143 Tamara Gabriel | Grieving Parents 10 Years Later

HOW TO DEAL WITH GRIEF AND TRAUMA is completely self-funded, produced, and edited by me, Nathalie Himmelrich.
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About this week’s episode

Today on the podcast, I’m speaking with Tamara Gabriel. 

In our conversation, we look back over almost 30 years since the death of her daughter, a decade since speaking about Jenna’s death, to when we worked on the book Surviving My First Year of Child Loss in 2017, to now, 10 years later. 

Her nine-year-old daughter Janna died over the Fourth of July weekend in 1997, when Tamara was driving to a friend’s home. The car hydroplaned and collided with another car, killing Janna.

Tamara became isolated in her grief and felt people had turned away from her. She responded by writing a poem about the importance of hugs:

If You See Me

If you see me, do not run . . .

I know that talk is not much fun.

I know your hearts are sure to tug,

But all I need is just a hug.

After her poem was published in the local paper, many people approached her, saying they’d read it, and then hugged her.

Sixteen years later, in 2013, Tamara started Healing Hugs. This nonprofit organisation assists with funeral-related services or other expenses. For example, when Tamara learned that, for a number of complicated reasons, a child did not yet have a headstone, she offered to provide one for his grave.

About this week’s guest

Tamara Gabriel is a massage therapist. She works with her husband, who is a psychiatrist in his medical clinic. They’ve been together for 23 years, married for 19, they are happily married and livi