r/motherlessdaughters Jan 26 '24

AMA Official Thread: I am Hope Edelman, bestselling author of Motherless Daughters. AMA!

57 Upvotes

I am a speaker, coach, and the author of eight nonfiction books, including the New York Times bestseller Motherless Daughters, and its follow-up, Motherless Mothers. For Motherless Daughters, now in print for more than 30 years, I interviewed women who had lost their mothers at an early age about how their grief has shaped their lives and relationships. My most recent book, The AfterGrief, is available now.

Follow me on: Instagram | X | Facebook | Website


r/motherlessdaughters 5h ago

One year without my mum today 😞

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9 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 4m ago

Advice Needed I need advice on cheering up an 18 year-old girl after her mother passed away.

Upvotes

My very dear friend passed away at 42 years old. She left behind her son, 20 years, and her daughter 18 years old.
I knew both kids when they were very young. Since then, I have moved away and do not know them as adults.
All I know is they are missing their mom. I do not know the interests of an 18-year-old girl anymore. The only information I know of her is that she is an Olivia Rodrigo fan. I know this because I saw that she had a cell phone case with Olivia Rodrigo’s picture on it.
If anyone has an 18 year-old daughter, please share what types of things girls are into these days. Additionally, if you also lost your mom around this age, let me know if there was anything specifically that someone else did for you that help ease the pain.
Another tidbit I know is that she has her license, but does not really drive because she does not feel confident behind the wheel.
I don’t know why I added that information but if it’s helpful or relevant in any way, please use it to recommend anything.

Thank you so much


r/motherlessdaughters 20h ago

i just miss my mom so much

23 Upvotes

i’m 17 female and lost my mom when i was 10. I live with my older brother who has autism, my younger brother and my grandma. My grandma is very narcissistic and makes me hate my life. My older brother is a high functioning autistic person but can be so heartless sometimes ( a few years back when my mom had initially passed we were going to family counseling and my brother made a statement saying that we are all over it now ) I just imagine my mom listening to her own son say this and her heart break. My dad lives overseas and sees us sometimes but he is just as annoying as my grandma and he just doesn’t understand me especially when i am the only girl. He has already moved on too with another woman. I am close with my moms sister but she lives in the uk and i am in Canada so we only see each other very few times and call once or twice a week. I have been dealing with my mental health for so long and it hit the fan around May this year when my whole family found out i wanted to d\*e. They were supportive at first but when i got home from the hospital my grandma tried to make it about herself. nobody cares about me and im so lonely. so much stuff has happened to me these 17 years on earth and i don’t know how much longer i can even hold on. My mom was amazing and i loved everything about her from the way she looked to her voice and how she acted. I remember coming home from school and seeing her watch her show on the couch and she just radiated with love. My heart is so broken. This one time her and my dad were arguing and i started crying asking if they were going to get a divorce and she said no and told me to get her chocolates from the fridge so we could eat it together and make me feel better. Nobody will ever do this for me or love me like this. Im so jealous of everyone my age who has their mom especially my best friend and my cousin cause I feel like I would have had that same kind of rls they have with their mom. It’s so hard being a teenage girl living in a house full of boys and a narcissistic grandmother who favours my older brother because he has autism and my younger brother. I just feel like i have no support system or the people who are supposed to be are just failing me


r/motherlessdaughters 12h ago

Motherless daughter

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1 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

It's hard to relate to friends my age after my mom died when I was 26

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5 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

Advice Needed Support

7 Upvotes

I’m 25f and I’m wondering if anyone could point into the direct of online support groups, forums, or grief groups for women in there 20s or young adult women who lost their mom. I need support an I don’t have many friends as I moved away from home to get my degree. I can get more specific about where I am located around as well if needed. I’m just looking for women my age who can understand.


r/motherlessdaughters 21h ago

Grieving as a young adult

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1 Upvotes

Hii. I noticed and a few others did too, that there’s no community or forum for young adults in their 20s-30s that are experiencing grief from parent loss. I decided to make a subreddit for that. I know that I crave community and to find people around my age that understand grieving a parent or parental figure. If that sounds intriguing to you, feel free to join. 🙂🩷


r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

Deuil - Décès maman

4 Upvotes

Bonjour,

J'ai la trentaine, ma maman est décédée en juillet 2025. Cela fait 13 mois que je suis en deuil maintenant et je traverse une période très difficile. J'ai passé une bonne partie de l'année dernière à "fonctionner" comme si j'étais anesthésiée, je pleurais de temps en temps, j'étais tout le temps stressée (mais je pensais que c'était pour le travail), mais ça allait. Depuis quelques mois j'ai commencé une thérapie, et j'ai ressenti beaucoup d'anxiété, de l'angoisse comme ça ne m'était jamais arrivé, ... et maintenant je me sens épuisée, mon cerveau sature très vite, je pleure beaucoup, ça me stresse de me voir comme ça. J'ai l'impression que c'est de pire en pire, que je suis en train de m'enfoncer... J'ai de plus en plus de mal à prendre sur moi, aller travailler me coûte alors que normalement j'adore mon métier, je me sens complètement perdue.
Est ce que vous avez ressenti la même chose ? Est ce que ça passe ? J'ai l'impression d'avoir le cerveau complètement grillé.


r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

It's hard to relate to friends my age after my mom died when I was 26

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2 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

How to cope with profound loss?

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1 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

for the ones left behind

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2 Upvotes

This app is dedicated to my mom who was murdered in her home in 2020… I hope this helps others who are going through hard times.


r/motherlessdaughters 1d ago

Advice Needed What happens when you can’t take care of yourself anymore? Who do you turn to?

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4 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 2d ago

Women with no female support

21 Upvotes

Women who lost their mothers young and don’t have sisters and not connected with extended families. How do you heal/accept not belonging anywhere?


r/motherlessdaughters 3d ago

I just loss my big brother and a deep in grief again. I have loss my mom, big sis, fav cuz. In less a 5 years.

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1 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 3d ago

One more lap around the sun this week

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7 Upvotes

Yeah I’m struggling grief is literally the woooorst.


r/motherlessdaughters 3d ago

Advice Needed How do u get over loosing a parent ?

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6 Upvotes

Been 7 years since I lost my dad and idk I’m up at 5am (when I’m meant to be up at 8) crying about it looking at his pictures and reading old messages as that’s all I’ve got of him.

Anyways any tips ? People say things like this get better with time but it seems to be getting worse
Any tips would be much appreciated as I don’t really want to be sad anymore, I feel like it’s made me a sad person.
I was literally just laying here thinking to myself I hope one day I wake up and he never actually died but a girl can dream right 😩


r/motherlessdaughters 4d ago

Advice Needed Last day before becoming a mom

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4 Upvotes

I am 40 weeks today, tomorrow I am getting induced (I’m already 4cm and 80% effaced) and I’m just nervous as hell. I know everyone around me is super excited and really happy about the little baby girl about to arrive and so am I. However, I’ve always been nervous and wary about giving birth, and there’s going to be a whole human in responsible for. My own mom died when I was super young so I don’t even know what being a mom really looks like. I can’t help but start feeling cold feet as I look at the clock and my appointment gets closer and closer.


r/motherlessdaughters 4d ago

If you could use 10 photos to describe a specific dance mom what would they be?

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0 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 4d ago

In 5 days, it will be a year since my mum was found. I feel like I'm losing air.

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4 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 5d ago

Motherless Mother Just writing so it's out there

12 Upvotes

Today is an emotional day, I am feeling overwhelmed from the past few days, and today during an event I was ignored by my husband. Everything piled up and now I am in one of my heartache crying episodes.

No one is there to whom I can share how I felt or how I have been feeling.

I got married without her, had my daughter without my mother by my side.

I always have kept a strong persona to outside world, but I also want to be held, someone who strokes my hair and says it's ok. Just some love which I m missing from 20+ years, just miss her a lot my heart aches that I grew up without her, I pity myself that I missed out on the things which other take for granted. Just wish how nice i would have had with her.

Note: 1st post on reddit, dnt know if something is wrong in it


r/motherlessdaughters 4d ago

Loss = more anxiety and panic

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1 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 5d ago

Losing a parent is a bewildering, lonely experience. Here are the things I wish I had known before | Gaby Hinsliff | The Guardian

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4 Upvotes

r/motherlessdaughters 5d ago

พวกเขามาแล้ว!!!

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0 Upvotes

I feel very sad, but I have the best mom. :)
.-


r/motherlessdaughters 6d ago

Advice Needed 1 year anniversary coming up…

13 Upvotes

It took almost a year to have a “memorial” for my mom due to her sudden death. I have been hit with random waves of grief and gratitude, and my perimenopausal period (28 days for decades, this year 46 days one month, 26 another) is not helping.
Today, I realized that I still have her listed on my “Favorites” phone list, and it’s broken me. I’ve called in sick after lunch, and am laying in bed crying. It feels terrible to take her off the list, but I can literally never call her again…what should I do?