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Ambiguous loss.

Some of the deepest grief we experience is for people who are still alive.

How much sleep have you lost trying to understand what you did wrong? What character flaw you must possess that would cause someone you love to stop communicating with you?

With each holiday that passes without a reply, the loss grows. Each unanswered text, ignored email, and missed milestone adds another layer to the grief. You grieve not only the relationship as it was, but the relationship you hoped it would become.

Unlike death, there is no funeral, no acknowledgment from others that a loss has occurred. Yet the pain can be just as profound. The person is still here, but the connection is gone.

There are only so many ways to apologize for something you don't know you did.

The truth is, you may never know why it happened. And sometimes, in searching for answers, we hurt our own hearts more. We replay conversations, question our worth, and carry responsibility for wounds we may not have caused.

At some point, we have to consider another possibility: maybe the silence isn't about us at all.

Sometimes grief asks us to mourn not only what was lost, but what will never be. And sometimes healing begins when we accept that not every question will be answered.

Sometimes, as difficult as it is to admit, it's a them problem.

This Thing Called Grief