Introduction: getting over getting over it -- Chapter one: the story of grief -- Chapter two: getting it together -- Chapter three: something new -- Chapter four: old grief: recurrent and resurgent -- Chapter five: new old grief: one-time transitions -- Chapter six: the rings of grief -- Chapter seven: the power of story -- Chapter eight: People, we need to talk (and write, and paint, and perform) -- Chapter nine: exceptions in search of a narrative -- Chapter ten: reauthoring your story of loss -- Chapter eleven: story cracking: getting from A to Z -- Chapter twelve: story mending: finding continuity -- Epilogue: the missing elements of grief

"A validating new approach to the long-term grieving process that explains why we feel "stuck," why that's normal, and how shifting a perception of grief can help us grow--from the New York Times bestselling author of Motherless Daughters Shouldn't I be over this by now? Why do I still feel the pain? Because of the common assumption that grief should be time-limited, too many of us believe we've done it "wrong" when sadness reemerges months or even years after a major loss. In The AfterGrief, Hope Edelman offers a new and reality-affirming paradigm: grief is not an emotion to pass through on the way to "feeling better," but a state that we repeatedly return to as we experience important life transitions and new crises. Drawing from her own encounters with the ripple effects of early loss, as well as interviews with more than seventy-five people, Edelman offers profound advice for reassessing loss and adjusting the stories we tell ourselves about its impact on our identities. With guidance for reframing a story of loss, finding equilibrium within it, and experiencing renewed growth and purpose, The AfterGrief shows that though grief may be a lifelong process, it doesn't have to be a lifelong struggle"--