This is a picture of me and my mum, Julie on my 17th birthday and it's one of my favourite photos ever. I lost my mum in 2018 to a short battle with cancer. She was diagnosed in May and passed away in August of 2018. In the two months leading up to her death we became very close and this made my grief more difficult. I didn't figure this out however, until 2022 when I decided to try counselling again, for a different reason, and ended up exploring my grief. I hadn't realised the hold it had over me. Everyday was a struggle, mentally and emotionally. Then, finally one day, it clicked. My grief was complex and I needed a safe space to explore it in more detail. I can still remember the session, it was like a light switch. Everything came flooding back, all the repressed memories and emotions. It was hard. But, I made it through and now I am at peace with my grief.