A Tough Story Filled With Gold

09/19/19 • 24 min

“Now I am trusting myself. I trust my decisions. I stand by my decisions. I know what’s best now and I speak up now.” Melissa Pierce didn’t succumb when tragedy struck, she persevered through the pain and transformed into a stronger person because of it. She learned to accept herself as the person she had become. She moved on to write a book and share her experiences with others.

A Widow’s Tough Story Filled With Gold

Melissa’s story starts when Melisa and David were a couple struggling with fertility in 2005 and they decided they wanted to adopt two little boys. In 2011 Melissa woke up and David did not. She had become a widow overnight.
Melissa relayed her story of struggle, how she moved closer to her family and decided to get help. The first six months she felt like a zombie, but came to the conclusion that if she didn’t help herself she couldn’t help her kids, so she started her road to recovery.
When a widow’s grief and stress showed up in her body, she took part in things that made her feel good: yoga, acupuncture, massage and exercise. Over a year later she found she was recovering but continues to have her moments to this day.
Melissa learned to accept the person she has become after her husband’s death and has become stronger for it.

Listen to the episode for the full story.

Resources Mentioned in the Show: http://filledwithgold.org/

Stacy’s Journal

Welcome to Stacy’s Journal! In this segment, I let you peek into my journal as I share my thoughts on a topic or resilience resource.

Grief is a tough thing. I would like to encourage everyone suffering through grief to seek professional help. Don’t attempt to go through grieving a loss on your own, even if you don’t feel like you need it. There is often a stigma surrounding counseling and therapy, letting a stranger in is a daunting task however bouncing your feelings off someone and talking about what you’re feeling can really help you heal.

For those who are grieving, or even just those who are in turmoil, find something you truly enjoy. Keep exploring until you find it. Melissa found tap-dancing and found it to help her get out of her head and just have fun. It could be anything from Jiu-jitsu to coloring pictures just find something that you like doing.

That’s all we have for today. Last episode, Jennifer Lynn McGraw shared her own trials and tribulations – to grow from your past and help others on their own journey, you might want to go back and have a listen. Next week, we’ll interview Anna Seewald who experienced a catastrophic earthquake that changed her life forever.

I love interacting with our listeners on social media. We’re on Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube, and just about anywhere you can hold a great virtual conversation. Plus, I answer all my emails personally, so feel free to email me: stacy{at}stacybrookman{dot}com.

100 Most Important Memoirs of the Past 200 Years

Our memoir of the day is One Liter of Tears written in 1986 by Aya Kito. This story follows Kitō’s coping with both her teenage life and her degenerative disease. She keeps a diary of what she feels and the hardships she endures. As the disease progresses, the diary became her outlet for describing the intense personal struggles she underwent in coping, adapting, and ultimately trying to survive her disease. As she notes in one entry, “I write because writing is evidence that I am still alive.” Check out One Liter of Tears and all the memoirs on this list at stacybrookman.com/100memoirs.

About: Melissa Pierce

Melissa Grahek Pierce is the author of Filled With Gold, written with Christine Fadden. She went through a tremendous trial when she lost her husband after adopting two young boys, and the book is the story of her journey. Now, she helps other widows cope with their own losses and move forward. She enjoys her roles as a wife, mother, sister, life coach, and friend. Melissa currently calls Portland, Oregon, home.

Links:

A Widow’s Tough Story Filled With Gold

Melissa’s story starts when Melisa and David were a couple struggling with fertility in 2005 and they decided they wanted to adopt two little boys. In 2011 Melissa woke up and David did not. She had become a widow overnight.
Melissa relayed her story of struggle, how she moved closer to her family and decided to get help. The first six months she felt like a zombie, but came to the conclusion that if she didn’t help herself she couldn’t help her kids, so she started her road to recovery.
When a widow’s grief and stress showed up in her body, she took part in things that made her feel good: yoga, acupuncture, massage and exercise. Over a year later she found she was recovering but continues to have her moments to this day.
Melissa learned to accept the person she has become after her husband’s death and has become stronger for it.

Listen to the episode for the full story.

Resources Mentioned in the Show: http://filledwithgold.org/

Stacy’s Journal

Welcome to Stacy’s Journal! In this segment, I let you peek into my journal as I share my thoughts on a topic or resilience resource.

100 Most Important Memoirs of the Past 200 Years

About: Melissa Pierce

Links:

Previous Episode

Navigate With Soul

Everyone goes through their own trials and tribulations but it’s about overcoming them through not only mental strength but vocally. To grow from your past and help others on their own journey. It only takes one spark to start a fire.

Navigate With Soul

Tough childhood: Jennifer Lynn McGraw and her sisters were victimized by abuse throughout their childhood. I interviewed Jennifer for this podcast and she thrived in spite of her past.

Jennifer remained silent about her abuse until her youngest son entered college. Then she felt ready to start writing down her life’s journey.

She published her first book, Changing Lanes from Hell to Heaven, on Amazon to share her story and connect with others.
After a while, Jennifer took her books off the shelf to remodel, edit, and overall create something even more fulfilling, which is now called, Navigating with Soul.
Jennifer is a nurse as well as a mentor to many. She has been studying and practicing wellness for over 30 years. Focusing on teens, she encourages them to mentor in a win win situation.

Listen to the episode for the full story.

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Stacy’s Journal

Welcome to Stacy’s Journal! In this segment, I let you peek into my journal as I share my thoughts on a topic or resilience resource.

Jennifer mentioned that she wanted to be a voice, or a champion, for those who feel like they can’t express themselves or speak up about abuse. She herself was afraid of the repercussions from her family. Victims are the ones who remain silent. I would like to encourage anyone who has been a victim, whether it’s from abuse, or some other life event, to start writing it down. Writing helps you get it out of your head, find words for what’s happened to you, and helps you gain power over those thoughts and that event rather than letting it have power over you. You never have to share it with anyone at all. It’s incredibly healthy and even life-changing to write about those tough times. It can be personal, just for you. Just start with 10 minutes a day in a journal and see where that takes you.

That’s all we have for today. Last episode, Luiza Coscia shared some great strategies for raising children to be resilient. – so, if you need to help your children to be more resilient, you might want to go back and have a listen. Next week, we’ll interview Melissa Pierce who became a widow and single parent overnight.

100 Most Important Memoirs of the Past 200 Years

Our memoir of the day is Boy: Tales of Childhood written in 1984 by Roald Dahl. Throughout his young days at school and just afterwards, a number of things happened to Dahl, which made such a tremendous impression he never forgot them. This is the remarkable story of his childhood; tales of exciting and strange things – some funny, some frightening, all true. It describes his life in Britain from birth until leaving school, and how his childhood experiences led him to writing as a career. Check out Boy: Tales of Childhood and all the memoirs on this list at stacybrookman.com/100memoirs.

About: Jennifer Lynn McGraw

Jennifer Lynn McGraw is a Registered Nurse Certified in Maternal Newborn as well as a Certified Diabetes Educator and Nutritionist. She has spent many years in Health Education and helping young adults manage their diets and exercise. Her goal is to help adolescents learn how to change their thought patterns, behaviors, and ultimately the direction of their life. She teaches them how to create a window where positive energy replaces the negative, and fills them with a sense of well-being.

Links:

Website: JenniferLynnMcGraw.net

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Next Episode

The Other Side of Adversity

In one day, your whole world could crumble and everything you treasure could be lost. That is exactly what happened to Anna Seewald in Armenia, where an earthquake resulted in overwhelming tragedy. Although she struggled through adversity, she found healing through community bonds. Her philosophy: together, we could overcome anything.

The Other Side of Adversity

Anna, growing up in Armenia, lived a peaceful and fulfilling childhood until her home town was hit with a catastrophic earthquake. The tragedy resulted in the loss of her mother, younger cousin, and many more friends and relatives.
Anna had to move with other relatives in a foreign country, however, the experience allowed her to grow more resilient and empowering as she lives her life now in America.
Overcoming her struggles, Anna became a parent counselor where she guides parents who’ve also been through trauma and abuse. She sees herself in them as they are on the same side of adversity.
Anna did work with children at the beginning of her career. She believes that focusing on the parents and how they raise their children will result in a better home for both the parents and children.
Anna credits her strength and resilience to the community she was in, relationships she bonded through, and the love she received as well as gave. She believes she is where she is at because of the unspoken bond of empathy.
After the earthquake, and to this day, Anna processes her pain through the art of music, poetry, and writing.

Listen to the episode for the full story.

Resources Mentioned in the Show:

Anna’s upcoming book still in the making, The Other Side of Adversity

Stacy’s Journal

Welcome to Stacy’s Journal! In this segment, I let you peek into my journal as I share my thoughts on a topic or resilience resource.

Anna expressed just how valuable having her community with her through the hardship they were all experiencing. She credits her strength to the bonds and relationships she kept and created. That the emotional support and love that she gained was what enabled her to keep on pushing through. This insight really goes to show that if you are ever in a dark place, it is really helpful to put some effort in asking for help, reaching out to trust other people, and surrounding yourself with positivity. You are strong on your own, so imagine the strength you can muster with the support of more. There’s power in numbers. But it’s up to you to take rightful advantage of such opportunities. No matter what you’re going through, you’re never alone. Take a little bit of time in your day to reach out, you or that other person might really need it.

That’s all we have for today. Last episode, Melissa Pierce who becomes a widow overnight – that if she didn’t help herself she couldn’t help her kids, so she started her road to recovery. Next week, we’ll interview Peggy Oliveira who believes that communication and recognition is the healthiest way to overcome trauma and to stop the trauma from creating any more damage to your life.

100 Most Important Memoirs of the Past 200 Years

Our memoir of the day is Not Without My Daughter was written in 1987 by Betty Mahmoody. In August 1984, Michigan housewife Betty Mahmoody accompanied her husband to his native Iran for a two-week vacation. To her horror, she found herself and her four-year-old daughter, Mahtob, virtual prisoners of a man rededicated to his Shiite Moslem faith, in a land where women are near-slaves and Americans are despised. Their only hope for escape lay in a dangerous underground that would not take her child. Check out Not Without My Daughter and all the memoirs on this list at stacybrookman.com/100memoirs.