MY STORY

My world turned upside down when my father had a heart attack in May of 2017. We spent five days fighting, praying, and hoping he would make a miraculous recovery, but it never came. My family and I said goodbye to him on May 22nd. The unexpected submersion into grief was by far the most difficult time of my life. Common thoughts included: Why are people saying “it never gets better”?! How am I ever supposed to function again? My life is over, right? During that time, I understood more of myself, I understood more of the world of grief, and I realized that there is a need for a greater understanding of loss for everyone. *Enter awkward stories of people who had no idea what to do or say around me after his death.*

The best grief advice I ever got was “Face it now. Don’t wait til later.” And that’s just what I did.

I found a great therapist who I saw weekly (though the first few sessions were just sobs), a psychiatrist who helped me appropriately medicate, and I started journaling about my grief. I know those few sentences make it seem so short and sweet– but it wasn’t. It was a lot of work. But I can confidently say I’m in the place where I am today because of the work I put in on myself.

I went to a storytelling competition in July of 2017… and WON! It was the first time I felt blood pumping through my veins again. I tried to figure out how to recapture that feeling and turned to podcasting. I knew nothing about the craft at the time, other than a microphone was involved and that I was comfortable in front of one.

I also wanted to create a store for modern sympathy gifts. After lots of late nights and Google rabbit holes, I eventually created the So Sorry For Your Loss podcast and blog and opened an ecommerce store called All The Skies. I have other resources too, like a Grief Resource Guide, Community, YouTube and social media accounts. All can be found on this site!

Start With My Grief Guide

THE GIANNA QUIZ

GET TO KNOW ME IN A FLASH

1. THE LABELS I ANSWER TO:

A. Entrepreneur
B. Wife
C. Mom
D. Grief Expert
E. Other All of the above

2. I COULD EAT THIS MEAL EVERYDAY:

A. Sushi
B. Pasta
C. Pizza
D. Tacos
E. Other

3. MY DREAM HOME IS BY THE:

A. Mountains
B. Farm
C. Beach
D. City
E. Other

4. I HAVE THIS MANY SIBLINGS:

A. One
B. Two
C. Three
D. Zero
E. Other

5. BONUS: MY FAVORITE QUOTE ABOUT GRIEF IS:

You have to feel it to heal it!

SHOP

All The Skies

A modern grief boutique with unique products to send as sympathy gifts or to treat yourself. Find helpful books, self-care products, and one-of-a-kind apparel.
The name of the brand is influenced by my father, Gary, telling me he loved me more than “All the oceans, and all the skies,” each time we parted.

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