I lost a grandparent for the first time at 26. I was surprised by how much it affected me.

"It's only this year, at the age of 26, that I've had a grandparent - my maternal grandmother - die. It was hard at first to believe that she was gone. My nan lived two or three miles away from my family while I was growing up, so we saw her regularly. After my parents, she was the person who cared for me and my sister the most growing up. Because of this, it felt as though a part of my childhood died with her."

"Her funeral was three weeks after she died. It was one of the most difficult mornings of my life, but it did begin to offer a degree of closure. A few days later, my girlfriend and I went on vacation, and the trip was just what I needed. Even now, I'm still struggling. It's gradually getting easier, and I certainly relate to the famous stages of grief model."

I experienced the death of my maternal grandmother at age 26, the first grandparent loss I had faced. She lived nearby during my childhood and cared for me and my sister after our parents, so her death felt like a part of my childhood dying. The funeral three weeks later was one of the most difficult mornings of my life, but it began to offer a measure of closure. A vacation with my girlfriend a few days afterward provided needed respite. Grief continues to affect me, but it is gradually getting easier and fond memories sometimes ease the acute pain.

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