losing my mom, mother in law & older sister in the space of exactly 18 months in the midst of living through a global pandemic

On March 21, 2020, just as Covid was hitting Canada, my mom passed away due to complications after falling & breaking her hip. Just 2 months later, we said goodbye to my mother in law after she too experienced complications after a fall. Both of these women in my life had also been living with dementia, my mom for several years & my mother in law more recently. The loss of these important women in my life was made more difficult due to Covid, especially with my mom as everything was shutting completely down & we were only able to celebrate her life with a very small graveside service with myself, my dad and my younger sister, her husband & 2 children.

In December 2019 my oldest sister received the news that she had stage 4 colon cancer. (Yes, your story resonates very loudly for me. ) . She received treatment for almost 2 years, but in late August 2021 she was told her treatments were no longer working. A month later (much quicker than any of us anticipated) exactly 18 months after my mom’s death, she lost her battle. Her death, as someone only 3 years older than me, hits extra hard as it accentuates my own mortality.

I would have to say, there is no cure for losing the people you love. Learning how to deal with the loses & continue on with life can be so hard.