Grief & Gratitude

As the holidays quickly approach, the Dolls have spent time reflecting on the past year. There has been love, loss and so much in between as this pandemic has swept the world. Keep reading for four tips that Caitlin and Danielle intend to practice this holiday season.

Caitlin here. Many of you know that in the past year I gave birth to my son and two weeks later lost my father. I was flooded with a whirlwind of emotions. The beauty and pain of life hit all at once – and I’m bracing for it all to resurface this holiday season. One thing I know, is that I’m not in this alone. Dani and I have a pact to stick together through it all. Furthermore, through the community that we have built on Social Media, we both know that there are many more Dolls in the same boat.

If you can’t help but wonder, how can you possibly prepare to face all of the feels? We have to be honest and say that we don’t have a specific answer. What we can do is share the knowledge and determination we are arming ourselves with this year.

Create a Safe Place – This holiday season, we will be keeping our homes cared for and celebrated. By “homes” – we are referring to A.) our physical body and B.) the roof the over our heads. We will work on being our best physical self. That means keeping up with our latest workout obsession (right now it’s Pvolve), maintaining our skin care routines (perhaps even a trip to the med spa), drinking tons of water, taking our supplements, and treating ourselves to a massage. We’ll fuel our bodies with nutritious food, and treat ourselves to our favorite pasta recipes. Under our roofs, we will try our best to keep things tidy! A messy home can create mess in our minds – so we’re avoiding that at all costs. We are also working with Fox Pest Control (mention DOLLHOUSE for $50 off your service) to keep any unwanted critters away AND with New Wave Enviro for fresh filtered water from the tap. We’ll of course also add some seasonal décor for holiday cheer!
Expect Triggers – The thing about grief, is that you never know when you will burst into tears – feel overwhelmed – isolated – helpless – mad. Know that however you are feeling is totally valid. You’re not alone. Try to breath and grant yourself grace. This isn’t easy and you are doing the best you can. One tactic is to create a mantra – a word or phrase that you repeat over and over again – to keep yourself calm and simply get through it.
Share Stories – Although it can be emotional, sharing stories about our loved ones can be incredibly therapeutic. There is good in these stories, and can even turn those tears into laughter. Communicating this way with loved ones can help everyone who is experiencing grief bond and stick together.
Practice Gratitude – It has been said that gratitude is one of the most healing tools that we have access to. While we are grateful for the deep love we have experienced, the loss of that same great love leaves us grieving. It seems these two go hand-in-hand and the gratitude bit is necessary to move forward. Personally, I remind myself of what my dad would want. He would want me to appreciate the food, people and experiences around me this holiday season. He would want me to smile, enjoy my husband, care for my son and relish in my career. He would want me to genuinely be happy because I deserve that, and so do you.

These photos were captured by one of our best Dolls and favorite photographer, Crystal Nicole at Spring Willow Farm. Follow her on Instagram! Crystal also records and produces Pop Candy Podcast. Give it a listen!