After losing parents, Texas woman offers guidance to help others cope with grief

Texas - A woman from north Texas is sharing her story of grief to try to help others. Theo Boyd went through the unimaginable five years ago. Her dad accidentally ran over her mother on a tractor on their farm in Waxahachie and killed her, shortly before their 50th wedding anniversary. 

Theo says her family tried to give him as much support as possible, but the pain was just too extreme, and two years later, when she went to surprise him on Father's Day, she discovered that her beloved dad had taken his own life. He had been a pastor for more than 30 years, but the pain was too much for him to bear. 

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Now Theo is offering six specific tips to help others work through their pain, and she encourages everyone to seek counseling if they are depressed or overwhelmed. Theo shares her experience and knowledge in her new book 'My Grief is Not Like Yours'. 

"It's so important for people to realize why I titled it that. Shortly after my mom's funeral, well-intentioned people were coming to me, and other grievers out there can relate, sometimes offering comparisons. It didn't matter what they said! The words "My grief is not like yours" kept coming to mind. If you haven't lost your mom by a tractor, driven by your father, then I can't relate to you, and so I felt very unheard in my grief early on. I thought, if I'm feeling this way, there has to be millions of people feeling unheard, so my mission in life is to help people to not only learn how to grieve, but to know what to say and know what to do," explains Theo.

She now encourages all of us to enjoy more "f's" in our life, meaning friends, family, food, fun, fellowship, foundation, and faith. She walks you through all of that in her book, and now she's working on the next version of it, to be released next year. She also wants to point out that grief comes in many forms and can range from losing a job or even finances during inflation, or the loss of a pet, and she hopes her knowing words of advice will help them, as well.

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Theo also wants to remind everyone that if you're in crisis, you are never alone. Talk to someone!  You can call 988 any time of day or night for help and advice to get you through a difficult time.