I refuse to find personal growth in my daughter’s death
Danielle Crittenden reflects on her profound grief following the sudden death of her daughter, Miranda, at the age of 32. She challenges the notion that personal growth can emerge from such tragedy, expressing frustration with the idea of neatly defined stages of grief. Crittenden emphasizes the raw and chaotic nature of mourning, rejecting the expectation that one must find meaning or strength in their suffering.
- ▪Danielle Crittenden lost her daughter Miranda to complications from a brain tumor at the age of 32.
- ▪Crittenden criticizes the concept of grief having tidy stages, as proposed by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross.
- ▪She expresses frustration with societal expectations to find personal growth in the aftermath of tragedy.
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Open this photo in gallery:Danielle Crittenden’s daughter Miranda died suddenly at the age of 32.SuppliedShareSave for laterPlease log in to bookmark this story.Log InCreate Free AccountDanielle Crittenden is the author of Dispatches From Grief: A Mother’s Journey Through the Unthinkable.If you suffer a tragedy, there will be no shortage of people offering hope. “You’ll get through this.” “It’s hard now but it will get better.” “You’re strong – and one day you’ll realize this will make you stronger.” It’s a kind impulse. It’s a generous impulse. But it’s also the most unwelcome impulse.Two years ago I suddenly lost my eldest daughter, Miranda. She was 32. The cause was complications from a brain tumour she’d had removed five years earlier, along with the pituitary gland it had destroyed.
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