can either let it destroy them, or make them in to better human beings because of it. I am working on making them better human beings, trying to take losing you and the lessons that have come with it and turning it into something positive. It feels like such bullshit to me though because it’s not the truth. The truth is this is totally fucked and they shouldn’t have had to learn such a hard life lesson this way. All I really want to do is hide in bed, cry, and scream and let your brothers do the same. I can’t though. I have to go on, I have to give them what tiny pieces of me that I have left. I am giving them everything I have, but it is not much. They really are amazing little boys though. Such good, sweet, funny, smart, boys. Liam has the mind of a 30-year-old and Quinn and his memory that blows me away. I do find myself blown away during many points of the day over things that they say or do. Life has so quickly gotten ahead of me and it’s as if I cannot catch up, no matter how hard I try.

O.K. baby. I think I’m tired now. It’s 2:30 a.m. Ambien is kicking in. UGH. Once again I had so much more to say to you but just cannot do it tonight. Just know I miss you so much. I love you to the moon and back and hope you are safe. G’night my Ro baby. Love you forever.

xoxo

 

The start of many firsts without you. A.K.A. Fucking firsts. Thanks, S:)

Ronan. I’m tired tonight. I have not been sleeping well and I know it is because I am missing you so much. I don’t really know what it feels like to be depressed, but I think that’s what I’m feeling lately. I’m still going out, doing things, but my heart is so heavy that I sometimes feel like it is just gone. I don’t even feel like my heart lives inside of me anymore. It’s too heavy to carry around and I feel like when you left, you took my heart with you. I’m so sad. My tears are endless. My hurt is unbearable. I miss you every second of the day. Life is so strange without you here. We all feel it and we don’t know what to do with it.

Today, I took your little surfing brothers to camp. They both did really well but it was a cold day for them out there. I let them pack up a little early as they were excited to play with Laura and Kasey who came to see us today with Cameron and Chase. They arrived just in time to watch your brothers catch some waves. We spent the entire day and night with them. It is always so comforting to me to be with them as you know how much they mean to our family. It was a little hard today though too. Mainly because of all the time we spent with them with you. You and Cameron are so close and age and when the two of you were together, I used to dream of you growing up, being best friends, maybe dating :), but being together forever. Childhood friends for the rest of your life the way I grew up with Laura and pretty much Kasey too. I met Laura in the 8th grade. We became best friends. She met Kasey when she was 15 and they started dating. My two favorite high school sweethearts and our families blend so well together. Watching your daddy and Kasey together…. well, to me there is almost nothing better. Being with Laura, with all of you crazy kids, running about has always been one of my favorite things  about life.  To know that now that will never happen again with you, makes me so sad.

Tonight, Laura and I were sitting by the pool watching Cameron and Quinn play. Two summers ago, that was you…. “Baby Danger,” jumping off of the edge of the pool, scaring Laura to death all while I sat back and watched you and laughed. To sit tonight and watch Quinn swim quietly with Cameron, was so hard. I sat and cried and Laura just rubbed my back. I told her I just miss you and she asked if the days ever get easier. I told her no. So far, they have not. I told Mr. Sparky Eyes tonight that I don’t think time heals all wounds, if anything they just become deeper. I will be scarred for life after losing you. But I’ve got to figure out how to wear these scars with pride and dignity because that’s how you would have wanted it. I’m trying not to push myself too much as I need to let the dust settle because you left me such a short time ago. I want you back so badly, that I would trade having just one more day with you, for my life. Ronan. I miss you so much. I don’t know what else to write tonight as I am just too sad. I got a very sweet “Dear Ronan,” letter from Melissa that I am going to share with you. It is beautiful, just like she is. Thanks, M. You are so true and genuine which is why I love you so.

Dear Ronan,
I keep thinking back to Saturday, May 7th, two days before you died.  You were lying in bed, your legs were emaciated and your mamma kept rubbing them.  Ro, you were in so much pain. I thought your mamma’s hands would fall off, she never stopped rubbing your legs and little upper thighs. I laid for so long on that bed with your mamma and rubbed her back because I wanted to help her so much.  I offered to take over and rub your legs but you would only allow her to help you. She never stopped.  Your mamma went so long without eating or sleeping that last week you were alive that it was amazing she could function.  I kept buying her coconut water.  I think that was the extent of her nutrition.
I am 42,000 feet high in the sky tonight heading to Rhode Island.  
I am flying on ” A Big Jet Plane ”  Ronan, and I feel a little sad.  I am thinking about the amazing summer Dante and Alessia will experience and how you won’t live a life.  You had such a short time on earth. You were robbed of time.  As my Dante says, ” Ronan was dealt a shitty deck of cards, ” a little inappropriate for an eight year old to say but it is the truth. Your parents raced against the clock.  Time always wins Ronan, time is so unfair. Time has no respect for age, love, or hope. 
I do believe every one of us is on earth for a purpose.  I do believe your purpose is to be the beautiful poster child for awareness and funding for neuroblastoma. A horrific purpose for a family.
Do you want to talk about ignorance?  When your mamma told me you were diagnosed I had to go home and goggle it.  I placed a P where the B is located in that awful word. In August your mamma told me you had cancer, a perfect stranger at that time, and I decided I would be friends with Maya Thompson. Why not?
I brought her a coffee one day and realized immediately that I got so much more out of the visit then I ever thought possible and loved her personality and determination.  Remember how you would throw me out of your hospital room at times when I would visit?  You were so feisty!  I hated leaving your mamma but she did not mind because you were happy.
I was having horrific nightmares after you died.  It all started the day your mamma showed me your ashes while in your home one afternoon.  I told her they scared me and could not believe they were in the kitchen.  The worst nightmare was about your mamma and I in Frys Supermarket.  She was running around screaming, “where is Ronan ?” We looked and looked but we could not find you anywhere and there was a clock on the wall showing us we were out of time to find you.  I then ran all the way to the ocean and when I got to the shore I found a body floating dead in the water and it was Alessia.  I would then awake and my heart would be racing and pounding. 
The dream must have derived from your mamma’s horrific and tear jerking blog, “Where’s Ronan ?”  I read that blog too many times.  I couldn’t help it because I could not believe I watched you drink a coke on Saturday and demand those Star Wars guys be placed in good and bad categories on your bed, then visited Sunday night and then you were gone forever…………
Well, I no longer have that nightmare thank goodness.  I think it is because I finally realized where you are, right in your mammas heart and soul. 
I’m sorry the prayers did not work, I am sorry that time won and I am sorry that your parents had to go through hell to make others realize all the good in their lives.  So many people are better for knowing your sad story.
I am so lucky that Dante, Alessia, Liam and Quinn all go to school together.  We are all going to be friends forever.  We were at your house the day they left for California. I was so happy to see the boys excitement about the trip. I promised your mom she would never be “one of those moms.”   You know, the useless ones that talk a lot but never make a difference.  Mamma and I are going to keep drinking our extra hot vanilla lattes and do a whole bunch of good work.  Your mom has a team.  I have never seen one person have so many amazing friends.  I have always thought it was a blessing to have a few close friends…but not your mom…she has multiple teams of friends.  Maya Thompson reminds me of a tornado, a good one. 
I can’t wait to see what she does once she is a feeling a little bit better.
By the way, my phone still twerps like a bird.  I loved how it would make you giggle.  Your adorable giggle will remain in my heart forever.  
Thank you Ronan.  Thank you for all your life lessons and making me a better person. 
Love,
Melissa 
I’m going to end this post tonight now. I am going to try to get to sleep at a decent hour as I can feel my body shutting down due to the lack of sleep and overdoing things. Ronan. I love you to the moon and back baby. I hope you are safe. Please don’t go too far away from me. I still worry about you so much. G’nite my sweet boy.